Fewer opportunities for early talent 

The job marketplace has contracted significantly for those with less than five years of professional experience. Research published by 麻豆原创 shows that openings in the 10 most common entry-level job titles declined by 35% in just one year, from 2024 to 2025.*

Budget constraints, hiring freezes, and uncertainty around the ROI of early talent as AI increasingly takes on routine and manual tasks are among the reasons cited by HR leaders today.  

Applications skyrocket  

AI is also having a major impact on the recruitment process. With such limited opportunities available, more than half of early talent candidates use AI to help them land a job鈥攁 process that now takes eight months on average and involves more than 300 job applications.*

HR is feeling the pressure managing the candidate pipeline, with聽the number of applicants per early talent job opening doubling since 2021.聽A聽high volume of candidates聽are聽submitting聽AI-generated r茅sum茅s and applications, and it鈥檚 becoming much harder to detect high-fidelity signals around skills, fit, and potential.聽

It鈥檚聽a painful聽scenario for everyone involved. Fragile and unsustainable. And the聽implications聽will be聽profound for enterprises that聽don鈥檛聽act quickly.聽聽

HR leaders voice concerns  

Playing out the current聽trajectory聽to its natural conclusion, what happens when all the聽fresh talent eventually dries up? Already,聽HR leaders聽are alarmed by this risk.聽鈥淯ltimately, if we stop investing in early talent, we will wind up eliminating our talent pipeline,鈥� one聽global head of early talent聽programs at a high-tech organization聽told researchers.*

A senior HR director at a high-tech organization commented: 鈥淚f we continue down this path and don鈥檛 provide a way for early talent to get started, it鈥檚 going to lead to massive skill shortages in the future.鈥� 

Widespread reductions in early talent hiring will lead to skills gaps that聽will聽prove expensive to remedy. Organizations will struggle to build company capabilities,聽retain聽knowledge, and develop future leaders.聽聽

But by far the most common concern from leaders was around not seeing early talent as AI-native. If the AI capabilities of this cohort are overlooked, companies may miss out on a key opportunity to scale AI innovation and adoption across the business.  

What鈥檚 the answer?  

Today,聽there鈥檚聽an opportunity for HR leaders to be more intentional聽and strategic, to reimagine聽their approach聽to early talent from the ground up. With the right early talent strategy, organizations can gain a competitive advantage.

Here are three steps to consider. 

Step 1: Rethink entry-level roles 

Traditionally, junior employees have mainly been given routine, repetitive tasks. Combined with frustratingly slow career progression, the result is eroding morale and commitment.  

This聽approach must evolve.聽The nature of work is changing rapidly,聽and early talent no longer need to take on those routine tasks. These employees need the opportunity to develop at speed and to be supported in performing聽work that聽meaningfully addresses聽business challenges.聽聽

HR has the chance to reshape entry-level positions,聽to provide support, guidance, and tools to enable聽junior staff聽to contribute聽in聽more聽impactful聽ways. This may involve them聽working聽with proper guidance聽to support聽more critical聽projects, interacting with customers,聽and聽even聽owning some tasks end to end.聽

This approach not only enables early talent to contribute more positively to the business at an earlier stage, but when combined with clear goals, regular feedback loops, and occasional coaching, it also fosters greater engagement and commitment. 

Step 2: Support your strategy with technology 

Hiring and developing early talent have become more complex鈥攆rom deciphering AI-generated applications, to redesigning roles and meeting their aspirations in a fast-changing business context. And with the nature of early talent work shifting, leaders need tools to help understand the new capabilities that will predict long-term success and demonstrate the value of early talent initiatives.  

Here鈥檚 where technology can help. During the hiring process,聽technology聽can help聽employers聽see beyond the聽noise of聽AI聽applications聽and rediscover the聽meaningful聽signals聽they聽need to create candidate shortlists and strengthen hiring decisions. Meanwhile, technology can also help to maintain engagement with other high-potential聽candidates聽who applied鈥攆or when the next opportunities arise.聽聽

Once early talent begin work, today鈥檚 technology can help you track their participation in early talent programs and progression towards their goals. It also helps facilitate individualized learning opportunities and demonstrate the ROI of your early talent investments. For research-based recommendations on the role of technology in early talent selection and development, check out this . 

Step 3: Reframe the business case for early talent 

As the nature of early talent work is changing alongside the technology used to support them, HR leaders agree that the old business case for early talent investments needs to be reimagined. Many organizations are focused on mitigating critical skill gaps and engaging in large-scale AI transformations. While early talent lack experience, they are eager to engage in continuous learning and understand how to work effectively alongside AI. 

Research also reveals that鈥攁s they work alongside modern tools and technologies鈥攅arly talent can contribute to high-value, meaningful work much faster than in the past.  

A modern early talent business case is one that involves focusing on faster time to meaningful work, reducing critical skill gaps, and leveraging the AI-native capabilities of today鈥檚 entry-level workers.  

Build your early talent strategy 

Will HR leaders watch on as a generation of AI-savvy talent remains underused, or act now and build the skills pipelines necessary for a future-ready workforce? 

Get further insights on this topic by reading our report, 鈥�.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;痴颈蝉颈迟&苍产蝉辫;辞耻谤&苍产蝉辫; to stay tuned for when phase two of this research gets published later this year. 

Dr. Autumn D. Krauss is chief scientist at 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.

*, 麻豆原创, 2026. 

This recognition reflects 麻豆原创鈥檚 broader vision for AI-driven, skills-based workforce orchestration, where hiring is no longer a standalone process but part of a continuous, intelligent system connecting people, skills, and business outcomes. With innovations across 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions and the addition of SmartRecruiters to the portfolio in September 2025, 麻豆原创 is enabling organizations to move beyond transactional recruiting toward agentic, autonomous talent strategies that continuously adapt to change.

SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors: AI at the center of hiring

combines a modern, AI鈥憂ative recruiting platform with 麻豆原创鈥檚 core HCM to help create a more connected and intelligent hiring experience at global scale. Hiring becomes part of an integrated flow of workforce decisions鈥攍inked directly to skills, planning, mobility, and long-term business strategy.

With embedded AI across the hiring lifecycle, organizations can:

• Deliver intuitive, consumer鈥慻rade candidate experiences at scale, from first interaction through new hire onboarding.
• Empower recruiters and hiring managers with AI鈥慹nabled insights and automation directly within daily workflows.
• Strengthen hiring decisions by connecting recruiting data to skills, roles, and workforce plans.
• Scale globally with confidence, balancing centralized governance with local market flexibility.

SmartRecruiters鈥� AI hiring companion, Winston, works alongside to help automate repetitive tasks, surface top candidates, and explain recommendations transparently, which allows recruiters to focus on higher鈥憊alue decision鈥憁aking while moving faster and with greater confidence.

New capabilities, including agentic interviewing and real鈥憈ime candidate engagement, are helping organizations accelerate hiring while improving candidate experience at scale. For example, early adopters of AI鈥慸riven screening have seen up to a in time鈥憈o鈥慸ecision, demonstrating how AI can streamline evaluation without sacrificing quality.

At the same time, innovations like agentic CRM are helping organizations activate existing talent pools鈥攕urfacing, ranking, and re鈥慹ngaging candidates automatically鈥攖urning recruiting from a reactive process into a continuous, dynamic pipeline.

From recruiting to Autonomous HCM

SmartRecruiters plays a key role in 麻豆原创鈥檚 broader shift toward Autonomous HCM鈥攚here AI-driven agents can continuously orchestrate workforce decisions across hiring, planning, development, and mobility.

Rather than treating hiring as an isolated function, 麻豆原创 is embedding AI across 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions to create a unified, skills-based system of action. Workforce planning, learning, and talent acquisition are directly connected, enabling organizations to align skills with business and financial priorities in real time.

At , this vision came to life through innovations that increase agility and responsiveness. Intelligent agents can identify skill gaps, recommend hiring or redeployment strategies, and take action鈥攖urning talent management into a dynamic, continuously optimized system.

Within this model, hiring becomes one of several coordinated levers in an adaptive workforce strategy, ensuring every decision is guided by real-time data, skills intelligence, and evolving business needs.

Customer impact: AI鈥慸riven hiring in action

Organizations across industries are already seeing the impact of AI鈥慸riven, connected hiring.

Retailer selected SmartRecruiters to improve the candidate experience and reduce drop-off in a high-volume hiring environment. Today, the company processes 50,000 applications each month, reducing the application processing time from 28 days to just four and cutting time-to-fill from 56 days to just 20鈥攄emonstrating how speed and experience directly improve hiring outcomes.

Global real estate services firm implemented SmartRecruiters to increase visibility into recruitment activity and create a more consistent experience across its EMEA business. As a result, Colliers achieved a direct hiring rate above 80%, reduced agency reliance to roughly 7% of hires, and improved first鈥憏ear retention by 25%, showing how connected hiring can lower costs while strengthening long鈥憈erm talent outcomes.

and discover how AI鈥慸riven, connected hiring can help turn talent acquisition into a true strategic advantage.

About the Fosway 9-Grid™
Fosway Group is Europe鈥檚 #1 HR industry analyst. The Fosway 9-Grid™ provides a unique assessment of the principal talent supply options available to organizations in EMEA. The analysis is based on extensive independent research and insights from Fosway鈥檚 Corporate Research Network of over 250 organizations, including BP, HSBC, PwC, Sanofi, Shell, and Vodafone. Visit the Fosway website at www.fosway.com for more information on Fosway Group鈥檚 research and services.

鈥淟ast year, we were in the process of planning the optimization of our talent discovery tech stack and then something happened,鈥� Eric Goldstein, global head of Talent Discovery for 麻豆原创, said. 鈥淲e acquired SmartRecruiters in September, so we had to pivot in an agile way.鈥�

SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors enables enterprises to manage the entire hiring lifecycle, from sourcing to onboarding, with AI-enabled recruiting capabilities that can result in faster time-to-hire, improved candidate experiences, and deeper analytics for workforce planning.

For 麻豆原创, this means adding much-needed rigor and precision to its global talent acquisition operations. This will not only elevate the quality of hires but also the candidate experience, which Goldstein identified as the 鈥渂iggest game changer.鈥�

Building a more intelligent hiring process

SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors helps optimize processes, increasing transparency and personalization. This means improved experiences and processes for candidates, hiring managers, and recruiters. 鈥淲e have been through a time where we focused solely on the recruiter experience. Then it was fashionable to focus only on the candidates. Now we really see that with SmartRecruiters, it really is an enhanced experience for all stakeholders that are involved in the recruiting process,鈥� Ilka Sagner-David, global head of Talent Discovery Solutions and Innovations at 麻豆原创, said.

Candidate perspective

Seventy percent of candidates that apply for jobs are mindful to take their valuable time to do so, Goldstein shared, reiterating that it is important for companies to match that commitment when shaping and delivering the candidate experience. With SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors as the foundation, it becomes possible for every pre-qualified applicant to interview, receive personalized and constructive feedback post-interview, and maintain 24×7 interaction with agentic AI built into SmartRecruiters.

鈥淚n our opinion, only responding with polite, automated rejection notes is not enough. [Candidates] need to be provided with some constructive, actionable feedback鈥攁nd that鈥檚 what we [at 麻豆原创] are going to be able to do,鈥� Goldstein said.

Hiring manager perspective

SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors can give hiring managers a more precise and consistent way to identify strong candidates, helping to reduce time-to-hire while improving hiring quality. AI-prompted interview questions focused on skills can support more relevant and structured conversations while greater transparency across interview panelists can create better alignment throughout the evaluation process. In addition, AI-supported feedback collection can make it easier for interviewers at 麻豆原创 to capture timely, consistent insights, enabling its hiring teams to make more informed decisions with greater confidence. 

Recruiter perspective

Recruiters are often bogged down by manual tasks, such as outreach, prospect identification, and candidate screening, making it nearly impossible for them to step into the role of a trusted advisor. With SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, recruiters can experience automated internal and external prospect identification, personalized outreach and prioritization of candidates, and, therefore, the ability to focus on higher value-add advisory and relationship management.

鈥淚t鈥檚 going to allow the recruiters to focus on relationship management with candidates and hiring managers, really challenging the feedback of how well the interview panel measures skills proficiency,鈥� Goldstein said.

Bringing AI into the candidate journey

A key to the successful delivery of these benefits is SmartRecruiters Winston for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, an AI-driven, candidate-facing agentic experience. At 麻豆原创 Sapphire Orlando, Karl Baert, global head of People Solutions for 麻豆原创, demonstrated how Winston can facilitate the application experience for candidates.

In the demo, he acted as a candidate applying for an open position at 麻豆原创, showing how through a natural language conversation with Winston, he completed his application by uploading his CV and verifying some personal details with Winston. 鈥淎ll that information is very, very quickly brought together so with just a few questions my application is done,鈥� Baert said, adding that 鈥渢here鈥檚 also a few checks happening along the way because we want to make sure the data we are collecting is the right quality.鈥�

Winston also collects feedback from the applicant. 鈥淢easuring the quality of your agent and what鈥檚 happening with it is important. It鈥檚 something that really needs to be actively monitored just to ensure that the information provided by the agent is accurate,鈥� Baert said.

鈥淭he implementation of SmartRecruiters is the foundation for infusing AI into our processes,鈥� Sagner-David said. But, she added, 鈥渨e shouldn鈥檛 just plan to transfer everything tomorrow, but ensure we鈥檙e liberating AI when it makes sense.鈥�

The next step

Currently, SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors is being implemented into 麻豆原创鈥檚 HR systems for two phases of user acceptance testing, with the global go-live expected in September.

麻豆原创 bringing SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors to life across its own organization is more than a technology rollout, it鈥檚 a glimpse into the future of hiring at scale: more intelligent, more human, and more connected. By combining AI, better experiences, and real-word enterprise rigor, 麻豆原创 is not only transforming how it hires but also helping to define what modern hiring can look like for companies everywhere.

The conversation has moved beyond what AI can do into how it should be applied, placing HR at the center of decisions that will shape people, culture, and business outcomes for years to come.

While we have often talked about the 鈥渇uture of work,鈥� the simple fact is that future is already here. The question is whether organizations are ready to operate differently.

AI requires a fundamental rethinking of how work gets done, grounded in the data, systems, and processes that run today鈥檚 organizations. And getting it right starts with one clear principle: humans must remain firmly at the center鈥攏ot as operators of process, but as leaders of judgement, strategy, and change.

What Autonomous HCM means for HR leaders

At 麻豆原创, this is the foundation of our vision for the Autonomous Enterprise, announced at in Orlando, where AI assistants can run core HR processes end-to-end, so people are empowered to focus on their most meaningful work while staying firmly in control of outcomes.

brings together agentic AI, HR applications, and real business context鈥攇rounded in deep process expertise and enterprise-grade governance鈥攖o help organizations anticipate workforce needs and respond with greater precision as business priorities change.

With the new HCM innovations announced at 麻豆原创 Sapphire, we are building on the existing breadth and depth of 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors with new AI-native functionality that amplifies how HR can help shape the business and elevate what employees are capable of.

Automate work with Joule Assistants

The first shift is automation; not as task replacement, but as a new way of working. A new generation of , delivered through Joule as 麻豆原创鈥檚 AI engagement layer, bring this to life by orchestrating agents to execute work end-to-end and support decisions in real-time.

These assistants are not just automating tasks; they are guided by employees to reduce manual effort and support a growing range of HR scenarios:

• Payroll becomes proactive, not reactive: The coordinates multiple to prepare payroll runs, identify issues early, and guide administrators to faster resolution, shifting payroll from reactive process to proactive execution. Working alongside the Core HR Assistant and , it helps organizations manage employee data, track time and attendance, and pay employees with greater accuracy and less manual work.
• Talent acquisition flows more seamlessly end-to-end: The helps keep hiring moving from intelligent matching to interview coordination, providing real-time guidance to recruiters and hiring managers. Once a candidate accepts, the takes over to support a smooth transition for new employees. These new Joule Assistants connect talent acquisition processes between and the broader 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HCM suite.
• HR services become faster and more intuitive: The helps administrators resolve common HR questions instantly, directing employees to the right next step and reducing service center volume while improving the overall employee experience.

Reimagine the workforce with AI-driven planning

As AI becomes part of how work gets done, organizations must rethink workforce planning as a continuous leadership discipline, not a periodic exercise. Today, 62% of C鈥憇uite executives say they are dissatisfied with how well people data connects to business performance, according to , making it harder to turn strategy into action. The new workforce planning capability within 麻豆原创 Enterprise Planning supports a shift toward strategic work redesign, inclusive of both agents and people, by helping leaders link workforce decisions directly to HR, business, and financial needs.

This workforce planning capability connects data from , , and 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, creating a unified foundation for workforce decision鈥憁aking across employees and contingent labor. Together, this moves workforce planning beyond static models. Leaders gain clear scenario insight and the ability to combine human judgment with AI to align workforce and investment decisions.

At a more granular level, constant change means business and HR leaders are often dealing with organizational changes. The new AI鈥慹nabled organizational modeling for replaces slow, disconnected modeling approaches with an integrated experience that supports scenario planning and impact analysis, enabling leaders to evaluate organizational choices with greater accuracy and alignment. With this approach, leaders can quickly explore alternative organizational structures and understand implications before changes are implemented. Whether adjusting roles, teams, or reporting lines, organizational modeling becomes a practical leadership tool, supporting thoughtful change while maintaining data integrity and minimizing disruption. The result is a clearer, more proactive approach that helps organizations make smarter workforce decisions in a constantly evolving business landscape.

