Category Archives: Human Resources

HR News, HR Tech, Human Resources, News, Pay & Reward

Deel is acquiring payroll company PaySpace

News comes as Deel hits 500M+ in annual recurring revenue within five years

Global payroll and HR company Deel announced today that it is acquiring African-based payroll and HR company PaySpace for an undisclosed amount. It also announced that it has achieved $500M in annual recurring revenue (ARR) within five years of founding. The acquisition of PaySpace positions Deel as a market leader in global payroll, deepening Deel’s native infrastructure and coverage.

PaySpace has more than 20 years of payroll technology experience, providing payroll engines and HR services in 44 countries across Europe, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa for more than 14,000 customers. Its size, expertise, and proprietary disruptive payroll technology give it unrivaled scale and reach. Customers include multinationals across various industries such as Heineken, Coca-Cola Beverages, and Puma Sports.

By acquiring PaySpace, Deel will become the first global payroll & Employer of Record (EOR) with its own full-stack payroll engine localized in 50 countries and integrated into its offering. Deel has the ability to be the system of record for HR organizations worldwide and can give its customers a simple and single interface to manage their global teams. All of this results in greater efficiency and control for companies, faster payroll cycles, more localized compliance insights relevant to their workforce, plus the ability to make changes to their payroll at any time.

The news follows Deel’s acquisition of leading APAC payroll provider PayGroup. Deel now owns the full HR stack: entities, local teams (legal, HR, payroll), and local payroll engines across six continents. Its four-year ambition is to serve 100 countries with native payroll engines, and this acquisition is a significant step toward that goal.

 

Deel co-founder and CEO Alex Bouaziz said, “Global payroll is hard to do and critical to get right. As a company, you want assurances you can pay your teams on time, compliantly, anywhere in the world. PaySpace’s single-platform payroll expertise and breadth of coverage, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, combined with PayGroup’s presence in APAC, will give Deel customers the reach they need to grow their businesses globally. Our long-term vision is to be the most comprehensive payroll system in the world.”

Deel also announced today that it has achieved $500M+ in annual recurring revenue organically, outside of this acquisition. In under five years, the company has grown to 3,000+ team members in more than 100 countries. It has been EBITDA positive and consistently generating cash for a year and a half.

 

Last week, Deel announced its acquisition of Zavvy, a people-enablement platform. Zavvy offers a central hub that covers career development, performance management, and training programs. HR leaders can run performance and compensation analysis for top performers, provide a library of AI-backed L&D courses, and create bespoke career paths and planning modules for their teams. The move rounds out Deel’s HR suite of products, making it even more of a one-stop-shop for global teams.

 

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About Deel

Deel is an all-in-one HR solution for global teams. It helps companies simplify every aspect of managing an international workforce, from culture and onboarding, to local payroll, compliance and now, people management. It owns 120+ country entities and manages in-house, in-country payroll teams, in addition to offering Employer of Record, contractor, immigration and HRIS services worldwide.

 

About PaySpace

Cloud-native from inception, the PaySpace proprietary technology was developed to operate in a highly secure and operationally efficient manner. It was specifically designed to provide multi-country payroll and HR functionality with built-in compliance for organizations of all sizes and industry sectors. It provides a single truth for payroll and HR data – and the tools to make strategic decisions at every level. PaySpace has expanded into 40+ African countries as well as the Middle East, with an imminent launch in the United Kingdom (UK) and Brazil. It is scalable, configurable, highly secure, and easy-to-use allowing anytime, anywhere access to empower payroll and HR teams, driving organizational development.

HR, HR Tech, HRDs and Technology, Human Resources

Deel Acquires People Development Platform Zavvy

Zavvy performance management and L&D software rounds out Deel’s payroll & HR solutions

Global payroll & HR company Deel announced today that it has acquired German-based people enablement platform Zavvy. All of Zavvy’s team members are joining Deel.

