The Dirty Little Secret of HR Education

by Matthew Stollak on Wednesday, July 24, 2013





Want to know the dirty little secret of HR education?

We do an absolutely horrible job of preparing students for the world of HR technology

  • Pick up a general HR textbook and you'll find little to no reference to HR technology and its importance.  You'll see a passing mention of HRIS, but none of the 2013 textbooks discussed SaaS or CRM, and only one mentioned ERP.
  • Do a search at Amazon.com for books on "Human Resource Technology" and the choices are limited at best.
  • HR Technology is not a primary content area of SHRM's HR Curriculum Guidelines and Templates, and is, instead, relegated to secondary content.
  • HR technology is given short shrift in earning your PHR or SPHR certification.  Those certified are only expected to have knowledge of:
    • Data integrity techniques and technology (for example: data sharing, password usage, social engineering)
    • Technology and applications (for example: social media, monitoring software, biometrics)

As a result, many students and HR professionals are unprepared to make the crucial decisions regarding the appropriate use of HR technology for their organization.  They are subject to the whims and asymmetric information of the provider.

So, what can be done to fill the gap in your HR Technology education?
  1. Attend webinars on the topic.  For example, there is an excellent webinar titled, "Get HR Technology to Work Where the Rubber Meets the Road," today from 2-3 pm Eastern. This session is being led by Robin Schooling and LBi Software President Richard Teed, and moderated by Laurie Ruettimann.   
  2. Attend the HR Technology Conference in Las Vegas, October 7-9. If you register for the HRevolution Conference on October 6, you will be given a code for $600 off the registration fee for HR Tech.


 

Leave your comment