Maximizing talent management through
the cloud
New technologies offer opportunities to develop skills and careers
Jason Corsello
Jason Corsello is
Vice-president, Corporate
Development and Strategy,
Cornerstone OnDemand,
Santa Monica, California,
USA.
DOI 10.1108/09670731211233339
ike many previous technological revolutions, cloud computing will have a significant
L impact on how organizations operate. A Gartner (2008) report published in 2008
indicated that cloud computing would be at least as influential as e-business, which
has revolutionized supply chains and commerce in recent years. What does cloud
computing mean for human-resource (HR) specialists?
Information-technology (IT) and management-information systems have become an integral
part of most HR departments. From payroll systems to learning-management platforms,
technology has enabled HR specialists to do more, more effectively and in a more timely
way.
Cloud computing will accelerate that trend, enabling more functionality and more timely
information to be put at the disposal of employees, HR specialists, line managers and
business leaders alike. This could help organizations significantly to improve their capacity
to manage talent more effectively.
Breaking down the barriers to effective talent management
Research consistently demonstrates that having a mature, integrated talent-management
strategy pays dividends. A report from Bersin & Associates (2010) found that such
organizations in the US enjoyed 17 percent lower voluntary turnover, 26 percent higher
revenue per employee and better business stability.
However, the report also noted that technology is a key enabler for success. Organizations
struggle to deliver an effective talent-management strategy without the support of an
integrated technological platform.
Innovative providers are starting to move talent-management technology solutions into the
cloud, but this technological change will have a wider impact than just moving the location of
a piece of software; it will reduce current barriers to the implementation of an effective,
organization-wide talent-management strategy.
Traditionally, there have been four common barriers to effective talent management:
B Siloed talent-management initiatives. In most businesses, processes for learning
management, performance management, succession planning and other talent initiatives
have been separated, managed and owned by different parts of the organization.
Therefore, these processes are not always integrated.
B Limited application of talent-management processes. Activity has been rooted in
traditional management thinking. It has focused on developing the talent of senior
VOL. 20 NO. 4 2012, pp. 27-30, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 0967-0734 j HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL DIGEST j PAGE 27
 executives and other high-flyers, and also perhaps addressing the weaknesses of the
worst-performing employees, rather than maximizing the talent of all employees.
B Lack of quality HR information. The information driving talent-management activity has
not been generated and used in a timely way. This can be because of a lack of systems to
support talent initiatives, stand-alone legacy systems that do not meet current needs, or
modern applications to support talent management not being integrated with other HR
management-information systems, so talent decisions are based on incomplete or
inaccurate information.
B Lack of support to implement flexible and robust technology platforms. Simply replacing
existing legacy systems can be seen as a prohibitively expensive and complex way to
roll-out and maintain new applications to support talent-management initiatives. Instead,
HR is encouraged to pursue the false economy of adopting discrete applications to meet
specific needs.

Taking the SaaS/cloud approach

In recent years, businesses have adopted Software as a Service (SaaS) applications,
particularly in areas like accounting, collaboration, invoicing and, increasingly,
human-resource and talent-management applications. This type of application is not
hosted on the corporate network or desktop PC. Instead, the application provider hosts the
application centrally – increasingly, in the cloud – and users gain access to the application
remotely, normally using a web browser over the internet.
Far from being a niche play, all the leading enterprise software vendors have a SaaS/cloud
strategy. However, confusion can arise because the definitions are still being written.
Infrastructure providers, hardware providers, software providers and online retailers are all
inviting customers to be part of their ‘‘cloud’’ or claiming their software to be SaaS. This
means businesses can find that they have bought into an application that becomes as
limited over time as traditional legacy systems.
To avoid this outcome, HR managers need to be sure their application provider is offering
true multi-tenant SaaS, where there is one platform, one version of the application (or
application suite) and one central support team for all customers.
The applications and data must reside on hardware that is owned, maintained and supported
by the application provider so there are no specific in-house hardware, software or support
costs. What is more, any number of permissioned users should be able to gain access to the
application. This makes it possible to provide access to every employee and line manager,
according to their particular needs, enabling and supporting the roll-out of a comprehensive,
organization-wide talent-management strategy. Thus, if there is the will to introduce an
organization-wide talent-management system, it is easy and cost-effective to do so.

Future-proofing through constant innovation

One primary advantage of cloud applications is that the provider’s investment is directed
into improving and upgrading the application itself, meaning users benefit from more
frequent service updates. In addition, application providers tend to be more responsive to
customer requirements.