Elevate people through continuous upskilling

When it comes to skills, the rise of generative AI has once again accelerated the pace of change. New jobs are emerging, new skills are required, and processes that have worked for decades are being completely reimagined.  The new Workforce Upskilling Assistant delivers personalized, AI-driven learning directly where work happens, in collaboration tools, mobile, desktop and 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors鈥攈elping organizations keep skills aligned with where the business is headed. By orchestrating multiple Joule Agents, it supports content creation and generation, adaptive micro-learning, and reinforcement, enabling leaders and managers to identify critical skill gaps and accelerate upskilling, particularly in fast-moving areas such as AI.

By delivering learning in the tools and channels employees already use, the Workforce Upskilling Assistant turns workforce and business data into timely, bite鈥憇ized learning moments. Rather than relying on scheduled courses or standalone systems, HR learning teams can quickly convert existing content to deliver learning to the right person at the right time.

A new standard for human-centered Autonomous HCM

麻豆原创鈥檚 Autonomous Enterprise vision sets a new standard for how HR leads in an AI-driven world, one where AI assistants and agents take on the work of coordination, so people can focus on leading and shaping outcomes. As AI becomes embedded into how work runs, HR is uniquely positioned to guide what matters most, moving from coordinating processes to guiding decisions, building resilient teams, strengthening trust, and ensuring the workforce is ready for what鈥檚 ahead.

That is the promise of an Autonomous HCM platform: human expertise elevated by AI, delivering meaningful impact for both people and the business.

Learn more about how 麻豆原创 is delivering Autonomous HCM by catching the replay of the HCM Innovation .

Dan Beck is general manager and chief product officer for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.

Today, we鈥檙e announcing that is now integrated with , working to deliver a unified experience, connected data, and integration with AI companion and to embed intelligent assistance directly into hiring workflows to help teams move faster, make better decisions, and deliver better candidate experiences. This integration, following 麻豆原创鈥檚 acquisition of SmartRecruiters in September 2025, establishes the foundation for a fully connected talent architecture, where hiring decisions, skills intelligence, and workforce planning can operate as one system.

Advancing intelligent hiring with SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors

The solution can deliver a consistent, end-to-end hiring experience designed to meet the scale, speed, and intelligence requirements of modern organizations. By combining intuitive workflows with embedded AI, recruiters can eliminate repetitive administrative tasks and focus on higher value interactions, while candidates move through a streamlined, personalized journey from first touch to offer.

The integration with 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HCM builds on these capabilities by connecting hiring processes to the full employee lifecycle and the broader business, helping to ensure that every hiring decision is grounded in real-time data and organizational context. Designed for scale, SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors helps set the foundation for a complete intelligence layer across hiring and HR, with people, job, and organizational data flowing seamlessly between 麻豆原创 and SmartRecruiters.

Organizations can gain a more predictable hiring process with streamlined workflows, consistent tools, and shared real-time data across each hiring stage. They can expect:

• Single login: one entry point into 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors and SmartRecruiters for recruiters, hiring managers, and approvers
• Unified navigation: a seamless experience across 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors and SmartRecruiters to help reduce complexity and speed up adoption
• Aligned data: synchronized people, job, and organizational data that flows between systems, helping to ensure accuracy and consistency end to end

In practice, core organizational data like job families, cost centers, and locations can flow automatically from 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors into SmartRecruiters, helping to eliminate manual entry and inconsistencies. New roles open with these attributes already applied, and user management is just as smooth: recruiters, hiring managers, and approvers created in 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors appear in SmartRecruiters with the right permissions, helping to reduce errors and keep approval flows and reporting clean. As integration deepens, hiring becomes fully connected to core HR and workforce systems, creating a unified, trusted foundation for talent decisions across the enterprise.

With the enhanced benefits of SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, simple and flexible integration paths are now available for customers currently using the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors Recruiting solution. 麻豆原创 will continue to honor all contracts, and customers will not be required to migrate.

Integration that activates enterprise鈥�ready AI

With 麻豆原创鈥檚 continued investment, SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors is evolving quickly, bringing AI-driven innovation to every part of the hiring experience. High-volume hiring can become high-quality hiring through AI-assisted workflows, including intuitive applications, automated scheduling, intelligent matching, and streamlined interview feedback.

Beginning in 2026, Winston and 麻豆原创鈥檚 generative AI solution will work together as connected agents. Additionally, new protections such as fraud detection, enhanced consent management, and applicant data transferability will help embed trust in the hiring cycle, strengthening both system integrity and candidate confidence.

From talent acquisition to talent readiness

As organizations look beyond filling roles to building future-proof capabilities, intelligent hiring becomes just one part of a broader talent strategy. The power of integration delivered by SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors extends beyond hiring, creating a connected, AI-enabled talent experience across the entire 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HCM suite and, ultimately, . This is how organizations become skills-ready: hiring decisions tied to outcomes, and employees supported with clear paths to grow and contribute.

See SmartRecruiters for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors in action:聽Catch the聽聽of our March 5 webinar – 鈥淭he Future of Intelligent Hiring鈥� – to explore how 麻豆原创 is redefining hiring, talent orchestration, and long-term workforce strategy.

Lara Albert is chief marketing officer, 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.
Rebecca Carr is CEO of SmartRecruiters, an 麻豆原创 company.

Attracting and hiring the best talent is more important and more competitive than ever before. According to the , 70% of organizations plan to hire new staff with emerging in-demand skills by 2030. Yet, more than three-quarters of board members and C-suite executives regard skills and talent availability as a for their organizations.

The message is clear: hiring isn鈥檛 just an HR challenge. It鈥檚 a business imperative.聽

With 麻豆原创鈥檚 recent acquisition of SmartRecruiters, we are thrilled about the opportunity to help our customers face this challenge head-on. As entrepreneurs and business leaders, we鈥檝e been at the forefront of innovation in the HCM market, and we recognize that we are at a pivotal moment that demands more than incremental improvements. Together, we鈥檙e excited to deliver bold innovation and flexibility to help our customers not only attract and hire top talent, but to continuously nurture that talent to learn, grow, and push the boundaries of what is possible.聽

Uniting talent acquisition and HCM leadership

麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HCM is an AI-enabled global suite of HR solutions, expanding across core HR and payroll, talent management, employee experience, analytics, and more. SmartRecruiters is a leading recruiting AI company with the mission of making hiring easy and deep expertise in high-volume recruiting, recruitment automation, and AI-enabled candidate sourcing, experience, and engagement.

Individually, we have led the way in building robust talent acquisition software to empower thousands of organizations to attract, engage, and hire the best talent. United, we are amplifying our impact.

Combining the scale of 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, the depth of 麻豆原创 Business AI, and the expertise of SmartRecruiters will result in robust benefits for our customers.

• User-friendly interfaces and seamless workflows will provide improved decision-making, reduced time-to hire, and better experiences for candidates, hiring managers, and recruiters.
• Enhanced AI-enabled recruiting and hiring capabilities will deliver faster, smarter, and more equitable recruiting experiences — all with the relevant, reliable, and responsible approach of 麻豆原创 Business AI. We will be able to enhance our ability to deliver intelligent candidate recommendations, predictive hiring insights, and personalized candidate experiences.
• The benefits of bringing our products together extend beyond the hiring process. A single system of record and harmonized data across SmartRecruiters and 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors will provide rich insights into talent pools, hiring bottlenecks, and workforce planning — because talent acquisition is only the start of an employee鈥檚 journey with an organization.聽

Talent acquisition is no longer just about filling roles. Together, 麻豆原创 and SmartRecruiters will help organizations build smarter, more resilient workforces that are agile, skills-driven, and ready to meet the future head-on.

Dan Beck is general manager and chief product officer for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.
Rebecca Carr is CEO of SmartRecruiters, an 麻豆原创 company.

SmartRecruiters鈥� deep expertise in high-volume recruiting, recruitment automation and AI-enabled candidate experience and engagement are considered an ideal addition to the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors human capital management (HCM) suite. The planned acquisition will strengthen 麻豆原创鈥檚 all-in-one HCM suite, so customers have the tools they need to attract and retain top talent in an increasingly competitive landscape.

SmartRecruiters鈥� powerful, user-friendly interfaces and seamless workflows will complement 麻豆原创鈥檚 robust HR tools 鈥� improving decision-making, reducing time-to-hire and providing a better experience for candidates. Embedded analytics and AI-driven recommendations from both companies will provide rich insights into talent pools, hiring bottlenecks and workforce planning.

鈥淗iring the right people is not just an HR priority 鈥� it鈥檚 a business priority. With this planned acquisition, we will help our customers attract and hire the best talent so they can advance their talent acquisition agendas with speed and agility, while lowering their total cost of ownership,鈥� said Muhammad Alam, member of the Executive Board of 麻豆原创 SE, 麻豆原创 Product & Engineering. 鈥淐ustomers will be able to manage the entire candidate lifecycle 鈥� from sourcing and interviewing to onboarding and beyond 鈥� all in a single system to streamline the experience for recruiters, hiring managers and, in particular, candidates.鈥�

Customers can expect enhanced and AI-enabled recruiting and hiring capabilities, making applicant tracking and candidate screening more efficient. Data-driven hiring and recruitment analytics will flow directly into 麻豆原创鈥檚 existing HCM tools, providing a single system of record and harmonized data for compliant, seamless operations. The SmartRecruiters portfolio will also continue to be available standalone for the foreseeable future.

SmartRecruiters鈥� Software-as-a-Service solutions and platform enable more than 4,000 organizations globally to efficiently manage their hiring workflows end-to-end, offering a compelling experience to recruiters, hiring managers and candidates.

SmartRecruiters CEO Rebecca Carr said, 鈥淪martRecruiters鈥� mission has always been to make hiring easy. Joining forces with 麻豆原创 presents a tremendous opportunity for enterprises worldwide to benefit from our industry-leading approach to talent acquisition. I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity this planned acquisition presents for our customers, partners and employees as we build the future of hiring together.”

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. J.P. Morgan served as exclusive financial advisor to SmartRecruiters.

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About SmartRecruiters

SmartRecruiters is the Recruiting AI Company that transforms hiring for the world鈥檚 leading enterprises. Built for global scale, SmartRecruiters delivers an AI-powered hiring platform that automates and optimizes the entire talent acquisition process, ensuring faster and smarter hiring decisions. More than 4,000 organizations, including Amazon, Visa, and McDonald鈥檚, rely on SmartRecruiters to build winning teams. For more information, visit .

About 麻豆原创

As鈥痑 global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, 麻豆原创 (NYSE:麻豆原创)鈥痵tands at the鈥痭exus鈥痮f business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted 麻豆原创鈥痶o bring out their best by uniting business-critical鈥痮perations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit .

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In today鈥檚 fast-changing world of work, hiring the right talent has never been more critical鈥攐r complex. HR and talent acquisition leaders are under growing pressure to deliver fast results, navigate rising uncertainty, and keep up with rapidly evolving skills needs in their business.

According to the World Economic Forum鈥檚 , 63% of employers cite skills gaps in the labor market as the primary barrier to business transformation, while 86% expect AI to significantly transform their business over the next five years. The study also reports that talent availability is declining, making it harder for organizations to find the right talent with the right capabilities needed for the future. At the same time, organizations are rethinking their approaches to hiring, embracing AI and moving toward more agile, skills-based strategies to compete for talent in a dynamic and evolving job market. 

That鈥檚 why selecting the right technology partner matters now more than ever. Organizations need a solution that can help them stay ahead of change, drive smarter hiring, and fuel growth and long-term business success. 鈥淭alent acquisition priorities are changing, leading to evolving concentrations and points of entry in an increasingly diversifying vendor space in the market,鈥� says Zachary Chertok, senior research manager, Employee Experience at IDC. 鈥淚ncreased pressures to reduce the time to place qualified talent in roles that fill persistent and evolving skills gaps are leading talent acquisition buyers to rethink their approaches to hiring and the tools that support them.鈥�

麻豆原创 SuccessFactors is proud to be named a Leader in the . 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions can empower organizations of all sizes to address the ever-changing challenges of hiring in today鈥檚 complex, skills-driven world of work.

The report analyzes the expansive talent acquisition ecosystem, evaluating 22 vendors for user experience, native solution capabilities, future development pipelines, and company criteria, including size, scope, geographic reach, and future growth targets. We believe 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors鈥� position as a Leader reflects visionary product strategy, continuous innovation, comprehensive solution functionality, and demonstrated customer value and satisfaction. The IDC MarketScape states, 鈥溌槎乖� SuccessFactors Recruiting is part of the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HCM suite and provides AI-enabled tools, resources, and services to support recruiters and talent teams to source and align talent to their best-fit connection points within the organization.鈥� Highlighting 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors鈥� strengths, the report mentions, 鈥溌槎乖� SuccessFactors customers find that the solution provides them with deep insights drawn from across the existing and modeled workforce. 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors鈥� AI and analytical capabilities support clients to tie candidate-centric hiring practices into the evolving and modeled skilling and position needs of the organization.鈥�

Helping companies hire smarter and faster

Hiring today isn鈥檛 just about filling open roles. It鈥檚 about building strong talent pipelines, finding people with the right skills and potential, creating exceptional candidate experiences, and aligning every hire to overall HR and business goals. and offer comprehensive, AI-enabled solutions that can simplify global hiring to help organizations attract, engage, and hire top talent with the right skills needed today and in the future.

The IDC MarketScape notes, 鈥溌槎乖� SuccessFactors Recruiting helps recruiters maintain fluid and flexible organizational talent pipelines that retain and progressively match high-performing talent to where they are best fit within the evolving organization.鈥� The report continues, 鈥淥verall, recruiters and talent acquisition teams find that 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors鈥� recruiting and talent acquisition capabilities are feature rich, support dynamic and evolving compliance and sourcing needs, and support custom and AI-informed workflows and candidate progression.鈥� 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions can enable organizations to accelerate hiring with AI-enabled talent acquisition capabilities, including AI-enhanced job descriptions, AI-assisted applicant screening, AI-recommended interview questions, AI-driven skills-based job recommendations, AI-assisted onboarding and offboarding, AI-assisted writing, and AI-driven interview summarization.

Adopting the right AI-enabled talent acquisition strategy is what puts innovative businesses ahead. , a large and diversified holding company in Brunei turned to 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions to transform HR鈥檚 impact on its business, increasing productivity and efficiency to over 30 subsidiaries across 14 industries. 鈥淲ith 麻豆原创 Business AI technology embedded in 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions, we鈥檝e seen significant benefits such as reducing our overall recruitment time from months to weeks. The AI features have streamlined processes for generating and updating job descriptions and creating competency-based interview questions, making our recruitment process more efficient and standardized,鈥� shares Salehin Basir, human capital development manager at Darussalam Assets. The company has seen significant benefits, such as four-times more efficient hiring processes, a 75% reduction in recruitment time, and deeper insights into important HR metrics that improve data-driven decision-making and reduce bottlenecks.

Powering a skills-based, AI-driven talent strategy

With a talent landscape defined by continuous change, the future of hiring relies on taking a skills-based approach to identifying, securing, and growing the right talent. The reports that 70% of organizations plan to hire for emerging, in-demand skills, while 51% intend to reskill or upskill existing employees to fill growing skills needs. Whether an organization is focused on developing talent from within or bringing in new capabilities to keep their business ahead, 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions can help talent teams stay agile, efficient, and aligned to business needs.

According to trusted HCM Industry Analyst Josh Bersin鈥檚 , talent acquisition leaders state a growing priority to implement skills throughout their talent functions and strategies鈥攆or both hiring and internal mobility. The factbook shares, 鈥淎I plays a key role in deploying skills in a scalable and sustainable way, particularly as in-demand and job-specific skills are constantly changing. It can help match skills to jobs, identify skill adjacencies, pinpoint where talent with specific skills is located, uncover learning opportunities, and more.鈥�

Our latest finds growing workforce confidence around the potential value of AI, with 70% of managers agreeing that using AI technology for skills-based decision-making would be somewhat or very valuable, and an overwhelming majority of employees () feeling positively about skills-based decision-making. The IDC MarketScape highlights how 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors users can quickly see value from implementing skills-based hiring strategies, noting: 鈥淪implified application processes help candidates apply from any device and leverage AI to parse skills from their resumes to match those with the company鈥檚 evolving skills architecture and talent intelligence.鈥�

Bringing these insights to life, is a powerful example of how leading organizations are building skills-based talent strategies ready for the future. Capgemini, a global business and technology partner with 340,000 employees across more than 50 countries turned to 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions when looking for an HR infrastructure that would allow it to attract, retain, and grow market-leading skills. Capgemini built a skills engine to support the moments that matter across the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, onboarding, talent management, compensation and rewards, learning, and succession management. The company is implementing 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HCM to enable skills-based people management and deliver a highly engaging people experience.

Going beyond talent acquisition, 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions help align hiring to overall HR strategies, with connected, unified ; a single skills foundation; AI-enabled talent intelligence; and advanced, cross-suite capabilities. The IDC MarketScape notes, 鈥溌槎乖� SuccessFactors Recruiting is a natural extension of the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors environment that gives companies a fully integrated platform for insights-driven, end-to-end candidate and employee lifecycle management.鈥� The assessment further notes, 鈥淭alent acquisition teams can benefit from deep continuous workforce planning insights that guide for and optimize the balance between internal mobility and external hiring for a higher efficacy in talent placement.鈥�

As we look toward the future, organizations that embrace skills-based talent strategies and AI-driven talent acquisition will be best positioned to adapt, grow, and lead in an ever-changing world of work. Learn more about why we were named a Leader in the and discover more about and .