Founded in 2021 by Mehmet Yilmaz and Joshua Cornelius, Munich-based Zavvy is a people-enablement platform. It offers a central hub that covers career development, performance management, and training programs. One of Zavvy’s big differentiators is its embedded AI technology that makes suggestions for managers to assess team performance and create personalized career development plans. Zavvy counts Moss, Primer, LoveBonito, TypeForm, and more as customers.

With Zavvy, HR leaders can run performance and compensation analysis for top performers, provide a library of AI-backed L&D courses, and create bespoke career paths and planning modules for their teams. These capabilities will be integrated into a new product suite called Deel Engage and will cost $20 per user per month.

Deel also announced today that it is making Deel HR – previously free for up to 200 users – free for any size company. For the first time in the industry, learning management, performance, HRIS, and compliance knowledge will be available from one company at one price.

 

This is big news for companies trying to manage a global workforce. Typically, businesses have to patch together different HR and payroll systems, along with performance, benefits, equity, and more. Now with Zavvy integrated into Deel’s payroll and HRIS system, employers can save on admin and supercharge their teams’ efficiency and performance in one global system of record. It provides an unrivaled view of a company’s global workforce across every aspect of the employee lifecycle.

This news positions Deel as the first company to provide a free HRIS product alongside people management, employer-of-record and contractor hiring, global payroll, compliance expertise, and in-house legal and immigration services.

 

Co-founder and co-CEO Mehmet Yilmaz said of the acquisition: “We started Zavvy to help unlock people’s work potential. Joining Deel – the leading HR platform for tomorrow’s workforce – will greatly accelerate this mission. Both companies are passionate about driving innovation in the HR sector, with a focus on hiring and nurturing great talent around the world.”

 

Deel co-founder and CEO Alex Bouaziz said, “Deel is all about helping companies get the best out of their global teams, and Zavvy’s AI technology is at the forefront of people management and talent development. It’s a perfect fit – our customers are looking for a one-stop-shop for all things HR, and Zavvy’s people management tools now fill in that missing piece of our global HR offering.”

 

HR analyst and Managing Partner of 3SixtyInsights, Pete Tiliakos, said, “Zavvy’s people enablement technology is a perfect complement to the broader Deel ecosystem of global employment solutions. The addition is well-timed in enabling employers to develop and retain skills and talent through highly personalized learning and development experiences, while providing employers with a single platform for compliant global employment and talent enrichment.”

 

About Deel

Deel is an all-in-one HR solution for global teams. It helps companies simplify every aspect of managing an international workforce, from culture and onboarding, to local payroll, compliance and now, people management. It owns 130+ country entities and manages in-house, in-country payroll teams, in addition to offering Employer of Record, contractor, immigration and HRIS services worldwide.

 

HR, HR News, Human Resources, News

New research shows societal and workplace impacts on UK and US HR strategies

  • 69% HR’s have created or adjusted HR strategies in the last 12 months
  • 39% say it’s challenging to create HR strategies that are adaptable/flexible for a continuously changing landscape
  • Employee Experience strategies are at the top of the HR agenda
  • Future of Work strategies have seen the biggest year-on-year change

 

New research of 400 UK and US HR professionals shows how their actions reflect work and societal changes. Seventy five percent of HR respondents have created or adjusted their HR strategies over the last year, while 72% are considering purchasing a service or product to assist with their HR strategies or initiatives in the next year.

PR in HR’s report deep dives into HR’s strategies on Employee Experience, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB), Talent, Future of Work and Organisational Design.

 

The HR Strategies and Buying Decisions report finds that Employee Experience strategies are currently getting the most attention, with 42% of respondents saying they’ve created or adjusted strategies in the last year, while 35% say they’ll be considering buying a service or product to assist those initiatives in the next year. Employee Experience initiatives support recruitment, retention and engagement and may include, for example, onboarding, workplace culture, processes, management, teams and tasks.

Forty-one percent of respondents say they have adjusted their DEIB strategies in the last year. While 32% plan to buy products or services to assist their strategies in the next year to help attract and retain diverse talent, and support collaboration and understanding.