‘‘ The cloud will have a wider impact than just moving the
location of a piece of software; it will reduce current barriers
to the implementation of an effective, organization-wide
talent-management strategy. ’’

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PAGE 28 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL DIGEST VOL. 20 NO. 4 2012
‘‘ Businesses can find that they have bought into an application
that becomes as limited over time as traditional legacy
systems. ’’

The nature of the technology means it is easier to poll HR specialists to ask them to rank the
functionality that would help to improve their experience or results – and prioritize those
aspects for development in the next version of the release.
Organizations tend to have similar needs, so the most in-demand changes do tend to benefit
the greater proportion of customers. The technology itself is more dynamic and flexible in
meeting customers’ talent-management needs than traditional software, because it is more
configurable and processes and structures can be changed on the fly. Ultimately, as
organizations change, the software evolves with them.
Many vendors claiming to have SaaS/cloud solutions actually run and have to support
several different versions of their applications. It is easy to see that this is not likely to be as
efficient as a true multi-tenant SaaS, cloud-based application that has one single platform,
with one continuous version of the software, supporting all customers. Only this approach
ensures that everything is focused on driving constant value and innovation into the
application, to deliver the best results for customers and users.

The benefits for users

There is also an inherent benefit in the fact that cloud-based applications are always ‘‘on’’,
available to users to update at any time. The ability to input information directly can help HR
specialists, employees and line managers to reduce the errors and discrepancies that tend
to creep in when processes associated with talent management are duplicated or delayed
(say, when line managers fill out forms that are then sent to HR for input). In addition, that
information is immediately available to be shared and used. As such, the timeliness of
management information is much improved and the decision-making process potentially
strengthened, resulting in improved talent management.
In turn, this helps HR specialists to overcome another barrier – persuading the organization
of the case for change. HR specialists can use the system to engage line managers and
employees, demonstrating that their involvement can actually empower them and make it
easier to manage their own needs, careers and responsibilities.
For example, an employee may have more insight into his or her own development needs,
the career paths open to him or her and development opportunities that are available within
the organization – all of which empowers the person to take more responsibility for his or her
own career development. Line managers may be able to input information, run reports or
approve training requests directly on the system, reducing time and effort on their part. And
for the entire organization, access to integrated social-networking tools can facilitate the
sharing of valuable knowledge and opinions among teams and across different departments
and geographical locations. Connecting and engaging dispersed workforces on a
continuous basis can help to engender a greater sense of company loyalty and job
satisfaction. It can also help HR specialists and line managers to identify high-potential
individuals or other employees who play an active and vital role in the organization.

The cloud breathes life into talent management

To compete, organizations want to learn more about their people and make the most of the
talent available to them, through a continuous cycle of planning, review and development.
An easy-to-use, fully integrated suite of talent-management applications that is always ‘‘on’’
and accessible across the organization will help HR specialists to move towards providing

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 real-time HR. Activities like setting objectives, agreeing development goals, reviewing
progress, discussing career aspirations, and workforce and succession planning move from
being one-time events or annualized cycles into living, breathing ongoing processes.
Additionally, these processes become more transparent and integrate a greater degree of
continuous feedback from employees and line managers to engender confidence,
understanding and trust.
HR specialists develop much more insight into the talent that is currently available in-house.
This enables the organization to become much more focused on developing its talent
pipeline – ensuring the right people have the right development opportunities to meet the
organization’s current and future needs. It also helps HR to compare internal and external
talent, reducing the need to recruit externally and providing internal opportunities for career
Keywords: development that help to retain and motivate talented people.
Talent management,
Cloud computing, To sum up, cloud computing can help HR specialists to overcome many of the barriers to
Human resource effective talent management, because it can help to address key issues of accessibility,
management, affordability, timeliness, ease of use and integration. Moreover, it offers a technological
Organizational change, solution that can change organically in step with the organization’s own changing needs.
Information and Adopting a cloud-based approach to talent management can deliver massive benefits to:
communications technology, individual employees, whose career aspirations can be better met; HR specialists, whose
Organizational innovation effectiveness can be increased; and the organization, where performance is enhanced.

References
Bersin & Associates (2010), ‘‘Talent management factbook 2010: best practices and benchmarks’’, US
Talent Management, available at: www.bersin.com/Practice/Detail.aspx?id ¼ 12722&p ¼ Talent-
Management
Gartner (2008), ‘‘Cloud computing confusion leads to opportunity’’, available at: www.gartner.com/
DisplayDocument?doc_cd ¼ 159034

Further reading
Hagel, J. and Seely Brown, J. (2010), ‘‘Cloud computing’s stormy future’’, Harvard Business Review,
available at: http://blogs.hbr.org/bigshift/2010/09/cloud-computings-stormy-future.html
Trappler, T. (2011), ‘‘The cloud contract adviser: know your provider’s infrastructure’’, Computerworld,
available at: www.computerworld.com/s/article/9216786/The_Cloud_Contract_Adviser_Know_your_
provider_s_infrastructure?taxonomyId ¼ 158&pageNumber ¼ 1

About the author

Jason Corsello is Vice-president of Corporate Development and Strategy for Cornerstone
OnDemand, a global provider of integrated learning and talent-management software.
Before joining Cornerstone, he was Senior Vice-president of Strategy and Corporate
Development at HR consulting firm Knowledge Infusion. His background also includes a role
as research director with industry analyst firm Yankee Group. For further information, e-mail
info_UK@cornerstoneondemand.com or visit www.cornerstoneondemand.co.uk. Jason
Corsello can be contacted at: jcosello@corneerstoneondemand.com

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