AI is no longer just a tool for automation but is becoming a cornerstone of HR transformation and needs to be placed at the center of talent management strategies. Organizations are now prioritizing AI-driven talent intelligence to strengthen decision-making, build more dynamic, skills-based workforces, and ensure employees are equipped with the right skills for the future. This shift reflects a growing interest in understanding how AI can empower workforces to adapt, grow, and thrive.

As AI continues to reshape the world of work, organizations are examining how to maximize its impact on delivering meaningful outcomes for their people and business. HR leaders are moving beyond traditional approaches for hiring, employee development, and talent management鈥攅mbracing AI to power that align talent decisions to evolving business needs. , one of the world鈥檚 leading pump and water solutions companies, sees digital HR solutions as key to becoming a skills-based organization, enabling data-driven decisions to support its business outcomes. 鈥淲e are excited and engaged about the potential of the talent intelligence hub in 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions,鈥� shares S酶ren Nielsen, Grundfos鈥� business architect of HR Technology. 鈥淏y shifting our focus from job descriptions to skills and embracing intelligent technologies such as AI, we can help inspire our people to grasp new opportunities and address skills shortages in clever ways.鈥�

Recent research findings show that while organizations are beginning to adopt , employees have mixed feelings about its role. While many recognize its potential to improve hiring processes, personalize career development, and create tailored learning journeys, there remain concerns about bias, security, and ethical implications. To build trust, organizations must take a , ensuring transparency, governance, and fairness measures are at the core of their AI strategy. A few ways organizations can foster credibility with their people include offering training and resources to understand the fundamentals of AI, providing opportunities for employees to work with AI in practical settings, and offering clear communication around how AI works and the expected impact it will have on an employee鈥檚 experience.

As businesses strive to stay competitive, it鈥檚 critical for HR leaders to understand how to unlock the full potential of AI. Organizations that proactively integrate AI into their talent management strategies will be better positioned to create more agile, future-ready workforces. A top priority in 2025 will be ensuring HR teams have the right knowledge, tools, and resources to effectively leverage AI to deliver impactful results, enabling their businesses and people to stay ahead.

Interested in learning more about how AI can enhance your people strategies and unlock new potential for your workforce? to learn about the future of AI for talent management, explore our latest research insights, and see an engaging demo of the latest AI-driven innovations in 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions.

According to findings from over five years of global research conducted by 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HR research scientists, 88% of employees would feel positively about skills-based people decisions in their organization. Along with employee satisfaction, HR and talent acquisition leaders see many potential benefits of the skills-based approach. For example, a focus on skills can support internal mobility, help realize employee potential, and make recruitment faster, easier, and more transparent.

So, what does 鈥渟kills-based鈥� mean? With a skills-based approach to human resource management, work is organized entirely around skills, from hiring and compensation to workforce planning, reskilling, and upskilling. Decisions are made based on skills and capabilities rather than traditional criteria like education or job experience.

Of course, there鈥檚 no universal blueprint that works for every scenario: there are multiple approaches to prioritizing skills in an organization. How skills-based practices are implemented depends on organizational culture, industry, labor regulations, and many other factors, but a great place to start is with skills-based hiring.

What Is Skills-Based Hiring?

Skills-based hiring is an approach to recruiting new employees based on their skills and ability to perform a job instead of the formal qualifications listed on their resume or curriculum vitae (CV), such as education or previous job titles.

Benefits of Skills-Based Hiring for Talent Acquisition

To understand why skills-based hiring works well for talent acquisition, we must consider the question ? At its core, talent acquisition aims to address not just the current talent needs but also the long-term, strategic workforce plans. It can do so by predicting what skills the organization will require in the future to stay competitive, grow, and scale to future needs. Skills-based hiring can support a future-oriented talent acquisition strategy, thanks to:

• Productivity: People with the right skills for the job can be more effective in their roles.
• Diverse talent pools: A skills-based approach helps find qualified talent that wouldn鈥檛 be found otherwise, expands talent pools, and increases workforce diversity.
• Transparency: Skills-based talent decisions can be more equitable, fair, and legally defensible while also helping candidates get clarity and more agency over their careers.
• Efficiency: Skills-based practices enable faster talent decisions, which, in turn, accelerate the entire recruitment process, reducing time to hire and improving productivity.
• Strategic hiring: A skills-based approach helps organizations understand the skills they will need in the future and hire talent to fill those gaps.
• Approach validation: Skills-based hiring is a great way to demonstrate the value of prioritizing skills鈥攂efore implementing the approach across other HR practices.

Considerations for Adopting Skills-Based Hiring: Exceptions, Misconceptions, and Challenges

Of course, there are still barriers to adopting the skills-based approach to hiring and recruitment. Sometimes, traditional criteria are necessary, such as when hiring for roles that require a specific degree or certification, like lawyers, doctors, and pilots. Candidates鈥� backgrounds and experience can also be crucial. Senior leaders may be chosen in part due to their industry or market experience; public relations leaders may be hired for their network and media contacts.  

There are also many misconceptions about . For instance, some believe that resumes are unsuitable for skills-based hiring because they鈥檙e structured around traditional criteria, such as education and past job titles. In reality, candidates can focus their CVs more on skills, and organizations can use applicant tracking systems and other recruitment software to analyze resumes and screen for the best applicants. In fact, thanks to the use of AI-enabled recruiting tools, skills can even be inferred from experience listed on resumes.

Finally, a widespread concern among talent acquisition leaders is how to make skills-based decisions equitably and efficiently. To do it fairly and thoroughly, they may need to research which skills are relevant for each role, devise custom skill assessments, and prepare job-specific interview questions rooted in the relevant skills. However, the recruitment process also needs to move along quickly, yield good results, and create a smooth candidate experience. So, although , many talent acquisition leaders are still concerned about the efficiency of this approach. Thankfully, this is where technology can make a crucial difference.

Removing Barriers to Skills-Based Hiring

Skills-enabling technologies have long been used in HR practices: online learning systems to help employees develop new skills and complete required training, job architectures that help define roles and the skills needed for them, and skill assessments to help understand the capabilities and skill proficiencies that people have. While some potential barriers to adopting a fully skills-based approach may exist for certain roles, AI can help empower organizations to hire the best talent with the skills needed to succeed. Using and 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions can provide organizations with multiple approaches to adopting skills that may fit their unique workforce and hiring needs.

Using AI to Fuel Your Skills-Based Hiring Approach

The widespread adoption of has opened up new capabilities in talent acquisition software while also optimizing existing functions. For example, with the , talent acquisition teams can leverage AI to help them adopt skills-based hiring practices:

• Skills Framework: The 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors talent intelligence hub offers an AI-enabled skills framework that can allow organizations to consolidate skills data from multiple sources for a comprehensive view of their workforce. AI-driven capabilities within the skills framework can allow organizations to align skills to job roles to better understand and address skills gaps.
• Job descriptions: AI-assisted content generation allows recruiters to quickly create and enhance compelling skills-based job descriptions to attract diverse candidates with the right skill sets.
• Improved candidate experience: When candidates upload their resumes during the application process, AI-driven skills extraction allows them to view, validate, and manage skills on their profiles.

• Job recommendations: Upcoming innovations include the ability for candidates to use AI to help them find the best opportunity for them based on skills extracted from their resume.
• Resume analysis: Using AI-driven skill inference, recruiters can quickly analyze applicants鈥� resumes and compare best-matched candidates based on skills.
• Interview questions: With insights from skills data, AI can recommend relevant skills-based interview questions to ensure interviewers are prepared to fully engage with top candidates.
• Skills evaluations: Using AI-recommended interview questions, interviewers can effectively assess candidates and provide evaluations based on the skills needed for a role.
• Equitable decision-making: AI-assisted applicant screening helps recruiters make bias-free, skills-based hiring decisions quickly and confidently.

AI can be a true catalyst to an organization鈥檚 hiring potential, and many of our customers are already leveraging AI-enabled capabilities. If you鈥檙e curious how works, check out this .

is an excellent way to recruit the talent your organization needs to thrive and stay competitive鈥攖oday and into the future. The right recruitment software can make skills-based hiring intuitive, equitable, and efficient.  

For a deep dive into our skills research, on making skills a reality in your organization and .

By shifting towards a skills-based approach to talent acquisition and development, companies can build a workforce that is not only capable of meeting current demands, but also equipped to navigate future challenges effectively. Here are three strategies for building a dynamic organization with a skills-based approach to talent.

1. Identify and Prioritize Critical Skills

The first step in implementing a skills-based approach is to identify the key skills that are crucial for the organization’s success. This involves analyzing the current and future needs of the business and understanding the skills that are in high demand in the market. By prioritizing these critical skills, organizations can focus their hiring efforts on candidates who possess or have the potential to develop these competencies.

With the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors talent intelligence hub, organizations can have the power and simplicity of a single skills model from recruiting, onboarding, learning, and development, all the way through to performance and succession.聽It helps to better understand, build, and leverage the skills of workforces. It can connect individual skills, attributes, strengths, and preferences to both people and experiences throughout聽麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions.

