#37 - Embracing more fun

The latest HR Tech news

Author

Mike Wood
May 02, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 16 minutes

Let’s “taco” bout Rusty, my dog who’s turning two this Cinco de Mayo, and yes - we’re throwing him a fiesta. A real one. With frozen margaritas, tacos, and friends. Is it a little weird? Absolutely. But also…it’s fun. And fun is underrated these days.

I used to think I had to keep my silly side separate from my professional life. Grown-ups are supposed to be buttoned-up and serious, right? But somewhere between the Zoom fatigue and existential news cycles, I’ve realized: joy matters. Silly is survival. And if something makes you smile—even if it's a golden retriever wearing a sombrero—you should lean all the way in.

Rusty with Callie

Rusty’s the kind of dog who greets me every morning like I’m the Beatles arriving at JFK. He’s patient with my kids, tolerant of my late-night Celine Dion concerts, and always down for a hug. So we’re celebrating him. And maybe, in the process, giving ourselves permission to celebrate whatever gets us through the day.

So this week’s Wrap is brought to you by joy, tacos, and a dog who reminds me that showing up with love (and maybe a tail wag) is enough. This edition highlights upcoming events and new research from HR.com, new announcements from UKG, Recruitics, Survale, Inc, and DailyPay; funding news from Lumber and TeamOhana, hot influencer takes from The Chad & Cheese Podcast, Robin Schooling, Serge Boudreau, and Chris Russell; and the latest on the effects of tarrifs, robo-bosses, and the attack on facts.

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Mike

💻 Upcoming virtual events from HR.com

Hr.com is a tremendous resource for HR professionals looking to learn best practices and check out the latest tech to do their jobs better. Register for one of our upcoming FREE events below.

  • May 7 - State of Employee Mental Health and Stress . Discover key steps you can take to improve the state of mental health and stress in your organization. Register here

  • May 28 - State of Employee Productivity and Engagement. Get ready to explore the latest trends in employee productivity and engagement, focusing on the impacts of remote and hybrid work, and effective leadership practices. Sponsored by SAP SuccessFactors, Emergenetics International, Reward Gateway . Register here

  • June 3 (MY BIRTHDAY🎂!) – Future of DEIB. Why is progress still slow? This event explores new research and strategies for making DEIB initiatives actually work. Sponsored by Brightmine and Mitratech. Register here

  • June 17 – State of Seasonal, Hourly and Volume Hiring. From tools to trends, find out what it takes to win in high-volume hiring. Sponsored by Mitratech. Register here

  • July 8–9 – Future of Managing and Leading Performance. Explore the evolution of performance management and how it’s shaping modern leadership practices. Sponsored by PeopleFluent, SAP SuccessFactors, HR Performance Solutions, Culture Amp, Awardco, and miviva. Register here

📊 The Latest from HR.com's HR Research Institute

From employee well-being to tech adoption gaps, the latest studies are in—and they’ve got some truth bombs for your HR strategy. Here’s what the data says and why it matters.

Recognition works—if you actually get it right

Finally recognized!

A new study from HR.com’s Research Institute shows that while most companies say they value employee recognition, few are doing it well enough to move the needle. Only 28% of HR pros rate their current rewards and recognition efforts as “very effective,” and even fewer are tying those efforts to business outcomes like retention or engagement.

The takeaway? Throwing gift cards at burnout isn’t a strategy. Thoughtful, consistent, and values-driven recognition is what actually pays off.

isolved taps community power to support HR’s real MVPs

In a new spotlight from HR.com, Tim Newnham highlights how isolved is turning everyday HR pros into tech-savvy change agents through its People Heroes community. More than a product support hub, the initiative empowers users to shape platform improvements, share real-world insights, and elevate their strategic impact.

It’s a solid reminder that the best HCM platforms don’t just sell software, they build ecosystems where HR can thrive.

📰 What’s New in HR Tech

Because there is no such thing as a slow week

UKG doubles down on AI, expands marketplace

UKG is adding a new wave of AI-powered vendors to its marketplace, signaling just how quickly AI is reshaping HR tech ecosystems. The expanded lineup gives UKG customers more options across recruiting, onboarding, and employee engagement with a strong focus on automation and intelligence-driven workflows.

It’s another sign that platform strategies are evolving fast: if your core system can’t plug into a growing AI ecosystem, you’re not just missing bells and whistles, you’re falling behind.

Recruitics launches ApplyAnywhere to kill the drop-off

I can even apply on the stairs!

Application drop-off: the silent killer of candidate pipelines. Recruitics is taking aim at it with ApplyAnywhere, a new solution designed to streamline the apply process by letting candidates apply directly from wherever they find the job—career sites, job boards, even programmatic ads.

Fewer clicks, less friction, and no more redirect black holes. It’s a smart move to help employers capture more serious candidates before they bounce. Three cheers to Jodie Cherry Roth and team!

Survale acquires CandE program, doubles down on candidate experience

Big move in the candidate experience space: Survale, Inc Survale has acquired the CandE (Candidate Experience) Awards and Research Program from ERE Media. The CandEs have long been the gold standard for measuring and celebrating how employers treat job seekers—and now, with Survale’s real-time feedback platform behind it, the program is poised to get even more powerful.

