Companies spend a lot of time, money, and energy to improve business processes and implement the latest, greatest emerging technologies. Doing so, after all, is necessary to remain competitive and agile. But what’s equally important, if not more so, is to spend time, money, and energy focusing on the most important asset your company has—your workforce.
According to ASUG research, the battle for talent is fierce, forcing companies to experiment with strategies to entice prospects and keep their best team members happy. The challenge is doing this while keeping pace with advances in technology as well as customer expectations that continue to change.
The front-line managers and their teams tasked with meeting this challenge will have an opportunity to discuss solutions and learn about trends during the ASUG Experience for Human Resources & Payroll in Toronto, Oct. 16–18. Representatives from more than 100 companies in industries such as government, higher education, and retail will meet to discuss SAP SuccessFactors and other SAP solutions designed to meet today’s workforce demands.
One Part Talent: One Part Business
Workforce demands are changing quickly, and if HR teams aren’t keeping pace, they’re likely falling behind in not only meeting employee needs, but also in meeting business goals. According to ASUG research, current and potential employees are looking for the opportunity to work remotely as well as have flexibility in their schedules. This means employers need to think about keeping productivity a priority while meeting everyone’s expectations.
The right technology can help keep employees remain connected and accessible and it can also help keep the business running smoothly and efficiently. During the two-day conference, attendees can learn more about trending technologies and how they work in a variety of breakout sessions geared toward payroll, workforce analytics, SAP SuccessFactors, the cloud, and ERP human capital management systems. There will be something for everyone going through all different phases of transformation.
“With a variety of topics to choose from, there’s always something interesting and specific to what you need to learn,” said Ed Hagar, manager of compensation, benefits, HRIS, and wellness at Ingalls Shipbuilding.
Know Your Workforce
Hagar will present at this year’s conference and discuss lessons learned from Ingalls’ rollout strategy, current usage, and reporting capabilities using SAP SuccessFactors Workforce Analytics. This will be the third year he’ll present at the conference. In 2017, he discussed the company’s go-live experience, and in 2018 he talked about its first-year journey.
“It’s important to me to pass on my experience because it's always nice to hear from someone who's been there, done that,” Hagar said. “It always helped me to hear success stories as well as obstacles encountered and workarounds for them from actual customers. That was especially useful when I was either in the consideration phase, or when I was in the thick of it. By hearing other people’s pain points, you can know what to avoid, what to expect, and how to prepare.”
In addition to “Drinking from a Firehose: Ingalls Shipbuilding's use of Workforce Analytics,” attendees can pick from other workforce analytics sessions and learn about managing HR data, modernizing talent management processes, and allowing data-driven transformation to match people to jobs where they’ll thrive.
Tracks to Success
Although there is a big push to go to the cloud, HR and payroll is usually one of the last to get on that path. Those in the process of—or just starting to consider—will have an opportunity to choose from various sessions focused on SAP SuccessFactors and moving to the cloud. And those not yet there can pick from sessions geared toward SAP HCM on-premise integration with SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central.
There will be subject-matter experts available to discuss road maps, but there will also be SAP customers who have shared concerns and experiences. “This is a unique opportunity to network with SAP HR and payroll colleagues,” said Jeff Wible, director of SAP HCM Systems at Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
Some of the breakout sessions to choose from this year include, “To the Core: SAP HCM On-Premise Road Map Updates and Latest Developments,” “Cintas' Year One in the Cloud: People, Process, and Partnership,” and “SAP SuccessFactors Road Map Overview.”
Attendees can learn everything from navigating the first year in the cloud to where the on-premise solution is going next and get a comprehensive understanding of what employee experience is and why it matters.
Your Conference, Your Experience
“Unlike SAPPHIRE NOW and ASUG Annual Conference, this conference is specifically focused on SAP’s human resource and payroll related functionality, which allows attendees to concentrate on these topics and network more easily with other customers with the same interests and challenges,” Wible said.
Apart from choosing your top sessions, you’ll want to be strategic about how you spend your time. Learning is one part of the conference, but networking is just as important.
“Try to make some new connections, Hagar said. “There are two types of connections: networking and connecting the dots. So, if you’re there with others from your company, try to make a point to step away from them and mingle with others. That’s one. The second: take notes, lots of notes. Come back to your office and think about how you can apply what you learned to what you do. Connect those lines.”
Join us June 22–25 for ASUGFORWARD to learn, exchange ideas, and gain information you can put into practice immediately. Register for the employee experience and human resources, taking place on June 24–25, to hear more of Birkenstock’s story, learn how your peers are conquering today’s challenges, and ask questions about their experiences.