By creating a comprehensive overview of the skills available within the organization, managers can identify gaps and areas for improvement. This information can inform talent development initiatives, such as training programs or job rotations, to help employees acquire the necessary skills to excel in their roles. For example, within the talent intelligence hub there is a team growth portfolio view, which allows managers to quickly assess skill gaps and search for prioritized skills within their teams.

2. Foster a Culture of Continuous Learning

Building a dynamic organization requires a culture that supports continuous learning and skill development. Organizations can encourage employees to enhance their skills through internal training programs, mentorship opportunities, and access to external resources. By creating a learning environment where employees are motivated to upskill and reskill, organizations can ensure that their workforce remains adaptable and competitive in a rapidly changing market.

AI-enabled learning platforms can deliver personalized and adaptive training programs based on individual skill gaps and career aspirations. with embedded AI can give organizations a wide range of capabilities that help enhance a learner鈥檚 experience with relevant recommendations that are unique to each learner and based on their needs and interests. In addition, has AI-driven recommendations to help match employees with assignments, career opportunities, mentors, and more. This solution considers not only qualifications but also skills, experiences, and preferences, so that organizations can ensure better talent alignment and engagement.

3. Embrace Flexibility and Adaptability

In a skills-based approach to talent management, organizations need to be flexible and adaptable in their recruitment and development practices. This means being open to hiring candidates with transferable skills and potential for growth, rather than focusing solely on specific job titles or qualifications. This can be made possible with technology that supports skills-based hiring.

With , skills can be aligned to job requisitions and skills-based candidate evaluations. This can allow hiring managers to view rankings of candidates and determine the best candidate based on their skill proficiency. In addition, recruiters can leverage generative AI capabilities to help enhance job descriptions, including the proper skills and competences, which helps recruiters hire the best talent for a role. By embracing a more flexible approach to talent acquisition, organizations can build a diverse workforce with a wide range of skills and perspectives, driving innovation and creativity.

A skills-based approach to talent management can help organizations build a dynamic and resilient workforce that is equipped to thrive in today’s fast-paced business environment. By prioritizing critical skills, fostering a culture of continuous learning, and embracing flexibility in recruitment and development practices, organizations can create a competitive advantage through their most valuable asset 鈥� their people.

To learn more about how to build a dynamic organization with a skills-based approach to talent, register for this聽 on Thursday, April 25, at 1:00p.m. EST.

Christina Russo is a global director of Product Marketing at 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.

Guided by the organization鈥檚 clear , Coles鈥� team of 120,000 employees is dedicated to making a difference in the lives of customers and the local communities it serves.

In fiscal year 2020/21, Coles Group hired nearly 30,000 people to deliver on its business needs. Mike Virgo, head of Talent Acquisition for Coles Group, said this hiring volume was necessary to make sure the company was 鈥減ositioned well to support our customers.鈥�

The business environment, however, dramatically shifted as the public health crisis of the pandemic unfolded, resulting in repeated lockdowns and restrictions. As a neighborhood retailer dependent on in-person interaction to deliver most of its services, Coles found its workforce impacted by the pandemic. Faced with supply chain disruptions, panic buying behaviors by consumers, high employee absenteeism, and increased turnover, Coles urgently needed to step up its volume and pace of hiring to support its customers.

鈥淎round 2020-2021, we started to experience one of the most significant shifts in the employment market we鈥檇 ever seen,鈥� Virgo said in a at . 鈥淚t started to create huge challenges for organizations around the world 鈥� around how we attract, retain, and hire talent.鈥�

Catalyst for Change and a New Way of Working

To meet pressing business demands, Coles doubled its hiring volume from 30,000 to 60,000 people and increased recruitment advertising spend by a factor of three. Its talent acquisition team grew proportionally to manage the increased workload 鈥� but then labored under manual transactional activities that slowed processing times. As a result of the huge strain, variability in the candidate and hiring manager experience became noticeable.

Due to the volume of work, Coles looked for ways to evolve its system to create more speed, efficiency, and scalability. With a list of criteria, Coles began to review technology solutions on the market to find one that could support its vision for a new way of working. 鈥淲e wanted to reimagine how we recruit for our stores,鈥� Virgo said. 鈥淲e needed automation and AI to remove a lot of the manual work in our systems. We wanted to create more consistency and uplift the experiences we were giving our candidates and our hiring managers. And ultimately, [the solution] needed to drive commercial benefit for us.鈥�

As a key requirement, the new solution needed to integrate with . In 2020, as part of an organization-wide digital transformation that introduced 麻豆原创 S/4HANA and 麻豆原创 Ariba solutions, Coles modernized its HR and payroll processing, replacing a patchwork of outdated systems with 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions. It became the first organization in the southern hemisphere to launch all modules of the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors portfolio in one go. With all HR processes unified on a single platform, Coles benefits from having a single source of truth for people data that is accurate and available in real time for the entire organization.

Two-Way Integration Ensures Single Source of Truth in Data

To help with the project, Coles chose , an 麻豆原创 partner whose AI-powered Intelligent Talent Experience platform provides two-way integration with 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions. Virgo said the two-way integration 鈥渁llows us to have a holistic view of the candidates that progress through the process, no matter whether the team is operating in Phenom or 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, and it allows 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors to be our single source of truth.鈥�

There are several key benefits of Phenom鈥檚 solution at Coles. One is candidate attraction and engagement, which is achieved primarily through the Coles career site and chatbot. Another is recruiter automation and interview management, which provides automation and process efficiencies from when a job requisition is created in 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions and replicated into Phenom until a hiring manager chooses a candidate for the job. Once a candidate is chosen, the two-way integration enables the HR team to access the data in 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions and complete all compliance aspects, such as working rights, contract generation, and onboarding.

The Coles team gains additional efficiencies in its onboarding programs through the application of robotic process automation (RPA) powered by two bots that work in the background: Ashbotty processes the working rights and Usain Bot processes onboarding and manages pending recruits. 鈥淭hey take a lot of the transactional, manual work that we used to have team members doing. It can do that quickly, accurately, and it can do that 24/7 鈥� which is particularly important for us as a seven-days-a-week business,鈥� Virgo said. 

AI-Powered Experiences for Candidates and Recruiters

Coles reimagined the candidate experience to launch a modern, tech-enabled career site 鈥� which has been chosen as a two-time winner of Australia鈥檚 Best Careers Site. The site includes an AI-powered chatbot to guide candidates as they look for information, search relevant job postings, and submit their applications. It also includes Coles鈥� Expression of Interest, always-on advertising that drives the growth of its talent pool and advances its talent marketing by reducing the need to advertise every role. A Hosted Apply process, facilitated by integrations with Phenom, presents a consistent candidate experience and increases the conversion rate on applications.

Phenom AI Scheduling, a key part of Coles鈥� hiring experience, enables candidates to book themselves an available interview slot and automates the coordination of hiring team calendars. The new solution provides a fully mobile-enabled experience to meet the demands of candidates for an omni-channel, real-time experience where they can learn, read, and apply for jobs where and when they want.

Inundated by nearly 1 million applications each year to review, Coles also took steps to elevate the recruiter experience and increase the speed and accuracy of candidate screening and job matching. It implemented Phenom Fit Score, an AI-powered feature that assesses a candidate鈥檚 suitability for an open role, based on location and optimal travel distances, availability, and working rights; then, assigns a fit score and surfaces the most closely matched candidates to the recruiters. In addition, the new solution empowers in-store managers to collaborate with recruiters to review candidates and make quick hiring decisions with confidence.

Talent Pools Grow with Improvements to Hiring Speed and Efficiency

With the new augmented solution, Coles is experiencing tangible benefits across multiple categories and key metrics for success: time-to-fill is down six days; time-to-hire is down two days, which is impressive considering candidates can book the in-store interview up to two weeks in advance; and advertising spend is down 50%.

Most notably for Coles as a people-centric organization is the development of its talent pool, now numbering 2 million potential candidates. It achieves an 85% application conversion rate on up to 1 million applications per year. Through its to be a safe, inclusive, and diverse workplace, Coles has applied the new solution to provide greater accessibility for more diverse candidates, resulting in an increase of 24% more hiring for people who identify as having a disability. 

Virgo said that the talent acquisition team will continue to evolve its solution and assess more opportunities for AI and automation to bring value to the recruitment process. Although these technologies are not cure-alls for every recruitment scenario, they can save recruiting teams precious time and resources to focus on more high-touch interactions further down the recruiting funnel. In sharing lessons learned, Virgo noted, 鈥淚 think the important call out is the level of automation you can inject in your process will likely diminish as the seniority, complexity, and requirements of your roles increase because they are likely to be more high touch, perhaps need more interpretation or judgment calls from your recruiters to identify who the right talent is for your organization.鈥�

Watch on demand.

