News

News

• May 18, 2021 18 May'21

  Logitech launches video conferencing whiteboard camera

  Logitech's Scribe camera levels the playing field for video conferencing meetings, letting both remote and in-person attendees see the writing on a whiteboard.

• May 14, 2021 14 May'21

  Tight labor market boosts wages, paves way for automation

  Fast-food restaurants aren't the only places hungry for employees. High-skilled professional and business services occupations account for nearly 1.4 million openings.

• May 12, 2021 12 May'21

  Oracle CX adds subscription management, 3-D ad measurement

  Oracle adds deeper subscription support for B2C and B2B users to its CX platform, as users look to tie renewals, billing and self-service to commerce revenue.

• May 11, 2021 11 May'21

  Microsoft launches Teams webinar feature

  Microsoft has released a Teams feature that allows event hosts to register, present and keep in touch with thousands of webinar attendees, which is important in the hybrid world.

• May 07, 2021 07 May'21

  Employees revolt after CEO's op-ed about hybrid workplaces

  In an essay, Catherine Merrill, CEO of Washingtonian Media Inc., argued against hybrid workplaces, drawing a strong reaction from employees and HR analysts.

• May 07, 2021 07 May'21

  Microsoft, Zoom gain UCaaS market share

  Business use of video conferencing during the pandemic caused a spike in UCaaS market growth in 2020. Analysts predict growth to continue at 20% as people return to work.

• May 06, 2021 06 May'21

  VA's lack of diversity in management called out in hearing

  U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs faces criticism over its lack of diversity in senior management, where white workers are more likely to gain management roles than Black workers.

• May 05, 2021 05 May'21

  Microsoft focuses on reading skills in Teams for Education

  The latest Microsoft Teams for Education features will hone student reading skills, let teachers set up assignment groups and centralize student calendars

• May 05, 2021 05 May'21

  Warren Buffett urged to take DEI strategy leadership role

  Berkshire Hathaway is being urged to take an industry leadership role by publishing its diversity, equity and inclusion strategy and data. So far, it has declined to do so.

• April 30, 2021 30 Apr'21

  Federal telework may be poised to take off

  The post-pandemic future of federal telework will be up to President Biden's administration, but employee interest in it is high and job satisfaction is up.

• April 29, 2021 29 Apr'21

  Acumatica ERP upgrade built around customer needs

  Acumatica 2021 R1, the latest version of the SaaS ERP, includes CRM and industry-specific enhancements inspired by close customer engagement.

• April 28, 2021 28 Apr'21

  EEOC deals with thorny COVID-19 vaccine issues

  At a hearing, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission assessed COVID-19's impact on people of color and women, as well as workplace vaccination issues.

• April 28, 2021 28 Apr'21

  8x8 pushes work collaboration through a browser

  8x8 said offering its Work apps through browsers helps companies prepare for the hybrid workplace by allowing workers to use the devices at hand to collaborate.

• April 27, 2021 27 Apr'21

  Adobe Commerce users get AI search for sites

  Adobe Commerce adds AI live search, product recommendations tuned for B2B organizations and digital signatures.

• April 26, 2021 26 Apr'21

  SMB HR market heats up with Paycor IPO, Jobvite acquisitions

  The HR SMB market is seeing activity, with Paycor planning to file an IPO and Jobvite acquiring two firms that may help it better compete in this market.

• April 23, 2021 23 Apr'21

  Rejecting hybrid work will cost employers, survey finds

  Employees may rush to the exits post-pandemic, and many will want a hybrid work option. If employers want people back in the office full-time, they have to pay them more.

• April 23, 2021 23 Apr'21

  Ricoh's HR chief considers the future and the hybrid workplace

  Donna Venable, executive vice president of HR at Ricoh U.S., is considering how the pandemic is reshaping the idea of a hybrid workplace, and how it affects recruiting.

• April 22, 2021 22 Apr'21

  Business practices that could ease meeting fatigue

  Researchers say breaks between meetings and team-building activities that give employees a sense of belonging help combat fatigue in the hybrid workplace.

• April 21, 2021 21 Apr'21

  Shift to HR shared services could save Connecticut millions

  By consolidating 17 separate HR operations into one shared service, Connecticut expects to save significantly on costs, most of it in personnel reductions through retirements.

• April 21, 2021 21 Apr'21

  Salesforce Service Cloud to add features, partners

  Salesforce will announce partnerships this fall to connect new telephony providers to Service Cloud as contact centers reconfigure their teams for post-COVID-19 work.

• April 19, 2021 19 Apr'21

  Face mask detection a newcomer to employee surveillance

  Face mask detection has emerged as another form of employee surveillance technology, and its adoption may be helped indirectly by the potential of COVID-19 workplace regulations.

• April 14, 2021 14 Apr'21

  DEI tools arrive at critical time for HR

  Employers are being held accountable for meeting diversity, equity and inclusion goals, especially executives. HR vendors are responding with new tools, including ADP.

• April 14, 2021 14 Apr'21

  OpenText releases Cloud Editions content services updates

  OpenText CE 21.2 includes federated document compliance that extends to Microsoft Office 365, along with a revamped content services platform and other feature releases.

• April 13, 2021 13 Apr'21

  Microsoft's Nuance buy enriches call center, security products

  Analysts expect Microsoft to integrate Nuance voice technology with a wide range of Microsoft products, including Teams and Dynamics 365.

• April 13, 2021 13 Apr'21

  Qualtrics XM/OS ties together experience data for users

  Qualtrics releases an 'operating system' to manage and analyze customer and employee feedback data, and AI tools expanded to cover sentiment data and industry-specific scenarios.

• April 12, 2021 12 Apr'21

  Oracle Cloud HCM introduces low-code/no-code template tools

  Oracle Cloud HCM has been upgraded to ease development of HR processes and improve employee experience, the firm said.

• April 09, 2021 09 Apr'21

  Microsoft update of Teams Rooms for Android falls short

  Microsoft has yet to add to Teams Rooms on Android critical features available on the Windows version. Missing features include the ability to join Zoom or Webex meetings.

• April 09, 2021 09 Apr'21

  Hybrid workplace may give employers hiring edge

  The post-pandemic office is leaning strongly in the direction of hybrid workplaces. Job candidates view working from home as a key consideration when searching for a new position.

• April 07, 2021 07 Apr'21

  Consumer, business harmonize with Zoom on Amazon Echo Show

  Zoom's integration with Amazon's Echo Show 10 means more people will turn to the consumer device for business video conferencing while working from home.

• April 05, 2021 05 Apr'21

  Biden supply chain EO makes resilience a priority

  Supply chain experts weigh in on the Biden administration's push to help address vulnerabilities like parts shortages that have slowed production and put national security at risk.

• April 02, 2021 02 Apr'21

  Cisco tackles 'seismic shift' to the hybrid workplace

  Cisco said the switch to the hybrid workplace could create a divide between in-office and remote workers. New Webex features could help counter the problem.

• April 02, 2021 02 Apr'21

  Biden infrastructure plan may deliver huge training boost

  President Biden's $2T infrastructure plan will likely result in training programs for rapid reskilling, especially in the manufacturing sector.

• April 01, 2021 01 Apr'21

  Federal judge orders RingCentral to stop selling Zoom

  Zoom said it will continue supporting companies that bought RingCentral's Zoom-equipped Meetings app before Feb. 1. The companies are embroiled in a contract dispute.

• April 01, 2021 01 Apr'21

  Qualtrics adds XM tools for marketing, service, B2B sales users

  Post-SAP spinoff, Qualtrics moves quickly to give B2B sales users -- along with their marketing and customer service colleagues -- new features to sharpen post-pandemic business.

• March 31, 2021 31 Mar'21

  Cisco revamps Webex's People Insights feature

  Cisco says the 'always-on' nature of remote work exhausts workers. It believes information from the revamped People Insights feature in Webex will help.

• March 30, 2021 30 Mar'21

  Mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations get cool reception

  Mandated COVID-19 vaccinations may be unpopular with many U.S. employers, including the federal government. A primary concern is the potential for liability.

• March 26, 2021 26 Mar'21

  News briefs: Slack has a rocky start with direct messages

  Customer backlash over a new messaging feature forced Slack to take it down only hours after launch. The capability opened up the possibility of harassment on the platform.

• March 26, 2021 26 Mar'21

  Biden's $3T rebuilding plan may boost reskilling, upskilling

  President Biden's plan to spend trillions on building the nation's infrastructure is likely to include funds for job reskilling and upskilling partnerships.

• March 25, 2021 25 Mar'21

  Equal pay for women could take 9 years

  It may take women nine years to achieve equal pay with men, but the momentum is happening slightly faster for younger women, according to a new study.

• March 25, 2021 25 Mar'21

  Microsoft to release threaded message replies in Teams

  Desktop Teams users will be able to quote previous messages in their responses instead of responding chronologically. Rivals like Slack have had a similar feature for years.

