HR Software Definitions

This glossary explains the meaning of key words and phrases that information technology (IT) and business professionals use when discussing human resources and related software products. You can find additional definitions by visiting WhatIs.com or using the search box below.

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  • #

    360 review

    A 360 review (360-degree review) is a continuous performance management strategy aimed at helping employees at all levels obtain responses from various parts of an organization in order to develop and sharpen their professional skills.

  • 70-20-10 (70-20-10 rule)

    70-20-10 is a formula that describes how someone learns to do their job. The formula proposes that on average, 70% of a person's learning at work is internal and experience-based, 20% comes from interacting with fellow employees and 10% is the result of formal training and reading. 

  • A

    ADP Mobile Solutions

    ADP Mobile Solutions is a self-service mobile app that enables employees to access work records such as pay, schedules, timecards, retirement funds, benefits and calendars.

  • applicant tracking system (ATS)

    An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software that manages the recruiting and hiring process, including job postings and job applications.

  • B

    benefits administration

    Benefits administration is the process of assembling and managing the benefits an organization provides to employees.

  • Betterworks

    Betterworks is performance management software that helps workforces and organizations to improve manager effectiveness and employee performance, strengthening manager-employee relationships.

  • C

    candidate experience

    Candidate experience reflects a person's feelings about going through a company's job application process.

  • chief human resources officer (CHRO)

    Chief human resources officer (CHRO) is a top-level management executive in charge of an organization's employees.

  • cognitive diversity

    Cognitive diversity is the inclusion of people who have different styles of problem-solving and can offer unique perspectives because they think differently, have divergent perspectives and come from varied backgrounds.

  • cohort learning

    Cohort learning is a learning strategy prioritizing coursework or lessons that groups of students complete together in an interactive fashion.

  • compensation management

    Compensation management is the discipline and process for determining employees' appropriate pay and benefits.

  • competency framework

    A competency framework is a structure that defines a set of competencies, or skills, for each role in an organization.

  • continuous performance management

    Continuous performance management, in a human resource (HR) management context, is the supervision of an employee's performance through one-on-one discussions and ongoing feedback from supervisors during regularly scheduled check-ins.

  • core HR (core human resources)

    Core HR (core human resources) is an umbrella term that refers to the basic tasks and functions of an HR department as it manages the employee lifecycle.

  • D

    digital HR

    Digital HR is the digital transformation of HR services and processes through the use of social, mobile, analytics and cloud (SMAC) technologies.

  • director of employee engagement

    Director of employee engagement is one of the job titles for a human resources (HR) manager who is responsible for an organization's employee engagement strategy.

  • What is DEI? Diversity, equity and inclusion explained

    Diversity, equity and inclusion is a term used to describe policies and programs that promote the representation and participation of different groups of individuals.

  • E

    e-recruitment (e-recruiting)

    E-recruitment is an umbrella term for any electronic-based recruiting and recruitment management activity.

  • employee engagement

    Employee engagement is the emotional and professional connection an employee feels toward their organization, colleagues and work.

  • employee engagement software

    Employee engagement software helps workers feel more satisfied with their jobs and absorbed in the mission and culture of their organization, and, therefore, more productive and effective.

  • employee experience

    Employee experience is a worker's perception of the organization they work for during their tenure.

  • employee lifecycle

    The employee lifecycle is a human resources model that identifies the different stages a worker advances through in an organization and the role HR plays in optimizing that process.

  • employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS)

    The employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) is a metric used by employers to assess employee loyalty.

  • employee onboarding and offboarding

    Employee onboarding involves all the steps needed to get a new employee successfully deployed and productive, while offboarding involves separating an employee from a firm.

  • employee poaching (talent poaching)

    Employee poaching (talent poaching) or job poaching is the recruiting of employees who work at competing companies.

  • employee resource group (ERG)

    An employee resource group is a workplace club or more formally realized affinity group organized around a shared interest or identity.

  • employee retention

    Employee retention is the organizational goal of keeping productive and talented workers and reducing turnover by fostering a positive work atmosphere to promote engagement.

  • employee sentiment analysis

    Employee sentiment analysis is the use of natural language processing and other AI techniques to automatically analyze employee feedback and other unstructured data to quantify and describe how employees feel about their organization.

  • employee training and development

    Employee training and development is a set of activities and programs designed to enhance the knowledge, skills and abilities of employees.

  • employee vetting

    Employee vetting is a screening process conducted by employers for checking the background and verifying the information of a new hire or applicant.

  • What is employee self-service (ESS)?

    Employee self-service (ESS) is a widely used human resources technology that enables employees to perform many job-related functions that were once largely paper-based, or otherwise maintained by management, administrative or HR staff.

  • G

    gamification

    Gamification is a strategy that integrates entertaining and immersive gaming elements into nongame contexts to enhance engagement and motivate certain behaviors.

  • H

    Hawthorne effect

    The Hawthorne effect is the modification of behavior by study participants in response to their knowledge that they are being observed or singled out for special treatment.

  • HireVue

    HireVue is an enterprise video interviewing technology provider of a platform that lets recruiters and hiring managers screen candidates and conduct live interviews over the internet.

  • HR automation

    Human resources automation (HR automation) is a method of using software to automate and streamline repetitive and laborious HR tasks.

  • HR help desk

    HR help desk refers to a central source of information employees can consult about human resource questions.

  • HR service delivery

    HR service delivery is a term used to explain how an organization's human resources department offers services to and interacts with employees.

  • HR technology (human resources tech)

    HR technology (human resources technology) is an umbrella term for hardware and software used to automate the human resource function in organizations.