This isn’t just a brand handoff—it’s a strategic signal that candidate experience is no longer a soft metric. It’s becoming a core part of how companies compete for talent. Three cheers to Jason Moreau, Ian Alexander and Kevin W. Grossman.

DailyPay heads north, launches in Canada

The igloo is the only exaggeration here

DailyPay is going international, announcing its expansion into Canada to serve existing clients with cross-border operations. As demand for earned wage access continues to grow, this move marks a key step in helping multinational employers offer more financial flexibility no matter the time zone.

It’s also a signal that on-demand pay is no longer a U.S.-only perk. The paycheck revolution is going global.

💰 Funding News

Lumber raises $15.5M to bring AI to the jobsite

Lumber founders

Construction may be old-school, but workforce management doesn’t have to be. Lumber just secured $15.5 million to modernize how construction teams handle scheduling, compliance, and labor tracking—using AI to streamline one of the most chaotic corners of the workforce.

With labor shortages and project delays still plaguing the industry, this move signals a broader trend: even the hardest hats are ready for smarter tools.

$7.5M says workforce planning is finally getting the attention it deserves

Workforce planning startup TeamOhana has secured $7.5 million to help companies move from reactive hiring to long-term talent strategy. As layoffs, skills gaps, and org redesigns continue to dominate headlines, Sisu aims to give HR and finance teams the tools to actually plan ahead—before the crisis hits.

It’s a sign that workforce planning is no longer a back-office spreadsheet—it’s becoming a front-line business priority.

🗣️ Hot HR Influencer Takes

From the front lines of recruiting, tech, and transformation—here’s what the sharpest minds in HR are saying this week:

Tariffs, tantrums, and the small business squeeze

Everything in this picture is built on a lie

In their latest interview, The Chad & Cheese Podcast tackle the hidden impact of rising tariffs on small businesses—and it’s not pretty. While the headlines focus on geopolitics, the downstream effect is driving up costs for SMBs that rely on global supply chains, especially in manufacturing, retail, and yes, HR tech.

Their take? It’s hard to scale when you’re stuck absorbing price hikes no one planned for. If you thought tariffs were just a big business problem, think again.

The real productivity problem: too much bullsh*t, not enough ingenuity

Robin Schooling cuts straight to the heart of workplace dysfunction with a sharp new post: it’s not that people aren’t working hard enough—it’s that they’re buried under layers of busywork, meetings, and corporate noise. The real metric we should be tracking? The "Ingenuity-to-Bullsh*t Ratio."

When organizations prioritize optics over outcomes, creativity and innovation suffocate. The good news? Leaders who clear the clutter (and mean it) can unleash real productivity without burning everyone out in the process.

Recruiter burnout: when “more applicants” becomes the problem

In a guest post for Joveo, Serge Boudreau sounds the alarm on a growing crisis: AI hasn’t made hiring easier—it’s made it noisier. In his latest piece, Boudreau dives into how recruiters are drowning under waves of low-quality, AI-generated applications that clog the funnel and crush productivity.

"When everyone can apply, finding the right someone gets harder — and recruiters pay the price."

The real enemy isn’t a lack of applicants—it’s the flood of bad fits that leaves talent teams exhausted and hiring managers frustrated. If companies don’t start prioritizing candidate quality over clickbait quantity, burnout won’t just be a recruiter problem—it’ll be a business one.

Indeed’s pay-to-play experiment for job seekers falls flat

Let's make it harder for candidates...

Big thanks to Chris Russell for breaking this one down: Indeed's latest attempt to monetize job seekers—by offering a paid subscription for “upgraded” access—hasn’t exactly won hearts and minds. As Chris points out, asking candidates to pay when the market is already stacked against them feels tone-deaf at best, predatory at worst.

In a world where trust is already in short supply, charging job seekers for a better shot could end up damaging the brand more than helping the bottom line.

👆 Worth a Click

Work/Life news beyond product announcements

The ultra-cheap era might be ending

My Temu haul cost $36,000

Temu and SHEIN built their empires on rock-bottom prices, but that bargain is starting to slip. As supply chain costs rise and regulatory pressures mount, both companies are quietly raising prices, according to a new LinkedIn News report.

It’s a reminder that the “always cheaper” model isn’t bulletproof, and that even fast-fashion and discount marketplaces eventually run into the hard math of global trade. For consumers and companies alike, the days of expecting more for less might finally be numbered.

No robo-bosses? Good for privacy, but it’s complicated

As companies rethink AI’s role in management, HR Brew ™️ digs into a key side effect: fewer robo-bosses could mean better employee data privacy. But it’s not all good news. Limiting AI oversight doesn't erase the massive amount of data companies already collect—or the risks that come with it.

The piece raises a critical point: scaling back AI in leadership is only part of the equation. Without stronger data governance, the privacy conversation is just getting started.

8 Charts about what's really happening in the US

If something praises you, elevate it. If something points out a flaw, bury it. That's the Trump Administration playbook, especially when it comes to facts. But here's the thing about facts. They don't lie - people do. I loved this interactive from The New York Times about what's really happening in the US. Check it out and always remember this quote from 1984 - “The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”