• March 25, 2021 25 Mar'21

  Microsoft adds live transcription to Teams

  The Teams live transcription feature bolsters collaboration and lets workers quickly catch up on meetings they've missed. Microsoft includes the capability with a 365 subscription.

• March 24, 2021 24 Mar'21

  Salesforce updates Sales Cloud for remote work

  Salesforce created CRM tools for its own sales team's pandemic shift to remote work -- and is rolling out the ones it found most effective to all the platform's users.

• March 24, 2021 24 Mar'21

  Acquia digital experience platform adds CX-friendly tools

  After two years of transition, Acquia users get a first glance at how all of its recent acquisitions and product introductions align to build digital experiences.

• March 23, 2021 23 Mar'21

  Microsoft: Workers want hybrid work, not digital exhaustion

  A hybrid work environment is the future at Microsoft and for most companies. In a recent survey, the vendor found that employees want some in-person activities to return.

• March 19, 2021 19 Mar'21

  Court says RingCentral can keep selling Zoom for now

  A federal court has ruled that RingCentral can continue selling its Zoom-powered video conferencing product RingCentral Meetings. Zoom sued RingCentral for breach of contract.

• March 18, 2021 18 Mar'21

  Kroger rushed to launch on-demand pay, and it's not alone

  In the face of the pandemic, The Kroger Co. sped up the rollout of an on-demand pay platform to 400,000-plus employees. These platforms saw sizable growth in 2020.

• March 18, 2021 18 Mar'21

  Ford Motor Co. adopts hybrid workplace to boost productivity

  Ford Motor Co. believes a hybrid workplace will improve productivity as well as employee retention and well-being. On Wednesday, it unveiled a plan to support a remote work model.

• March 18, 2021 18 Mar'21

  Adobe courts small businesses with Acrobat Pro package

  As the pandemic disrupts paper workflows, Adobe courts small business users with simple webforms, digital signatures and payments integration with their sites and PDF documents.

• March 17, 2021 17 Mar'21

  IDC: The future workplace is hybrid

  Automation tools for tracking assets and people, as well as speeding up HR processes, such as onboarding, will be needed to manage the post-pandemic hybrid workplace.

• March 17, 2021 17 Mar'21

  Fuze opens platform to other video conferencing apps

  Over the coming months, Fuze will roll out a one-click feature that lets customers connect to Cisco Webex, Microsoft Teams, Zoom and other video conferencing services.

• March 16, 2021 16 Mar'21

  ServiceMax releases Engage field service management app

  ServiceMax Engage app gives users' customers a snapshot of their service contract benefits, and gives users vital updates for asset managements of property in the field.

• March 16, 2021 16 Mar'21

  Salesforce users get Einstein ABM tools for Pardot

  Salesforce adds Einstein AI tools for Pardot B2B account-based marketing to enable user sales teams to target entire customer account buying teams.

• March 12, 2021 12 Mar'21

  Job market, salaries soar for computer science graduates

  The number of computer science graduates in the U.S. is rising every year, as are starting salaries, signaling a strong demand for talent.

• March 12, 2021 12 Mar'21

  Businesses turning to whiteboard apps for remote workers

  Businesses have deployed digital whiteboard applications during the pandemic to let remote employees brainstorm ideas and share diagrams and notes online.

• March 11, 2021 11 Mar'21

  Microsoft: Better transcription AI will mean fewer meetings

  As the accuracy of AI in transcription tools improves, experts expect people will skip some meetings and rely on collaboration apps to transcribe and summarize the sessions.

• March 11, 2021 11 Mar'21

  ServiceNow Customer Service Management grows in Quebec

  ServiceNow telecom and financial services users targeted for growth as the company expands customer service offering in Quebec, its latest platform release.

• March 05, 2021 05 Mar'21

  Schneider Electric shifts to hybrid workplace

  The hybrid workplace model is being embraced by Schneider Electric, which is moving to coworking offices for its employees. The firm sees it as an adaptable, if challenging, option.

• March 05, 2021 05 Mar'21

  Microsoft revamps Teams webinars

  The latest Teams version lets webinar hosts register people and send notifications. Microsoft has also increased the number of view-only webinar participants to 20,000.

• March 04, 2021 04 Mar'21

  Employee poaching risk increases with remote work hiring

  Remote work opportunities may give rise to employee poaching, putting added pressure on HR departments. As geography starts to matter less, employee experience may matter more.

• March 04, 2021 04 Mar'21

  Microsoft debuts AR/VR collaboration platform Mesh

  Microsoft Mesh lets people meet with colleagues as avatars in a virtual meeting place. Participants can work together on 3D models and interact through gestures.

