SumTotal Systems Acquires Accero and CyberShift…from SumTotal Systems

Company Advances Leader Position in Strategic Human Capital Management and Raises the Standard for Complete Talent Management

HRchitect featured SumTotal Systems in our release of The Suite Life of Integrated Talent Management and also includes them in our list of top Talent Management Systems and top Learning Management Systems vendors that businesses should consider. SumTotal Systems appeared on the HRchitect WebMingle on May 1, 2009. SumTotal Systems also competed in the HRchitect Beauty Pageant on Employee Performance Management Systems in February 2009, where they were crowned the winner. Dave Watkins, Softscape’s CEO and Co-Founder appeared on the HRchitect WebMingle on June 19, 2009.

If you are looking for a new Talent Management System, or any HR system, don’t rely solely on “recommendations” or published reports. Do yourself a huge favor and talk to HRchitect first. After 14 years, HRchitect has unparalleled knowledge of the HR and Talent Management vendor community and can save you time and money in selection and implementation. Simply put, do not invest in any kind of HR technology without consulting with the experts first. HRchitect is always available to help!

SumTotal® Systems, Inc., the innovator in strategic Human Capital Management (HCM) solutions, today announced the acquisitions of CyberShift, a leader in strategic workforce management and expense software, and Accero, experts in payroll and benefits software. These acquisitions advance and accelerate SumTotal’s vision and expand Talent Management to link mission critical processes across the broader strategic Human Capital Management (HCM) market. With over 3,400 global customers and 43 Million users, SumTotal represents the most complete strategic HCM solution delivering greater value to customers with cross-functional best-in-class capabilities.

Increasing labor costs have put additional pressures on organizations, driving the need for improved, global visibility of how organizations manage their workforce to reduce operational costs. The workforce is typically the largest expense to an organization (40-70 percent of costs), and how employees are acquired, on-boarded, trained, deployed, assessed, and rewarded directly impacts an organization’s ability to achieve its business goals and maximize profits. At the same time, the shift from simply managing transactional HR functions to enabling integrated HR processes is compelling organizations to simplify and improve their technology deployments to contain costs and eliminate silos of fragmented information. Significant cost reductions are achieved not only through the automation and optimization of related workforce processes, but also with the integration of functions to a single HR solution that leverages the latest cloud-based technologies.

“SumTotal has proven its ability to rapidly integrate multiple acquisitions in a short period of time while delivering real value to customers,” said Josh Bersin, president and chief executive officer, Bersin & Associates. “The acquisition of CyberShift and Accero gives the company a total end-to-end set of solutions for all elements of strategic human capital management.”

CyberShift, an industry leader in strategic workforce management and expense management software, offers innovative visualization and mobile solutions for time and attendance, advanced scheduling, absence management, and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and leave management. CyberShift is the only enterprise solution vendor in Workforce Management with a true Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offering.  Accero has a long demonstrated history providing payroll and benefits software with advanced workforce intelligence capabilities for mid-size and large enterprises internationally, and specializes in complex corporate environments.

Collectively, these acquisitions add an additional 1,000 new customers with millions of global users making SumTotal one of the largest Talent Management providers in the industry and one of the most complete strategic HCM providers. With customers such as Dell, Google, Sony Electronics, AstraZeneca, HBO, Tommy Bahama, Aer Lingus, US Airways, British Airways, and Rolls-Royce, SumTotal maintains a market leader position with global presence in every market segment and deployed in over 160 countries. Customers gain the value of the most complete solution available, a larger customer community to share best practices, increased vertical domain expertise, and best-in-class functional capabilities. In addition, SumTotal will continue to support and innovate all product lines and ensure existing customer investments remain secure. This proven customer-centric model galvanizes SumTotal’s commitment to customers as the company rapidly integrates and advances its best-in-class capabilities.

SumTotal now offers customers the most complete HR solution that manages strategic HCM functions including Talent Acquisition (acquire to onboard), Talent Management (perform to reward), Talent Development (assess to develop), and Workforce Management (schedule to pay), including integrated core system of record. Customers achieve the benefit of a single comprehensive solution that addresses strategic HCM processes, at a lower total cost of ownership and with best-in-class capabilities and a superior user experience.