 

Talent issues are also on HR’s strategic agenda. Thirty-three percent of respondents say this is a likely buying need in the next 12 months, highlighting the ongoing need to find, hire and retain the right people.

Organisational design appears to be less on HR’s radar, with just a quarter (25%) expressing this as a focus when it comes to buying considerations.

 

Kay Phelps, Director and Founder of PR in HR, experts in getting HR suppliers heard in the complex HR sector, said, “The HR sector is endlessly fascinating. It’s all about the shifting needs of organisations and their people. HR’s drivers, whether UK or US based, are impacted by societal and workplace changes, so they are tuned into a multitude of issues that may impact their organisation and its people. Current mainstream topics of conversation include wellbeing and emotional health, artificial intelligence, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, cost of living, menopause, skills gaps, productivity, flexible work, balancing family care and so much more.

“This report sheds a light on HR’s strategies and buying decisions. For instance, Future of Work strategies have seen the biggest shift when it comes to what products or services HR is buying to assist strategies or initiatives. The number of HR professionals who said they bought a product or service increased by 14 percentage points within the last year, compared to the year previously. Interestingly, in the US, the number increased by 19 percentage points, and in the UK, it increased by 9 percentage points.

 

More interesting UK and US comparisons:

 

  • The UK has been most concerned with DEIB with 37% making changes to their HR strategies and least concerned with Organisational Design (27%), likely because many experienced so much change after the pandemic.
  • The US has been most concerned with Employee Experience – 41% of respondents stated they have changed this strategy. They, too, were least concerned with Organisational Design (19%).
  • Generally, more UK respondents intend to purchase new products and services across at least 1 of the 5 HR areas. Seventy three percent of UK respondents say this, compared to 62% of US respondents.

 

PR in HR’s report is downloadable here. It also provides HR suppliers with information and guidance on what sources are most likely to influence their perception and trust in a brand.

 

Apprenticeships, Education News, Employment, HR, Human Resources, News from Wales

Training provider calls for more apprenticeship places to address skill shortage

Leading UK training provider, Educ8 Training Group, is calling for more businesses to include apprenticeship opportunities in their recruitment strategy to tackle skills shortages.

 

The Learning and Work Institute forecast the UK skills shortage would cost the country £120bn by 2030 amid a shortfall of 2.5 million highly-skilled workers.

 

Ann Nicholas, Customer Account Director at Educ8 Training said, “The job market has seen significant changes since the Covid pandemic and employers now want to diversify their strategy in order to retain the best talent. As a training provider supporting over 3,000 employers, we have heard first-hand from businesses how apprenticeships can support recruitment and upskill talent.”

 

A lack of management skills within an organisation often creates issues in productivity. Our ILM qualifications assist both learners and employers to improve their confidence in obtaining these important management skills needed to grow the business.”

 

UK employers spend just half of the EU average on training per worker. Apprenticeship programmes could work alongside existing in-house training to upskill staff in a cost-effective way.

 

Orbis Education & Care is a provider of specialist services for children and adults with complex needs associated with autism. In 2022, 43 of their staff members enrolled on apprenticeships with Educ8 Training.

 

Debra Derham, Learning and Development Manager at Orbis said, “Our staff have accessed a range of apprenticeship qualifications through Educ8 Training. This has enabled their career progression while being able to access recognised vocational qualifications.”

 

An apprenticeship programme provides clear career progression. It helps the employer and employee focus on individual and professional development.

 

Lucy Williams studies with Educ8 Training and progressed from an unemployed factory worker with no qualifications to a care manager. She said, “Apprenticeships have helped me progress my career. All the knowledge and skills I have picked up through studying have got me where I want to be within the company. There is always time to learn, no matter how old you are.”

 

Apprenticeships support the current skills shortage and also prepare people for the future workforce. The UK government has a solid strategy for the UK economy to meet the net zero emissions target by 2050. Green skills are urgently needed to deliver this strategy.