  • HRIS (human resource information system)

    A human resource information system (HRIS) is software that provides a centralized repository of employee master data that the human resource management (HRM) group needs for completing core human resource (core HR) processes.

  • human capital management (HCM)

    Human capital management (HCM) is a comprehensive set of practices and tools used for recruiting, managing and developing employees as a valuable business 'asset' rather than just as a business 'cost.'

  • Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI)

    Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI) is a U.S.-based credentialing organization offering certifications to HR generalists, administrators and managers.

  • human resource management (HRM)

    Human resource management (HRM) is the practice of recruiting, hiring, deploying and managing an organization's employees.

  • human resources (HR) generalist

    A human resources generalist is an HR professional who handles the daily responsibilities of talent management, employee onboarding, and administering compensation and benefits plans for the human resources department.

  • hybrid work model

    A hybrid work model is a workforce structure that includes employees who work remotely and those who work on site, in a company's facilities.

  • L

    learning experience platform (LXP)

    A learning experience platform (LXP) is an artificial intelligence (AI) driven peer learning platform delivered using software as a service.

  • M

    manager self-service

    Manager self-service is self-service platform that enables managers to get immediate access to employee information and initiate employment-related actions.

  • Monster Worldwide

    Monster Worldwide is an online recruiting company noted for its flagship Monster.com job site.

  • O

    OKRs (Objectives and Key Results)

    OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) encourage companies to set, communicate and monitor organizational goals and results in an effective, transparent manner.

  • organizational network analysis (ONA)

    Organizational network analysis (ONA) is a quantitative method for modeling and analyzing how communications, information, decisions and resources flow through an organization.

  • P

    passive candidate

    A passive candidate (passive job candidate) is anyone in the workforce who is not actively looking for a job.

  • people analytics (HR analytics)

    People analytics, also known as human resources (HR) analytics and talent analytics, is the use of data analysis on candidate and employee issues to understand their effect on business goals and evaluate the effectiveness of HR initiatives.

  • performance and accountability reporting (PAR)

    Performance and accountability reporting (PAR) is the process of compiling and documenting factors that quantify an organization's achievements, efficiency and adherence to budget, comparing actual results against previously articulated goals.

  • performance management software

    Performance management software is designed to improve business performance by spurring employee productivity.

  • What is payroll software?

    Payroll software automates the process of paying salaried, hourly and contingent employees.

  • R

    recruitment

    Recruitment is the process of finding, screening, hiring and onboarding qualified job candidates.

  • recruitment management system (RMS)

    A recruitment management system (RMS) is a set of tools designed to manage the employee recruiting and hiring process. It might be the most important core human resources (HR) system.

  • recruitment marketing

    Recruitment marketing is the combination of strategies and tools used by an organization to engage and entice job candidates in the pre-applicant phase of recruiting.

  • recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)

    Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) is when an employer turns the responsibility of finding potential job candidates over to a third-party service provider.

  • reference checking software

    Reference checking software is programming that automates the process of contacting and questioning the references of job applicants.

  • reskilling

    Reskilling is the process of teaching an employee new skills to improve proficiency in their current job or move into an advanced position.

  • S

    skill-based learning

    Skill-based learning develops students through hands-on practice and real-world application.

  • skills taxonomy

    A skills taxonomy is a classification system for all the skills an employee at a business may have.

  • social media recruitment (social media recruiting)

    Social media recruitment, or social media recruiting, is the process of using social media platforms to identify, engage and vet people the organization may want to hire.

  • succession planning

    Succession planning is the strategic process of identifying and developing internal candidates to fill key organizational roles to ensure business continuity and leadership in the face of role transitions, departures, or unforeseen events. It is relevant to all companies, large or small, for-profit or nonprofit.

  • T

    talent acquisition

    Talent acquisition is the strategic process an organization uses to identify, recruit and hire the people it needs to achieve its business goals and optimize its processes.

  • talent management

    Talent management is a process used by companies to optimize how they recruit, train and retain employees.

  • talent management software (TM software)

    Talent management software is technology that human resource management professionals use to manage employees as a competitive advantage.

  • talent network

    A talent network is a group of interconnected people with similar professional skills.

  • talent pipeline

    A talent pipeline is a pool of candidates who are ready to fill a position.

  • talent pool

    A talent pool is a database of job candidates who have the potential to meet an organization's immediate and long-term needs.

  • Taleo

    Taleo is a cloud-based talent management software vendor that was acquired by Oracle in February 2012.

  • team collaboration

    Team collaboration is a communication and project management approach that emphasizes teamwork, innovative thinking and equal participation to achieve objectives.

  • V

    video interview

    A video interview is a job interview that takes place remotely and uses video technology as the communication medium.

  • voluntary benefits

    Voluntary benefits are optional, employee-paid benefits.

  • W

    Workday

    Workday is a cloud-based software vendor that specializes in human capital management (HCM) and financial management applications.

  • workforce analytics

    Workforce analytics is a combination of software and methodology that applies statistical models to worker-related data, allowing enterprise leaders to optimize human resource management (HRM).

  • workforce management (WFM)

    Workforce management (WFM) is an integrated set of processes that a company uses to optimize the productivity of its employees.

  • workforce planning

    Workforce planning is the strategy used by employers to anticipate labor needs and deploy workers most effectively, usually with advanced human resources technology.

  • X

    xAPI (experience API)

    Experience API, also known as 'xAPI' or 'Tin Can API', is a software specification that allows learning technology products, such as systems, websites and applications, to collect and exchange data about a learner’s experiences when they interact with these products.