This cybersecurity month is especially noteworthy because the Biden-Harris administration recently recognized 麻豆原创 in its newly announced . Developed with companies, academia, non-profits, and U.S. government bodies, the NCWES aims to reinforce cybersecurity as a top priority and address short- and long-term cyber workforce gaps. The cybersecurity industry is not only important to upholding national security, but to leading in a digital economy where our increasing reliance on technology will only foster a more complex cyber threat environment. 

Persistent Pipeline Problem 

As noted in a explaining the new strategy, the U.S. has a persistent cyber talent pipeline problem that has continued to grow 鈥� with more than 750,000 cybersecurity jobs vacant in 2023. And it鈥檚 not just the U.S. that faces such a talent gap. According to , there鈥檚 been a 350% increase in cybersecurity job vacancies globally from 2013 to 2021. In 2023, the number of unfilled cybersecurity jobs lands at a whopping 3.5 million globally. And the disparity between the workforce supply and demand is predicted to remain through at least 2025. 

It’s a crisis, confirms Nora Clark, program lead for the Global Security Early Talent program at 麻豆原创. 鈥淭he need is there鈥ttacks are always happening though people may not realize because they鈥檙e going on in the background鈥very employee is a cybersecurity defender and can influence company security and compliance.鈥� But for young professionals, it can be nearly impossible to start a career in cybersecurity, she explains. Many positions require years of prior experience. Not many universities offer degrees in cybersecurity, and there鈥檚 a large learning curve that鈥檚 hard to overcome without support. 

That鈥檚 why Clark was charged with the task of creating a program at 麻豆原创 to fill the need for early talents in the cyber space.聽

Global Security Early Talent Program at 麻豆原创 

Inaugurated in June 2022, the two-year offers young professionals entry into the cybersecurity space at 麻豆原创 through rotations with company security divisions such as Global Cyber Defense and Design, Physical Security, and Risk and Compliance; team workshops; and mentorships. Candidates who successfully graduate from the program are offered placement on a permanent team at 麻豆原创. 

Clark chose to have the program span two years because cybersecurity has many applications and the knowledge may not transfer across teams. Two six-month rotations allow candidates to gain their footing and one 11-month rotation consists of completing a project with a cyber team at 麻豆原创. 鈥淭his is why our program is designed differently than other programs,鈥� she says. 鈥淧eople say it鈥檚 really hard to gain the knowledge and then apply it in a short amount of time. That鈥檚 why we provide the Global Security Early Talent candidates learning opportunities, mentorships, and more to support them in their cyber career journey.鈥� 

As a real testament to the initiative鈥檚 mounting success, candidates now have 43 different rotations to choose from. 鈥淚’ve thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to rotate across various security teams, which has allowed me to delve deep into different security topics and build out my network,鈥� Jacob Winemiller, Global Security Early Talent program participant, says. 鈥淎s an early talent in this program, I鈥檝e had the opportunity to work on interesting projects and contribute to meaningful initiatives. From day one, my experience has been nothing short of amazing.鈥�

But the program is about more than just gaining the technical knowledge to survive in cybersecurity 鈥� it also focuses on developing soft skills like storytelling, presentation skills, and networking. 鈥淲hen we talk about the program, we鈥檙e not just talking about being technically skilled in cyber. We鈥檙e also looking to see if they are going to be our next leaders, the next experts in the security industry,鈥� Clark explains. Adam Santilli, Global Security Early Talent program participant, confirms: 鈥淎s trainees, we are encouraged to develop both our soft and hard skills. The opportunity to do that while being a part of three different teams has given me a unique view on security issues today. I have also formed personal and highly valued relationships throughout this process. They have helped me expand my comfort zone and develop my interpersonal skills.鈥� 

Setting an Industry Standard 

When designing the program at 麻豆原创, Clark struggled to find information about early talent cybersecurity programs at other companies to learn from. 鈥淲hen we started this program, there were seemingly no other early talent cybersecurity programs out there. This type of cybersecurity program for people coming fresh out of college is unique.鈥� Indeed, 麻豆原创 was the only foreign entity recognized in the Biden-Harris administration鈥檚 NCWES announcement.  

Clark hopes that with the recognition from the U.S. government and more information about the Global Security Early Talent program out there, more companies will establish early talent cybersecurity initiatives and work together to combat the industry鈥檚 workforce crisis. 鈥淚n security, it only works if we communicate with each other,鈥� she says, talking about both the many security teams across 麻豆原创 and the cyber industry at large. 鈥淲e all have the same issues and we all want to tackle the same thing. [With the program at 麻豆原创] we want to make sure the next generation of security experts have a tight-knit community where they can reach out to each other.鈥� 

Diversity is just as important as communication. It fosters fresh ideas in any industry, but in cybersecurity specifically diversity helps when addressing threats. Clark explains: 鈥淭here has to be diversity because our adversaries are also diverse and we don鈥檛 know where they鈥檙e coming from or what their background is.鈥� Likewise, the NCWES stresses the importance of empowering those currently underrepresented in the cyber workforce. 

As a large, global company, 麻豆原创 has a responsibility to prioritize cybersecurity 鈥� for itself and its ecosystem. When you add in the workforce crisis and the need for early talents to that equation, it becomes a no-brainer. 鈥淲e鈥檙e continuing to build our program and support the cyber force,鈥� Clark says. 鈥淯ltimately, we want to see how we can also help others.鈥� 

Gillian Hixson is an integrated communications specialist at 麻豆原创.

I recently had the pleasure of participating in a webinar with Ian Lawless and David Rae of , during which we discussed effective talent strategies for this unprecedented period. We touched on the changing workforce, the impact of turbulence, and how procurement can build effective talent strategies for 2023.

Talent is a topic that is close to my heart and one that we are hearing is top of mind for procurement executives. Here are three key takeaways from our conversation that procurement leaders can apply to address talent strategies in 2023 and beyond.

1. Focus on Attracting and Retaining Employees to Overcome the Ongoing Talent Shortage

The polycrisis has changed the workforce, and it is time to change with it. , the COVID-19 pandemic, arguably the first and most significant event of this recent polycrisis, has caused long-lasting disruption to the workplace, creating 鈥渁 once-in-a-generation 鈥� or even once-in-100-years 鈥� opportunity to question some of our long-held assumptions about how we work.鈥�

Being able to nurture existing talent, being able to upskill existing talent, being able to recruit young talent to the procurement function 鈥� these are all top concerns. And not just in procurement: logistics is another area where we鈥檙e seeing increased demand for that skill set but where we do not have the capacity or enough capability in our current organizations, especially not to meet the demand that continues to build.

2. Engage and Manage External Workers as a Pillar of Your Strategy

罢辞诲补测鈥檚 workforce must be viewed holistically to include external resources, a practice that is growing more common as businesses seek to gain flexibility and control.

In the most forward-thinking companies I have seen, the CHRO and CPO have a collaborative relationship. It鈥檚 one where they are building a total workforce strategy together that looks at the capabilities within the full-time employee base and being sure that they are recruiting and training to have those critical skills. They are also thinking about what is the best way to leverage contingent workers and service providers to get global reach, specialization, or agility 鈥� to be able to have flexibility to expand or contract the workforce without having to go through the emotional task of restructuring or downsizing.

3. In Times of Turbulence, Meet Workers Where They Are

Agility is key to fulfilling the evolving role of procurement, as well as the demands of the talent pool. Living in a polycrisis has shown that we need different ways of thinking and working. In a dynamic environment, procurement teams must strengthen and regain capabilities that were previously unused or lost given the years of fairly consistent supply chain stability. Businesses must employ new methods to access crucial skill sets while mitigating risk, such as investing in the external workforce and providing flexibility to workers.

In a lot of areas, the last few years have made us very risk weary. CFOs are saying, 鈥淗ow can I better mitigate risk? We鈥檝e been through a roller coaster. I really want to take more risk out of our business.鈥� And one of the ways to do that is to have a dynamic workforce where you can efficiently shift labor or capability where you need it, when you need it.

In this age of uncertainty, procurement responsibilities have increased and are even more in the spotlight. Upskilling procurement talent is a vital part of being more effective and meeting the growing expectations of business stakeholders. But you can鈥檛 do it alone. Thankfully, technology is here to help you manage the complexities and the risk, and make proactive, informed decisions. At 麻豆原创, we continue to listen to the market, to not only address the challenges encountered today but to bring the solutions that will help procurement evolve into the future.

To learn more about the webinar and read a full summary, check out this white paper: .

Explore these solutions from 麻豆原创 that can help procurement leaders navigate through challenging times:

Don鈥檛 miss the opportunity to learn more about the full range of 麻豆原创鈥檚 procurement and total workforce solutions at in Vienna, Austria.

Etosha Thurman is chief marketing and solutions officer for Intelligent Spend and Business Network at 麻豆原创.