“Customers are requiring more end-to-end solutions for enabling strategic, high-value HCM processes across their entire organization, while having ‘one-hand-to-shake’ with their delivery partner,” said John Borgerding, CEO of SumTotal Systems. “We have raised the bar for how organizations manage their workforce by providing complete visibility and strategic planning in a single solution that enables better decision making. Traditional vendors only touch the surface and focus on process automation or record keeping, and point solutions only address process silos and don’t scale to all organizational models. SumTotal is the only vendor that can provide this new level of breadth and depth for customers.”
For more information on SumTotal Systems, please visit  www.sumtotalsystems.com.

 
Matt Lafata, HRchitect

CyberShift Certified as European Union Safe Harbor Compliant…by CyberShift

 

If you are looking for a new Talent Management System, or any HR system, talk to HRchitect first. We have unparalleled knowledge of the HR and Talent Management vendor community and can save you time and money in selection and implementation. 

CyberShift, a global provider of workforce management and expense management software and services, today announced it has been certified as compliant with the European Union (EU) Safe Harbor standards. Developed by the U.S. Department of Commerce and approved by the European Commission, the Safe Harbor framework establishes a privacy protection standard for transferring personal data between the member states of the EU and the United States. By becoming certified under the EU Safe Harbor provisions, CyberShift has demonstrated compliance with the Safe Harbor privacy principles accepted by all 27 member states of the European Union.

The European Commission’s Directive on Data Protection prohibits the transfer of personal data to non-European Union nations that do not meet the European standards of privacy protection. The United States and the European Union take differing approaches to privacy and, as a result, the directive can significantly impede the ability of U.S. companies to engage in many trans-Atlantic transactions.

“Privacy has always been a paramount concern for CyberShift. By becoming EU Safe Harbor compliant, our customers can rely on our Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions conforming to the strict privacy regulations of the European Union. By taking the steps necessary to address complex international privacy regulations, CyberShift makes it easier for customers to gain the benefits of implementing our solutions across their entire organization, no matter where they are located, allowing them to focus on their core businesses,” commented Gene Wronko, CyberShift’s vice president, IT and On Demand Services.

“As CyberShift’s solutions continue to gain acceptance in many countries outside of North America, we have made investing in a truly global platform for our SaaS business a priority to make sure we were meeting the high standards of our customers. EU Safe Harbor certification is an important measurement of the success of our efforts,” noted Robert E. Farina, CyberShift’s CEO.

CyberShift Expense, the company’s award-winning travel and expense management automation solution, provides the most complete and configurable full-service solution for expense management. CyberShift Workforce Management is a fully integrated solution for the management of all aspects of workforce optimization, including time and attendance, scheduling, self-service functions, corporate compliance and workforce reporting and analytics.

CyberShift’s Safe Harbor framework compliance was certified by the U.S. Department of Commerce. CyberShift’s Safe Harbor Certification may be viewed at http://tinyurl.com/safeharbor. More information about CyberShift’s workforce management and expense management software and services can be accessed at www.cybershift.com

 
Matt Lafata, HRchitect

CyberShift’s New White Paper Examines the Healthcare Industry’s Unique Workforce and Expense Management Requirements…by CyberShift

 

Details How Healthcare Providers Can Leverage Technology to Streamline Processes, Reduce Costs to Support Delivery of Cost-Efficient, Quality Healthcare

If you are looking for a new Talent Management System, or any HR system, talk to HRchitect first. We have unparalleled knowledge of the HR and Talent Management vendor community and can save you time and money in selection and implementation.

CyberShift, a global provider of workforce management and expense management software and services, today announced the availability of its most recent white paper, “Healthcare Providers: Workforce Optimization and Expense Management Initiatives for Healthcare Organizations.” The paper examines how healthcare organizations can reduce costs, increase efficiencies and maintain quality care with technology-based workforce management and expense management solutions.

Most people can agree that healthcare costs have spiraled out of control, impacting both individuals and healthcare providers. Many long-standing healthcare providers struggle to survive and, according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey, more than half of American households have cut back on healthcare due to finances. While reform is being debated by the media and politicians, and the current administration declares the status quo unacceptable, healthcare providers are left to find their own ways of controlling costs while providing quality care.

Labor and employee business costs make up a large part of a healthcare provider’s operating budget so controlling these costs is crucial. An automated workforce management solution enables organizations to manage diverse and mobile workforces, control overtime, streamline employee scheduling, integrate with payroll systems and comply with government regulations, employee policies and union rules.

