systematicHR

Accenture: Accenture is like ExcellerateHRO and Hewitt. With a great HR consulting group and an ability to execute the technology, Accenture was in the market early enough to capture great market share. Unlike Hewitt, they have great flexibility in their technology offerings and can also offer FAO (finance) and IT outsourcing.

ADP: The clear leader in mid market HRO. They actually have some nice transactions with larger organizations, but perhaps not the implementation expertise to execute in the most complex organizations. However, unless the client is a fortune 500, there should not be too much risk here as ADP works with many of the largest companies in the world in some capacity.

Arinso: Arinso is also a company that has build good credibility, but I see them on the decline. Their implementation expertise may be overshadowed by competitor strengths in other areas.

Ceridian: They are truly an unproven HRO vendor. With a nice value proposition like ADP, they don’t have a history of executing their implementations and product platforms. However, their strong payroll background should get them into deals anyway.

Convergys: Convergys has silently done well in HRO by offering great vertical offerings. Capitalizing in the healthcare and government spaces, Convergys has made a name for themselves with an ability to execute and have built a good share of the market.

Excellerate HRO: Excellerate has all the trademark characteristics of a hugely successful HRO. With arguably one of the best HR consultancies on the global market (at least top 3, right?) to assist clients with their HR design, one of the best IT organizations (at least top 2) to execute the technology platform, and a huge book of business, ExcellerateHRO is in good position. Where did that book of business come from? When Towers Perrin and EDS combined, Excellerate inherited everything. The next year will see if they can get off the ground.

Fidelity: Similar to ADP and Ceridian based on it’s original niche (this time in benefits), Fidelity has made strong moves into the HRO market and captured some good market share. They have had to make some serious changes to how they offer technology, and their continued efforts into the HRO market seems risky to me. Without any real expertise to pull from outside of contact centers, they are actually showing they can do the job.

Hewitt: There’s no denying the major player in HRO. Their proven capabilities and mature HRO offering has lead to steady large sales. Their stubborn stance on staying with Cyborg is a mystery to me as Cyborg will never be the global platform that SAP is and PeopleSoft might have been. They have also been losing HR consulting mindshare as they have reconfigured their organization to be much more vendor-like and less of a consultancy. Even with these limitations, Hewitt is still one of the best at execution.