When fast-growing Mexico-based pharmacy retail chain San Pablo Farmacia faced the same challenge, it found the solution through adopting employee experience management technology. San Pablo Farmacia was established in 1936 and built on traditional customer service values, providing customers throughout Mexico City and beyond with a full-service pharmacy. The company offers over-the-counter medications, natural health products, and home delivery and call center services. With significant e-commerce operations, it offers a delivery service throughout the country, even in locations where it does not have a physical store.

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Equitable Learning Boosts Employee Performance, Talent, and Engagement

An important part of the company鈥檚 business model is to employ people with no previous experience and allow them to acquire skills, become certified, develop, and grow. Committed to being an employer of choice and wanting to be seen as one of the best companies to work for in Mexico, the company developed an employee experience strategy. It mapped out what it means to be an employer of choice in terms of offering and delivering opportunities for meaningful work and personal growth in a positive work environment.

To realize this strategy, San Pablo Farmacia would need to put employees at the center of every step of the employment journey. First, attracting and engaging quality talent and expertly managing its large volume of new hires each year called for improvements in its recruitment process. Then, enhancing onboarding and training experiences for new hires while giving everyone access to the relevant systems and data for optimal efficiency required transforming and connecting in a range of talent management processes.

As the cornerstone of its inclusive and modern approach to talent management, San Pablo Farmacia adopted an integrated, cloud-based HR and talent management solution, which included . To move from traditional, in-person training to online delivery, San Pablo Farmacia created an intuitive and engaging training experience that employees can consume at their convenience. By integrating the learning solution with other talent management applications, it can design personal training and development plans in line with its growth strategies and the individual needs of the entire workforce. With the introduction of its first online learning program, the company delivered certified training to 1,800 employees without the need to transport its people to a training location and take them away from their pharmacy stores.

Optimizing HR Operations and Payroll

Elsewhere, automated payroll processes reduce the risk of human error while giving managers access to modern tools to simplify employee management and shorten approval cycles. With a single source of truth for employee data, managers are empowered with the information they need to set and track performance objectives. And for customer-facing employees, mobile access to self-service HR tools provides an intuitive experience that has increased employee engagement and satisfaction.

With the solutions in place, San Pablo Farmacia has enhanced organizational agility, attracted quality talent, , and shaped a positive workplace culture.

More engaged employees are seen as brand ambassadors, directly impacting customer satisfaction, achieving an average delivery time of just 42 minutes to service customers at home. And according to Forbes, San Pablo Farmacia ranks among the top-rated customer service pharmacies in Mexico as of July 14, 2022, and it has aligned with the standards of a great place to work in Mexico every year since 2018.

Future-Proofing the Workforce Through Technology

In terms of next steps, San Pablo Farmacia is working toward transforming commissions so they鈥檙e nonlinear. With the right tools, the company can better determine which products to promote and give its people real-time access to sales data and the benefits they will receive from selling the merchandise.

麻豆原创 SuccessFactors Human Experience Management (HXM) Suite helps provide the technology foundation behind San Pablo Farmacia鈥檚 top-ranking reputation. The company uses a suite of 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions for core HR, payroll, recruiting, onboarding, performance, compensation, learning, succession, and development.

To learn more about these solutions, visit us .

Maryann Abbajay is chief revenue officer at 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.

Like so many businesses around the world, Delaware is facing big issues when it comes to recruitment. The shortage of available talent in the market and then having to fight other companies for talent when it鈥檚 available is a drain on Delaware鈥檚 time and resources.

“It鈥檚 unsustainable,” says David Taylor, head of Growth Initiatives at Delaware. “We鈥檙e a smaller business, but we’ve got big targets for growth. We’re aiming to triple our size in the next three to five years. That means we need access to great people. Now the challenge for us is that we don’t have the same resources as bigger companies. We don’t have a big team of people building that pipeline of talent for us.”

Step forward 麻豆原创 and the Partner Talent Initiative.

“It鈥檚 a really helpful mechanism to attract great people. It gives us the chance to take advantage of 麻豆原创鈥檚 reach and reputation to get in front of candidates who wouldn’t necessarily have heard of Delaware otherwise,” explains Taylor.

The other challenge the initiative has helped Delaware address has been finding experienced individuals who can bring a wider range of skills and insights to the table.

“For 麻豆原创 partners like us to establish a strong pipeline of talent and meet the needs of our clients, we really need to diversify our strategies,” says Kaity Cloke, senior recruitment consultant at Delaware. “We need to be looking at bringing new people into the industry, people who have different, diverse skill sets, who can support the work that we do. The Partner Talent Initiative is really helping us to address those issues.”

Indeed, Taylor goes on to say that some of the best consultants they鈥檝e hired have been people who have worked in a specific industry already, rather than only ever working as a consultant.

“The initiative gives us access to a pool of experienced candidates from a variety of different backgrounds, many of whom have experience of living in the real world,” he adds. “It gives us a different outlook than if we were only hiring people from our graduate scheme, and we aren鈥檛 competing against other companies for these candidates.”

So far, Taylor and Cloke have hired three people, two into the finance team and one onto the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors team, namely Caroline McDonald, whose story is featured .

“One of the real values of the Partner Talent Initiative is that we can go to 麻豆原创 and tell them our pain points, the areas where we need to bring people in, and they shape the initiative to suit us and address those issues. It’s a really collaborative approach,” says Taylor. “It also means that 麻豆原创 takes on a lot of the hard work of finding talent for us. For us, it鈥檚 a no-brainer to know that we have access to such fantastic talent to support our growth. It’s an opportunity that鈥檚 been too good to pass up.”

Find out more about the initiative or contact the team at partneracademy@sap.com.

The report covers the complex talent acquisition landscape, considering user experience, core applicant tracking system (ATS), candidate relationship management, recruitment marketing, analytics, internal mobility, and onboarding of 20 vendors.

With multiple challenges converging at once, including a growing skills gap, ongoing talent shortage, and rising inflation, leaders are increasingly focused on recruiting the best talent and developing their current workforce. With the macroeconomic disruptions happening globally,聽how can they optimize their current workforce by placing the right people in the right roles? More than 75% of business leaders say the ability to hire and retain talent is most critical to achieving growth, according to the , and only 31% expect talent shortages to ease this year.

At 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors, we have and continue to invest in our to empower our customers to take these challenges head on with a holistic approach to building a sustainable workforce — from recruitment to internal mobility to learning and growth. Our talent acquisition product development is focused on enhancing the candidate experience, providing greater support for recruitment solution users, automating processes, and enhancing core capabilities.

As the IDC MarketScape noted: 鈥�麻豆原创 SuccessFactors continues to add new features and functionality to its platform to provide recruiters, hiring managers, and candidates the best possible experience while improving key metrics such as time to fill and quality of hire.鈥�

Intuitive recruiter dashboards with candidate “select and compare” options, new hire onboarding with embedded listening, and embedded features to reduce implicit bias are all noted as strengths of the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions for talent acquisition.

Our excitement for being recognized as a Leader by the IDC MarketScape is surpassed only by our passion to see our customers win the war for talent. For example, a financial services group in South Africa, was able to reduce time-to-hire by 25% using 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions. Kammy Sing, the company鈥檚 group head of operations said: 鈥淭he best candidates are often the ones with multiple job offers, and any delays in the hiring process could lead to a missed opportunity. With faster hiring processes we鈥檙e even better placed to find and attract top talent to our organization.鈥�

, an international food and agribusiness, is also using 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions to transform its talent management. President and Group CIO Thiagaraja Manikandan said: 鈥淭o operate at the speed modern business demands and strengthen our position as a leading employer, Olam chose 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors and Qualtrics to reimagine how we equip candidates and employees with the resources, services, and tools to support their work and development.鈥�

The IDC MarketScape recognized 鈥渢he option to integrate 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors Recruiting and 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors Onboarding as part of the 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors HXM suite or to purchase as standalone provides clients with strong flexibility in choice for solutions.鈥�

While talent acquisition remains an important strategy to address talent challenges, the positive results will be short-lived if not combined with an effective growth and development strategy. 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors solutions are designed with flexibility and extensibility in mind, enabling customers to take advantage of the latest innovations faster than ever before. For example, organizations can embed 麻豆原创 Fieldglass software into recruiter dashboards to manage contingent workers and 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors Opportunity Marketplace can help organizations be more agile in how they upskill and utilize skills from their employees to fill gaps quickly.

As we look toward the future, we are focused on continuing to build our whole self model to support organizations in continuing to provide opportunities that are relevant for each individual 鈥� helping them to grow their careers in line with their personal growth. The magic happens when organizations can bring together talent data across the employee life cycle, starting with each candidate, and deliver a consistent, individualized experience for the entire workforce. Combined, this is what will help organizations build a sustainable workforce capable of delivering greater economic sustainability.

To learn more, download a complimentary copy of “” (doc #US48357022, June 2022).

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Amy Wilson is senior vice president of Products and Design for 麻豆原创 SuccessFactors.