“Healthcare organizations are challenged to make quality, affordable care available, while at the same time, maintain their own financial health. An automated workforce management system can help organizations cost-effectively meet changing demands without compromising services,” Art Krozser, vice president, Enterprise Services and Global Support at CyberShift. “There are significant advantages — fiscally and in terms of quality of care — in having the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time.”

An automated workforce management solution provides visibility into whether scheduling certain employees will result in unnecessary overtime or require employees to work beyond what is considered safe or within contractual guidelines. Other benefits of an automated solution are efficient management of a diverse and distributed workforce, including salaried, hourly and contingent staff, a reduction in payroll preparation time and improved payroll accuracy by 1 to 6 percent of gross payroll. Additionally, employees can be given access to online schedules and other self-service functions, increasing employee satisfaction.

Equally important is another large cost for healthcare organizations: employee business expenses. These expenses include not only travel and entertainment but also costs such as mobile phones and offices supplies. Automating the processing of employee expense management — from pre-authorization and approval to post-payment reporting and analysis — is another way that healthcare companies can control escalating costs.

CyberShift’s award winning, 100 percent Web-based workforce management and expense management solutions are ideally suited for mid-size to large, complex enterprises. CyberShift offers unparalleled flexibility in its software delivery models, offering the identical solutions through the popular multi-tenant Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) delivery model or in-house. These solutions significantly improve business efficiencies, thus enhancing performance and increasing profitability.

CyberShift’s complimentary “Healthcare Providers” white paper can be downloaded from http://www.cybershift.com/Healthcare.

 
Matt Lafata, HRchitect

New White Paper from CyberShift Examines How to Match Labor Supply with Business Demands Through Workforce Scheduling Optimization…from CyberShift

 

CyberShift, a leading global provider of workforce management and expense management software and services, recently released a new white paper titled, “Driving Business Performance: How Workforce Scheduling Optimization Aligns the Workforce with Business Demands for Customer Satisfaction and Success.” The paper provides businesses and HR professionals with in-depth information about workforce scheduling optimization and the opportunities it presents. The complimentary white paper can be downloaded for a limited time from www.CyberShift.com/workforce_scheduling. 

“Employees represent the largest variable expense for most organizations – anywhere from 35 to 70 percent of costs. So, making sure the right people are available at the right time and at the right price can have a tremendous effect on customer service, sales and overall business profitability,” stated Morné Swart, vice president of Product Management, CyberShift, Inc. “By better aligning their workforce with business demands through optimized workforce scheduling, companies can achieve even greater success.”

Many businesses continue to use cumbersome manual processes to schedule and deploy their workforces, even across industries that rely heavily on workers’ schedules for success, such as manufacturers, call centers, transportation providers, healthcare and retailers. In CyberShift’s new white paper, the benefits of an automated workforce scheduling and optimization solution are outlined, including how it can accurately forecast and schedule workers to meet both customer service and cost objectives.

Swart added, “An important benefit of a workforce management solution with scheduling optimization is that it provides pertinent information to drive better decisions to meet business demands and deliver a competitive edge.”

Through the use of an optimized workforce scheduling solution, what was once a time-consuming process now takes managers just minutes to produce a schedule that meets peak period demands. In addition, an automated system provides real-time visibility into staffing levels and gives organizations the tools they need to effectively adjust schedules, control costs and adhere to regulations and safety standards, such as the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Using the CyberShift Advanced Scheduling and Optimization solutions, companies can match qualified employees to the needs of each job at the best cost. An intelligent scheduler allows managers to create master schedules that can be used as templates for other locations, departments or groups of employees. Employees, contractors, managers and scheduling administrators have the flexibility to replicate, improve on and automate the complex scheduling processes they follow day-to-day, including shift scheduling, compliance with national, local and company rules and regulations, supervisor and employee job position preferences, shift trading and bidding, absence scheduling, overtime forecasting and much more.

More information about CyberShift’s Advanced Scheduling and Optimization solutions is available at www.CyberShift.com/products_scheduling.asp. The white paper, “Driving Business Performance: How Workforce Scheduling Optimization Aligns the Workforce with Business Demands for Customer Satisfaction and Success,” is complimentary and available for a limited time by visiting www.CyberShift.com/workforce_scheduling.

 
Matt Lafata, HRchitect