• March 02, 2021 02 Mar'21

  Microsoft adds intercompany collaboration to Teams

  Microsoft's Teams Connect lets companies message and share files with partners and customers through the collaboration app. Teams users have wanted the feature for a while.

• March 02, 2021 02 Mar'21

  Lawsuit challenges Amazon's treatment of Black employees

  Amazon is facing a lawsuit from a corporate employee who details inappropriate behavior of co-workers and broad allegations about the firm's treatment of Black employees.

• February 26, 2021 26 Feb'21

  Wages a sticking point for remote work best practices

  In the shift to remote work, wages could become a major point of contention for workers after COVID-19. A move to lower-cost regions could also mean lower pay.

• February 26, 2021 26 Feb'21

  News briefs: RingCentral provides calling in Salesforce

  RingCentral makes it possible for customers to make calls from Salesforce, Lifesize appoints a new CEO and Fuze receives a patent for a connectivity problem detector.

• February 25, 2021 25 Feb'21

  Mitel to release all-in-one collaboration app MitelOne

  Unified communications vendor Mitel will release an app called MitelOne that consolidates its voice, messaging and video offerings into a single interface.

• February 22, 2021 22 Feb'21

  News briefs: Cisco adds features to Webex Rooms

  Cisco has added features from its cloud-based Webex Meetings platform to the video conferencing hardware Webex Rooms. The capabilities include access to digital whiteboards.

• February 19, 2021 19 Feb'21

  Cisco completes the IMImobile acquisition

  Cisco plans to use IMImobile's messaging and voice APIs to bolster its cloud contact center offering. The executive team of the U.K.-based company has joined Cisco.

• February 19, 2021 19 Feb'21

  Biden favors green cards over H-1B work visas

  The Biden administration is seeking major changes in work visa programs, proposing an expansion of the cap for employment-based green cards, but not for H-1B work visas.

• February 19, 2021 19 Feb'21

  Google overhauls education suite, adding 50-plus features

  Google has changed G Suite for Education into Workspace for Education, adding features to its Classroom and Meet apps to help educators with classroom management.

• February 18, 2021 18 Feb'21

  McKinsey: Post-pandemic workplace will see major changes

  In the post-pandemic workplace, businesses are likely to focus more on skills than job titles while also accelerating their adoption of automation and digital technologies.

• February 17, 2021 17 Feb'21

  AI deployed as employee burnout detection tool

  Employee burnout is one of the mental health issues that AI tools are helping HR to identify. The technology can analyze employee activities and communications for potential risk.

• February 12, 2021 12 Feb'21

  News briefs: Reddit doubles valuation to $6 billion

  Reddit will expand into international markets after raising $250 million. It also announced plans to double its staff size and invest in video and advertising.

• February 12, 2021 12 Feb'21

  Salesforce's remote work hiring strategy raises questions

  Salesforce says its remote work hiring, or work-from-anywhere, model will improve its diversity and hiring goals. Hiring in inexpensive areas may be critical, according to experts.

• February 10, 2021 10 Feb'21

  Oracle CX updates focus on loyalty tech, B2B selling, service

  Oracle releases Fusion Cloud Customer Experience suite updates that include tools for B2B selling, B2B customer service and loyalty programs connected to Oracle CDP data.

• February 09, 2021 09 Feb'21

  Employee activism gives life to tech union organizing

  A rise in tech union organizing is linked to the rise in employee activism, according to experts. They also believe the climate for union activity is changing.

• February 05, 2021 05 Feb'21

  Microsoft unveils employee experience platform Viva

  Viva will offer Microsoft customers an employee experience platform that uses analytics and an intranet service to boost employee engagement and productivity.

• January 29, 2021 29 Jan'21

  New COVID-19 HR tools: AI office design, vaccine management

  Major IT vendors are rolling out products designed for the post-pandemic office environment, including systems for managing in-house vaccination clinics.

• January 28, 2021 28 Jan'21

  Workday acquires Peakon for $700 million

  Workday is acquiring employee feedback software vendor Peakon. Experts described the timing as a proverbial shot across SAP's bow.

• January 27, 2021 27 Jan'21

  ServiceNow, Salesforce deliver vaccine management tech

  Salesforce releases Vaccine Cloud, tools that enable tracking and distribution of COVID-19 immunizations. ServiceNow also enters the technology space.

• January 25, 2021 25 Jan'21

  Study finds hiring bias by recruiters, especially tired ones

  Research published in Nature finds strong evidence of hiring bias by recruiters and uncovers notable patterns of when biased decision making is more likely to occur.

• January 22, 2021 22 Jan'21

  Massive Slack outage caused by AWS gateway failure

  An AWS Transit Gateway failure led to Slack being down for nearly five hours earlier this month. The companies said they made changes to prevent such outages in the future.

• January 22, 2021 22 Jan'21

  Diversity, equity and inclusion are hot, but tools need vetting

  The diversity, equity and inclusion tools market is going mainstream, giving HR buyers more options than ever before. But due diligence is needed.

• January 21, 2021 21 Jan'21

  Acquia launches headless commerce integration

  Acquia adds cloud e-commerce to its expanding digital experience platform via tight integrations with Lucidworks' AI-assisted product recommendation engine and Commercetools' headless commerce.

• January 21, 2021 21 Jan'21

  Biden revokes Trump's contested DEI training order

  President Joe Biden has revoked an executive order from former President Donald Trump that discouraged federal agencies and government contractors from conducting DEI training.

• January 19, 2021 19 Jan'21

  CES debates the future of remote work trends

  CES usually has a firm grasp on future technology trends, but when it comes to remote work, the road ahead seems unclear.

• January 14, 2021 14 Jan'21

  Workday adds vaccine management for 45M to its platform

  COVID-19 vaccine management is getting the attention of HR vendors. Workday announced its vaccine tool, which integrates with the platform's core HR data.

• January 14, 2021 14 Jan'21

  Big Tech's uneasy balance of capitalism, censorship

  Big tech companies' enforcement of acceptable use policies following Capitol riots is questioned, as some say First Amendment rights to free speech should extend to social networks.

• January 14, 2021 14 Jan'21

  Democrats push for AI bias testing

  Lawmakers in states and Congress are showing increasing interest in guarding against AI bias. Legislation in California and New York City seeks system audits.

• January 12, 2021 12 Jan'21

  Digital vaccine certificate looms as HR's next problem

  HR departments may want electronic proof of an employee's COVID-19 vaccination, but it's unclear when digital vaccine certificates will be ready.

• January 08, 2021 08 Jan'21

  Microsoft slow to fulfill request for more Teams channel control

  Microsoft won't prioritize a feature that would let Teams users move channels between groups, despite tens of thousands of requests. Users have asked for the capability since 2016.

• January 07, 2021 07 Jan'21

  Capitol insurrection leads to job loss, search for participants

  Employers interested in whether their employees took part in the U.S. Capitol insurrection and stormed the building may want to proceed with caution, legal and HR experts said.

• January 06, 2021 06 Jan'21

  Dell adds Microsoft Teams to video conferencing monitors

  Dell introduced three video conferencing monitors with Microsoft Teams integration this week, as part of its emphasis on a hybrid work model. It also announced new laptops.

• January 05, 2021 05 Jan'21

  Slack restores service following major outage

  Slack's messaging service is back up following a global outage that forced many customers to return to email for communications. Slack had not determined the cause.

• December 30, 2020 30 Dec'20

  Lower prices possible for AI headsets, webcams in 2021

  In 2021, Jabra, Logitech and Poly could sell AI-powered headsets and webcams at prices more affordable to companies supporting employees working from home.

• December 29, 2020 29 Dec'20

  2021 HR trends include widening pay gap between men, women

  2020 was an eventful year for HR and may act as a trigger for some significant HR trends to play out in the new year, according to Gartner's Brian Kropp.

• December 23, 2020 23 Dec'20

  DoD eyes blind recruiting-type technology for promotions

  The Pentagon may investigate blind recruiting-type technology to remove bias from the promotions process. It wants to improve the diversity in its officer ranks.

• December 21, 2020 21 Dec'20

  With no federal COVID-19 liability shield, states go it alone

  Congress has not enacted a COVID-19 liability shield, leaving states to craft their own policies. But the risk to employers from these lawsuits is still muddy.

• December 17, 2020 17 Dec'20

  SuccessFactors gets serious about employee time management

  COVID-19 has increased demand by employers for flextime management capabilities. That will be a significant feature in the new SAP SuccessFactors employee time management system.

• December 17, 2020 17 Dec'20

  Southwest: Recruiting chatbots improve productivity

  The pandemic didn't stop the evolution of HR tech. MGM launched new sites to help employees, and Southwest Airlines measured the effectiveness of its recruiting chatbots.

• December 16, 2020 16 Dec'20

  New 8x8 CEO expected to improve business operations

  Video conferencing company 8x8 selects former RingCentral COO Dave Sipes to replace outgoing CEO Vik Verma. Analysts expect Sipes to significantly improve 8x8 business operations.