Talent Management Systems

The Talent Management Systems, (TMS) or "Strategic Human Capital Management Applications", are the next-generation extensions of traditional Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS).

Purpose

Wheras traditional HRMS and ERP systems focus primarily on transaction processing and the administration of basic human resources processes such as personnel administration, payroll, time management, etc., Talent Management Systems focus on providing strategic assistance to organizations in the accomplishment of long-term enterprise goals with respect to talent, or human capital.

Functional Modules

TMS solutions typically offer one or many disparate or integrated modules which provide business functionality in areas of human capital management / human resources typically referred to as "strategic".

* Performance Management
* Goal Management
* Compensation Management
* Talent Acquisition / Recruiting
* Training
* Career Development
* Succession Planning

Delivery Methods

Talent Management Systems recently have been at the forefront of growth in the [software as a service] delivery market following earlier iterations in the standard HR systems space via Application Service Provider (ASP) delivery models. Traditional delivery via on-premise license sales still exist, but are much less prevalent in the competitive space.

Enterprise Systems Integration

Vendors of TMS software typically claim varying degrees of integration with other enterprise software vendors, and in particular with leading vendors of HRMS systems. The accuracy of these claims is often a question of interpretation, as the degree to which each vendor integrates with 3rd party systems varies considerably depending on circumstances and both the vendor and the 3rd party solution. In some cases, 3rd party vendors offer certification for such scenarios, in order to offer some basis of comparison. [http://www.sap.com/ecosystem/partners/partnerwithsap/icc/index.epx] [http://www.oracle.com/partnerships/index.html]

Most vendors claim some degree of integration with higher-end vendor solutions such as:

* SAP ERP HCM
* Oracle E-Business Suite HRMS
* Oracle PeopleSoft HRMS
* Others

Competitive Market

The so-called war on talent has driven a marked increase of attention and investment in the Talent Management space as new vendors continue to enter to support an ever-growing demand for strategic human resources applications. Many of these competitors have entered via the software as a service (SaaS) delivery model, affording small and medium business (SMB) new less-costly options. Companies such as SuccessFactors, Taleo and Authoria are often mentioned by industry analysts such as Gartner and Forrester Research in the on-demand, or SaaS space.

Tier One ERP providers SAP AG and Oracle remain large market share owners in the growing space, though their focus remains on more traditional, on-premise delivery methods and large enterprise and multiational customers.

See also

* Talent Management
* Human resource management systems
* Software as a Service
* Enterprise Resource Planning

Notes