Infor Acquires PeopleAnswers

Infor, a provider of business application software serving more than 70,000 customers, has announced the acquisition of PeopleAnswers, a leader in predictive talent analytics.

PeopleAnswers’ cloud-based talent science platform adds analytical rigor to human capital management. Developed by a team of PhDs in behavioral science, this unique cloud service analyses 39 behavioral traits for job candidates and produces a fit rating. Companies like Audi, Foot Locker, Gold’s Gym, Hertz, Neiman Marcus, and The Cheesecake Factory can measure significantly reduced turnover, improved customer service, and increased revenue by qualifying applicants more thoroughly and analytically as a result of PeopleAnswers.

According to research, 46 percent of new hires are bad hires and 89 percent of them fail because of attitudinal reasons. Skills are not predictive of positive outcome for a new hire.

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PeopleAnswers scientists invested in big data for over a decade and the data proved that 39 other attributes were more predictive of a new employee’s performance. Those attributes include ambition, discipline, energy, acceptance of authority, attention to detail, flexibility, conscientiousness, and empathy. PeopleAnswers administers statistically significant and consistent online interviews to 20 million applicants annually across multiple industries, job roles, and geographies that measure the 39 performance attributes and create DNA profiles. Those attributes are weighted differently by job role and completely derived from the data.

The acquisition of PeopleAnswers will make the Infor HCM suite, already recognised as a leader, one of the first HCM suites to deliver a real-world use case for big data that impacts results that can be measured. Stores at a large retailer, for example, had 30 percent higher sales and lower turnover in the stores that used PeopleAnswers versus the stores that did not. That retailer is now standardising on PeopleAnswers and centralising the hiring process. PeopleAnswers’ unique approach uses behavioral science to achieve results in the traditionally “soft” space of HR, tying performance metrics to key behaviors of top employees using Performance Profiles and Behavioral DNA to enable companies to hire, reward, and promote their best performers.

“Evaluating talent is one of the most important decisions for a manager but these decisions are hindered by uncertainty and a lack of data. PeopleAnswers has pioneered the concept of HCM big data and behavioral science that delivers a patented, cloud-based product available in 16 languages that has become the gold standard for hiring best practices,” said Charles Phillips, CEO of Infor. “Through this acquisition, we will not only expand our HR offering, but we will add a cadre of scientists to move beyond simply automating processes to push the envelope on big data and HCM innovation.”

“PeopleAnswers and Infor have helped shape Inova’s world-class human resources organisation,” said Angie Mannino, SVP, Human Resources, Inova Health System. “The combination of both companies, with their innovative approach to human capital management, will make information sharing and interfacing faster and simpler, positioning us for even greater success in the future.”

PeopleAnswers is experiencing strong annual growth (3-year compound annual growth rate of 32 percent) and has grown for 41 consecutive quarters. According to IDC Research, the global HCM market is expected to grow 8 percent annually, hitting $13.5 billion in 2017 as companies seek to replace legacy HR systems with the latest technology2.

Financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed.