Research Library

Using the Research Library

The research below is drawn from more than five years of industry studies, practitioner interviews, and deep analysis of the most important topics facing talent leaders today.

Feel free to use the categories below to find what you are looking for, or you can search for content that matters most to you.

Insightful Highlights

Zapier's Head of Onboarding: "We automated hundreds of hours of manual tasks"

Research Reports and Graphics

6+ Generative AI Applications in Talent Acquisition Today [Infographic]

Generative AI. It’s the topic in what seems like every conference agenda, presentation, and headline today. But so much of it is focused on things like ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini (formerly Google Bard). However, there are a few “flavors” of generative AI being used by talent acquisition and HR teams today: Off-the-shelf public systems like…

4 Research-Backed Actions to Engage and Convert More Candidates

The data points are clear: candidate expectations today have evolved, and if you’re not staying on top of those changes, you may be missing out on the very best talent in the market. Based on our proprietary research from more than 2,500 candidates in the last two years, here are four practical things you can…

RPO Buyer Study: Key Findings and Preferences [New Research]

Each year we partner with the RPO Association to produce a research study to examine and understand how the recruitment process outsourcing market is changing, what buyers expect, and the realities of the current landscape. Our latest report was recently released featuring findings from more than 500 RPO buyers, and it’s currently available at no…

Recruiting Automation: Employer and Candidate Preferences [Infographic]

The world of recruitment is undergoing a seismic shift, thanks in no small part to advancements in artificial intelligence and automation. Recent data from our Lighthouse Research & Advisory Talent Acquisition Trends study underscores this transformation, revealing some thought-provoking trends. First, employers are now 41% more likely to report increased efficiencies in talent acquisition due…

Speed Counts in Hiring: How to Shorten Cycle Times and Increase Candidate Satisfaction [Infographic]

Today, creating a positive candidate experience is not just a nice-to-have; it’s a must-do. Recent data points from Lighthouse Research & Advisory studies offer a compelling insight into why this is more important now than ever: Two out of the top three reasons candidates ghost employers are directly tied to speed and hiring workflows. A…

2023 Recap: A Turbulent Year with Significant M&A Changes in the HR Technology Market

Our annual reporting on M&A in the HR technology space is one of our most popular pieces of content year after year (see our 2022 version here). We look at some of the many announcements that happen over the course of the year, flag some key ones, and identify any big trends that seem to…

The Evolution of Pay Equity and Transparency in the Modern Workplace [Infographic]

Increasingly, our research is showing that pay equity and pay transparency are critically linked. In other words, employers that score highly in one will typically score highly in the other, and vice versa. That’s because as the market has shifted in recent years, we’ve seen a clear connection between transparency and openness on compensation and…

First Look at 2023 Talent Acquisition Research: Pay Transparency, Ghosting, and More

Updated December 2023 with new candidate data from Q3.  Of all the aspects of human capital management, talent acquisition has seen a tremendous upheaval in the last three years. From a full stop in 2020 to full speed in 2021 and 2022, we’re now seeing some mixed signals about what the future holds. The essential…

Fast, Fair, and Functional: A New Look at Structured Interviews [New Research]

For talent acquisition leaders, it sometimes feels as if there is a set of opposing forces fighting for control over hiring processes: We need a strong, supportive candidate experience We need to provide fair consideration and minimize bias We need to pick the candidate who can best perform the job… All that seems like a…

The Next Generation of Talent Rises and Falls on Potential [New Report]

Can I be transparent for a moment? Earlier this year, the team at Plum reached out to us about writing a piece for a different audience than we typically reach. Instead of targeting enterprise talent leaders, HR professionals, and business leaders, we were reaching out to students, recent graduates, and job seekers. We are helping…

Case Studies

Case Study Report: The Value of Company Culture in the Age of AI

By Ben Eubanks

In a world where technology reigns supreme, we must not forget the heart of our organizations—the culture. The beating heart of company culture guides our values, beliefs, and actions towards a higher purpose. Fulfillment, communication, trust, and diversity form the cornerstones of a transformative culture that fuels growth and fulfillment in the workplace. By championing…

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Trusaic 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Trusaic is a workplace equity technology company committed to advancing social good by helping organizations achieve pay equity, foster a more diverse and inclusive workforce, assist economically disadvantaged individuals with finding work, and ensure employee access to affordable healthcare. Trusaic’s mission is to create a better working world through data-driven, people-centered technology…

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SmartRank 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company SmartRank is a Non-Traditional Productivity-ATS that completely automates the job applicant screening process, stack-ranks and filters those applicants, and gives hiring managers exactly what they’re looking for without using/needing a résumé. This saves time, increases hiring quality, and reduces both hiring manager frustration and recruiter workload. SmartRank was originally founded in April…

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SkyHive 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company SkyHive is a Certified B Corporation and software provider of global workforce intelligence technology, optimizing labor market efficiencies in real-time for companies, communities, and national economies. Like the DNA of the human genome was coded, SkyHive has coded human capability. By doing so, governments, large enterprises, and educational institutions can reskill the…

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Schoox 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Schoox is workplace learning software with a people-first twist. For organizations with frontline, remote, and corporate learners who need an engaged and skilled workforce ready to take on the new challenges of their evolving business, Schoox is an award-winning learning management and talent development company. This SaaS solution delivers social-, mobile-, and…

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HiBob 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company HiBob is on a mission to enable companies to thrive through change using people-first strategies. The HCM platform, Bob, simplifies the complexities of today’s global, hybrid, and remote world of work, driving greater impact for HR, managers, and employees. The ideal customer is a modern, multinational, mid-enterprise company with 250-3,000 employees with…

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Jobvite 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Jobvite, an Employ Inc. brand, is a purpose-built proven talent acquisition (TA) solution built to innovate, scale, and solve the hiring complexities within sophisticated organizations across the entire TA lifecycle. Jobvite’s Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite is a comprehensive TA solution, empowering teams to address challenges across the entire talent acquisition lifecycle. The…

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Cornerstone 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Cornerstone powers the future-ready workforce with a next-generation talent experience platform designed to unite technology, data and content and inspire a work environment of growth, agility and success for all. With an AI-powered, skills-forward, experiential platform, built on an open architecture designed for neutrality and scale, Cornerstone helps organizations modernize their learning…

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Harri 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Harri is the revolutionary global leader in Frontline Employee Experience. The Harri platform is built for companies that have service at the heart of their business and believe that the customer experience will never exceed the employee experience. The Harri suite of talent attraction, workforce management, employee engagement and compliance technologies enable…

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15Five 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company 15Five is the holistic performance management company. 15Five equips HR teams with a complete, single-platform solution to improve manager effectiveness, drive high performance and engagement, and increase retention. 15Five was founded in 2011, by serial entrepreneur, David Hassell, and born of his deep desire to help people reach their fullest potential at…

Videos, Interviews, and Podcasts

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HR Analyst Day *Podcast Takeover* Featuring Engagedly On We’re Only Human

“Be gentle with yourself. I think we can all afford a little compassion and we’re often able to give that to others easier than we’re able to give it to ourselves. Give yourself time for introspection to understand what truly motivates you and let that be your first step.” Kristin Richter, Engagedly We’re Only Human…

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What Is The Extended Workforce? Insights From Utmost On We’re Only Human

“The way work is getting done is increasingly flexible and it gives the worker the power of choice. That choice serves both the worker and the end enterprise.”  Dan Beck, COO of Utmost We’re Only Human — Episode 106 Quick, your business needs to fill a talent gap you have, but you don’t want to…

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3 Keys to Creating and Becoming a Best Place to Work: Angie Redmon on We’re Only Human

“What different actions can we take going forward? So whether it was an implementation to our benefits plan or whether it was rolling out a new piece to our onboarding process, let’s do an analysis at the end… Is there anything that could’ve made this better? Just one little thing that we could tweak so that we can learn from this.” Angie Redmon, striveHR

We’re Only Human — Episode 107

Today there’s no shortage of employer award programs. Every magazine, business publication, website, and trade association has a version of these programs, and they all look at different elements of how employers support their people. In today’s conversation, Ben talks with Angie Redmon of striveHR about how she works with employers to help them win these awards. As you’ll hear in the discussion, this is about more than “teaching to the test.” It’s about fundamentally changing how you care for and support your people, and the journey towards that end goal is perhaps more important than the end goal itself. In the conversation you’ll learn the three critical components that lead to a winning strategy over time.

Learn more about Angie and connect with her: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angieredmonbestworkplaceadvisor

Find our episode archive, subscribe options on Spotify, Google, Amazon, and more, and learn more about We’re Only Human: http://lhra.io/podcast

3 Simple Secrets to Better Employee Experience: A PayPal Case Study

In the last couple of years, “employee experience” has become this ubiquitous term that is a catch all for pretty much everything related to employees in the workplace. But I love getting more specific and concrete, because vague terms and theory don’t lead to better results and impact. Recently I had a chance to talk…

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Empowering Your Internal Experts for Better Learning Outcomes on We’re Only Human

I really do believe this is a moment for learning and training that could see a transformation that benefits learners. Simon Greany, Elucidat We’re Only Human — Episode 103 How many times have we in HR and learning been forced to create content in subjects we knew little to nothing about? In today’s episode, Ben…

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Measuring Productivity in the Modern Workplace: Prodoscore on We’re Only Human

“We can’t forget about being human.” Tom Moran, Chief Strategy Officer, Prodoscore We’re Only Human — Episode 102 When workers gathered to work on assembly lines, productivity was easy: you counted the widgets produced per hour. In the modern workplace, it’s a much harder proposition. How do you know when knowledge workers are really accomplishing…

Making Culture Tangible and Inclusive: Featuring Questback on HR Tech Talks

One of the biggest challenges people have with culture is that it’s often vague or unclear. Or, as is often the case, there is a gap between reality and what leadership thinks, creating friction for the organization in a variety of visible and invisible ways. This fuels not only innovation and growth, but a critical…

Exploring the World of Career Pathing and Talent Mobility

Research shows that the number one reason people stay at a job is for development and growth, yet many companies don’t prioritize this because it seems to complex. Companies like Hitch make technology to help create opportunities not just for workers to understand potential career growth but also help employers to see and examine the…

Go Beyond Resumes to Pick the Best Candidates: Aptology On HR Tech Talks

Since the beginning of time, organizations have tried to match resumes with job descriptions to find the best candidates. The problems with that approach are numerous, and the results are often less than ideal. In recent history, more companies have turned to assessment tools to give structure and objectivity to hiring and talent decisions, minimizing…

Drive Engagement by Supporting Your Workforce, a Conversation with Kronos

Kronos is a world leader in HR and workforce management technology. In this episode of HR Tech Talks, Ben discusses how Kronos serves its customers, what the technology does best, and how it can help HR leaders tackle pressing business challenges.

Technology Reviews

2023 Recap: A Turbulent Year with Significant M&A Changes in the HR Technology Market

By Ben Eubanks

Our annual reporting on M&A in the HR technology space is one of our most popular pieces of content year after year (see our 2022 version here). We look at some of the many announcements that happen over the course of the year, flag some key ones, and identify any big trends that seem to…

hr tech awards

Trusaic 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Trusaic is a workplace equity technology company committed to advancing social good by helping organizations achieve pay equity, foster a more diverse and inclusive workforce, assist economically disadvantaged individuals with finding work, and ensure employee access to affordable healthcare. Trusaic’s mission is to create a better working world through data-driven, people-centered technology…

hr tech awards

SmartRank 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company SmartRank is a Non-Traditional Productivity-ATS that completely automates the job applicant screening process, stack-ranks and filters those applicants, and gives hiring managers exactly what they’re looking for without using/needing a résumé. This saves time, increases hiring quality, and reduces both hiring manager frustration and recruiter workload. SmartRank was originally founded in April…

isolved HCM Connect Conference: Serious Growth, Aggressive Roadmap, and a Critical AI Strategy

By Ben Eubanks

This week I spent time in beautiful Palm Springs at the isolved Connect user conference. If you’re not familiar with the name, isolved HCM’s hot pink brand is spreading quickly across the nation as they pick up customers, build out the product, and celebrate their increased successes in recent years. See my notes from the…

Ceridian Rebrands to Dayforce, Launches Range of New Features and Strategic Efforts

By Ben Eubanks

Fall for analysts like us in the HR technology space equates to travel season, with industry conferences and technology user conferences happening on a weekly basis between August and November. This week is Ceridian’s Insights conference in Las Vegas. Ceridian has been known for its Dayforce product for many years (the company has a 30…

2023 Compensation Data and Technology Buyer’s Guide and Landscape Report [New Research]

By Ben Eubanks

Every other year our team takes a deep dive into the world of compensation. We look at all of the top technology providers. We gather data from a wide variety of employers to understand how they are using data and technology to support comp practices. And we ultimately write the industry’s most in-depth research report…

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SkyHive 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company SkyHive is a Certified B Corporation and software provider of global workforce intelligence technology, optimizing labor market efficiencies in real-time for companies, communities, and national economies. Like the DNA of the human genome was coded, SkyHive has coded human capability. By doing so, governments, large enterprises, and educational institutions can reskill the…

hr tech awards

Schoox 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Schoox is workplace learning software with a people-first twist. For organizations with frontline, remote, and corporate learners who need an engaged and skilled workforce ready to take on the new challenges of their evolving business, Schoox is an award-winning learning management and talent development company. This SaaS solution delivers social-, mobile-, and…

hr tech awards

Jobvite 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Jobvite, an Employ Inc. brand, is a purpose-built proven talent acquisition (TA) solution built to innovate, scale, and solve the hiring complexities within sophisticated organizations across the entire TA lifecycle. Jobvite’s Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite is a comprehensive TA solution, empowering teams to address challenges across the entire talent acquisition lifecycle. The…

hr tech awards

HiBob 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company HiBob is on a mission to enable companies to thrive through change using people-first strategies. The HCM platform, Bob, simplifies the complexities of today’s global, hybrid, and remote world of work, driving greater impact for HR, managers, and employees. The ideal customer is a modern, multinational, mid-enterprise company with 250-3,000 employees with…

See the Latest from Lighthouse Research & Advisory

IAMPHENOM 2024: Supporting High-Volume Hiring with Tailored Solutions

By Ben Eubanks

Our latest research studies on learning and hiring are separate efforts that overlap on one critical aspect: skills. I’ve heard both of those sides of the equation at two different conferences over the last 48 hours, and it’s one that more and more employers are examining or fully committing to. This week I have been…

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2024 Talent Acquisition Trends Research Livestream: What to Expect

By Ben Eubanks

The first study our team ever began to do year over year was focused on talent acquisition. We gathered data from employers on their biggest priorities and challenges in order to help talent leaders to make better decisions. This year, our 2024 Talent Acquisition Trends study covers more than 1,200 employers and 1,000 candidates from…

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6+ Generative AI Applications in Talent Acquisition Today [Infographic]

By Ben Eubanks

Generative AI. It’s the topic in what seems like every conference agenda, presentation, and headline today. But so much of it is focused on things like ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini (formerly Google Bard). However, there are a few “flavors” of generative AI being used by talent acquisition and HR teams today: Off-the-shelf public systems like…

Read More

4 Research-Backed Actions to Engage and Convert More Candidates

By Ben Eubanks

The data points are clear: candidate expectations today have evolved, and if you’re not staying on top of those changes, you may be missing out on the very best talent in the market. Based on our proprietary research from more than 2,500 candidates in the last two years, here are four practical things you can…

Read More

RPO Buyer Study: Key Findings and Preferences [New Research]

By Ben Eubanks

Each year we partner with the RPO Association to produce a research study to examine and understand how the recruitment process outsourcing market is changing, what buyers expect, and the realities of the current landscape. Our latest report was recently released featuring findings from more than 500 RPO buyers, and it’s currently available at no…

Read More

Case Study Report: The Value of Company Culture in the Age of AI

By Ben Eubanks

In a world where technology reigns supreme, we must not forget the heart of our organizations—the culture. The beating heart of company culture guides our values, beliefs, and actions towards a higher purpose. Fulfillment, communication, trust, and diversity form the cornerstones of a transformative culture that fuels growth and fulfillment in the workplace. By championing…

Read More

Recruiting Automation: Employer and Candidate Preferences [Infographic]

By Ben Eubanks

The world of recruitment is undergoing a seismic shift, thanks in no small part to advancements in artificial intelligence and automation. Recent data from our Lighthouse Research & Advisory Talent Acquisition Trends study underscores this transformation, revealing some thought-provoking trends. First, employers are now 41% more likely to report increased efficiencies in talent acquisition due…

Read More

Speed Counts in Hiring: How to Shorten Cycle Times and Increase Candidate Satisfaction [Infographic]

By Ben Eubanks

Today, creating a positive candidate experience is not just a nice-to-have; it’s a must-do. Recent data points from Lighthouse Research & Advisory studies offer a compelling insight into why this is more important now than ever: Two out of the top three reasons candidates ghost employers are directly tied to speed and hiring workflows. A…

Read More

Hiring Assessments: Do Employers and Candidates See Eye to Eye? [Infographic]

By Ben Eubanks

Updated January 2024 with new data from Q3 2023 Hiring assessments have gone through many iterations and evolutions since the days I was using them to screen high potential hires during my recruiting days. I remember having to stop the hiring process, send candidates a separate link to create an account and complete an assessment,…

Read More

2023 Recap: A Turbulent Year with Significant M&A Changes in the HR Technology Market

By Ben Eubanks

Our annual reporting on M&A in the HR technology space is one of our most popular pieces of content year after year (see our 2022 version here). We look at some of the many announcements that happen over the course of the year, flag some key ones, and identify any big trends that seem to…

Read More

The Evolution of Pay Equity and Transparency in the Modern Workplace [Infographic]

By Ben Eubanks

Increasingly, our research is showing that pay equity and pay transparency are critically linked. In other words, employers that score highly in one will typically score highly in the other, and vice versa. That’s because as the market has shifted in recent years, we’ve seen a clear connection between transparency and openness on compensation and…

Read More

What is the Complexity Coefficient and Does it Apply to Your Organization?

By Ben Eubanks

In our research on high-performing organizations, the term “complexity coefficient” is one that we use to describe companies that are outliers from the standpoint of investment into HR operations. What exactly is this coefficient, and why is it a crucial factor in organizational management? In essence, the complexity coefficient describes a phenomenon where an organization’s…

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Should You Expect Candidate Data with Your Next Recruiting Technology Purchase?

By Ben Eubanks

Several years back, economist and human behavioral science expert Dan Ariely ran an experiment on options and choices (one of hundreds of experiments he’s run over the years). He found that when you offer just two choices, people are more rational and split their attention between the premium and inexpensive options. But if you offer…

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First Look at 2023 Talent Acquisition Research: Pay Transparency, Ghosting, and More

By Ben Eubanks

Updated December 2023 with new candidate data from Q3.  Of all the aspects of human capital management, talent acquisition has seen a tremendous upheaval in the last three years. From a full stop in 2020 to full speed in 2021 and 2022, we’re now seeing some mixed signals about what the future holds. The essential…

Read More
hr tech awards

Trusaic 2023 HR Tech Awards Case Study

By Ben Eubanks

About the Company Trusaic is a workplace equity technology company committed to advancing social good by helping organizations achieve pay equity, foster a more diverse and inclusive workforce, assist economically disadvantaged individuals with finding work, and ensure employee access to affordable healthcare. Trusaic’s mission is to create a better working world through data-driven, people-centered technology…

Read More