 

Educ8 Training are set to launch a new Energy and Carbon Management course. It will be one of the first qualifications of its kind in the UK to upskill workers to help drive their organisations’ goals in lowering carbon emissions and developing more sustainable working practices.

Human Resources, News

Arctic Shores partners with Teamtailor to redefine candidate experience and help businesses scrap the CV

  • Behaviour based assessment pioneer integrates with Teamtailor to empower businesses to assess candidates on their true potential

London, UK; 1st August 2022: Psychometric assessment pioneer, Arctic Shores, today announced that it has integrated with Teamtailor, the recruitment and employer branding applicant tracking system (ATS), to help businesses see more in candidates.

The integration will empower hiring managers using Teamtailor to add the Arctic Shores assessment as a stage in the recruitment process. This provides greater insight into candidate potential, without the need to switch between platforms.

Arctic Shores’ behaviour-based assessments measure candidates on their natural strengths and potential. An overall score of the candidate’s fit against the key success criteria for that role (on the candidate card in Teamtailor this score is then converted into a score out of a 100) will then be shared with hiring managers, who can then progress candidates to the next stage of the process.

Nathan McLaughlin, Partnerships Manager at Teamtailor commented: “Our integration with Arctic Shores will make the hiring process seamless and efficient, but also ensure that every candidate has an equal chance in the process. We know that the work Arctic Shores is doing is going a long way in improving diversity and recognising the potential of each individual. We’re proud to be working with the team bringing its assessment to our platform.”

Grant Jackson, Recruitment Lead at Simply Conveyancing added: “Arctic Shores and Teamtailor are revolutionary platforms in their own right, but the new integration has dramatically enhanced our hiring process. In terms of efficiency, we no longer need to switch between platforms, and the success scores allow us to make informed and fair decisions about candidates. We’re proud to be prioritising potential and creating more diverse teams across the business.”

Claire Jaques, Chief Product Officer at Arctic Shores, said: “Teamtailor and Arctic Shores both place the candidate experience at the heart of what we do. Our unbiased, scientifically backed assessment gives you insights you can trust – packaged in a format that candidates love. And with our Teamtailor integration, recruiters can finally leave behind manual CV screening, and say hello to more meaningful work.”

Human Resources, News

Younger generation say they have skills to succeed, but almost 90% worry that employers don’t recognise their potential, survey reveals

  • 87% of 16-24 year olds believe they have essential digital skills
  • Yet optimism and ability not matched by opportunity – 87% also believe employers focus on experience over potential, is holding them back

London, UK; 15 July, 2022: As the world marks World Youth Skills Day on Friday 15th July, a survey of 500 16-24 year olds revealed that 87% are optimistic about their ability to find a new role, with 4 in 5 declaring they feel prepared with the essential and digital/IT skills needed for existing and future job roles.

However, new research from Arctic Shores, the psychometric assessment pioneer, also reveals the same percentage (87%) believe employers focus too much on past experience and not enough on potential when hiring.

Despite their optimism, 3 in 4 young people felt that a lack of relevant experience or confidence in having relevant skills has held them back from getting a new job.

Furthermore, nearly half (48%) of all those surveyed have dropped out of a recruitment process even when they were still keen on the job, with lack of fairness (27%) the most common reason for doing so.

Half of those surveyed don’t believe or don’t know if they have enough experience on their CV to get their dream job, with 43% believing the CV to be an outdated hiring method. When asked what employers should determine their ‘potential’ based on in the recruitment process, ‘personality’ (39%) was most popular. This was as opposed to academic results, application forms and ability to pass tests.

When looking for a job, over half (54%) of all respondents want training and development the most from their employer, as opposed to remote working (16%).

Ed Halliday, Direction of Operations at futureproof, the technology training company, commented: “At futureproof, we see that many candidates are optimistic about getting some kind of job post-graduation. However, despite the volume of available positions, this is not the case with tech roles. Many candidates are conscious that they need additional extra training to become job-ready – even if they have gone through a tech-related degree.”

Wider concerns

As the country grapples with rising prices and supply shortages, it’s unsurprising that 72% of young people have concerns about the cost of living crisis, with 37% likely to change jobs as a result. However, with the employment process focusing on experience alone, it will be challenging for younger people to get into higher paying roles. More worryingly, over a fifth (21%) feel hopeless for the future.

Robert Newry, CEO of Arctic Shores, added: “As we look to the future world of work, sadly there is a huge mismatch between young people’s optimism in finding a new role and the hiring processes that are currently in place.

“The results reaffirm the urgent need to rethink the hiring process and redefine what employers should look for in candidates; otherwise the social mobility gap between those lucky enough to have specific skills and those that don’t will widen. Why are companies willing to pay ever increasing recruitment fees and inflated salaries for experience rather than growing talent? As roles and skills evolve with digitisation, recruitment needs to follow suit. Scrapping the CV and hiring for potential will address the mismatch and restore the optimism in our younger digital generation.”

Human Resources, News

HR Teams Failing to Give Employees the Experience They Want, Tivian Research Finds

Ineffective, inadequate, and generic approach to feedback accelerates Great Resignation in UK businesses

London, UK, 7 June 2022 – There’s a massive gap between the employee experience that UK staff are looking for and what’s currently provided by HR, sparking discontent and resignations, according to unsettling new research findings from Tivian, the leader in intelligent experience management.

The statistics the research discovered were stark. Failing to act is driving staff out of the door – 67% of employees said they’d be more likely to stay if employers listened and made changes based on their feedback. 85% of HR staff think they are using employee feedback to improve the experience they offer. Yet only half (50%) of staff agree. Just 14% think their employer uses feedback very effectively to drive change. With staff leaving at an increasing rate, it seems organisations have lost track of how to retain talent, implementing ineffective listening strategies that employees feel minimise their roles.

“Employee feedback programmes should be helping companies battle the Great Resignation – but the data shows that they are fundamentally broken,” said Peter Wilde, Head of Employee Experience, Tivian. “Even more worrying is that unlike staff, most HR professionals believe they are still effective. It is time to stop treating feedback as a tick box exercise and deliver a personalised, two-way approach that uses communication to motivate, keep, and get the best out of staff.

Employees feel powerless and that their bosses are out of touch with their needs. 70% of staff said they had little or no influence over how things were done at their company and 38% felt the company was rarely or never open to their ideas. While 97% wanted to work for open and transparent organisations only around half (55%) actually did. Worryingly, HR agreed – just 42% said their company “did transparency” well.

We all want to be treated as an individual. But apparently this isn’t happening at work. Only 12% of employees receive laser-targeted, personalised feedback – 88% get generic, one-size-fits-all communications that could be meant for anyone. Despite the technology they’ve got, 70% of HR staff admit that they just communicate with generic templates or on a departmental level.

HR has upped the cadence of listening programmes, with 80% asking for employee feedback on a daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis. But according to the numbers, they’re not listening holistically across the employee lifecycle. Only 36% of HR teams collect feedback during recruitment, 50% during onboarding and 19% on work anniversaries. Listening at these critical moments is vital to staff feeling a “personal touch” to their work life, and to provide crucial feedback that drives improvements. Only two-thirds (62%) collect feedback when an employee resigns. Too little, too late. Doing this earlier might well prevent them leaving in the first place.

“There’s two frustrating conclusions from our study,” said Peter Wilde, Head of Employee Experience, Tivian. “Firstly, HR professionals think they’re doing a good job but clearly aren’t. And most importantly these gaps can be easily bridged if HR staff start thinking like marketers. The tools and processes are out there for the customer experience – HR need to embrace them to deliver the right employee experience. Then they’ll be giving people what they actually want and add real value to the business.”

The 2022 Tivian Experience Intelligence Report surveyed 1,000 office-based UK employees and 100 managers responsible for HR during March 2022. Download a full report on the survey results here: https://info.tivian.com/en-gb/ex-gap-research-report