The rise of the digital nanny state

The Washington Post

...San Francisco-based cloud technology company Appirio has distributed 200 Up bands to its employees as part of its internal wellness program, CloudFit. The company chose the Up band for a few reasons: Jawbone offered them a discount, and the API could be integrated into Appirio’s system. The wristband also had a sleek design, longer battery life and collected activity data and sleep data, steering the company away from the Nike Fuelband. The deal made even more dollars and sense, since Appirio also negotiated with its U.S. health-care provider to cover the first $20,000 in costs dedicated to creating the company wellness program, with the goal of negotiating deeper insurance discounts once enough data had been collected, according to a company representative.

Appirio employees are not required to wear the bands, and if they do, they don’t have to share their data with one another or with the company overall. The wellness program has led to “an uptick in collaboration of its virtual employees that now have more in common (by sharing their UP data). This collaboration translates to a positive and motivational workforce,” according to the company representative...

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Why SaaS HR Software Is Ready to Take Off

CIO

...Jason Averbook, chief business innovation officer at cloud services provider Appirio, says the HR application sector is in the midst of a replacement cycle. Averbrook was previously CEO at Knowledge Infusion, a human capital management consultancy Appirio acquired last year.

Up to 90 percent of the Fortune 1000 will replace or re-implement its core HR system in the next four years," he says. "Most of the software that's out there was written before the Internet was born. It doesn't meet the needs and expectations of employees and managers. That's why you see so much activity around the cloud."

CIOs opting for human resources in the cloud have a number of choices from companies that grew up in the cloud or have moved to SaaS delivery following a history on on-premises products. Vendors offering human resources management applications in SaaS form include ADP, Ceridian, Kronos, Oracle, SAP and Workday.

Averbook says a pending on-premises upgrade of a legacy human resources system can trigger a move to SaaS. Many aging in-house systems have been customized beyond recognition and require a ton of internal support to keep them running, he points out. "CIOs want to get out of the business of maintaining back office systems. When the time to upgrade comes, it's natural to look elsewhere."...

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Skyrocket Your Business With The Cloud

techbubbles

For many organisations, cloud computing has become a way of connecting the dots between multiple business functions, and if done properly, can help future-proof a business model and drive innovation. As the lines between business and technology continue to blur, more organisations need to view IT as an integrated part of the enterprise that can impact long-term success, rather than just a mere side project. Agility is the currency of the new economy.

...At Appirio, we believe strongly in the role of the enterprise architect: an employee which manages the company’s IT services with a view to addressing overall business requirements – we push transparency to an extreme and we encourage communication through all levels and parts of the business.  We also believe that people work better in an environment where they care and are supportive of each other.  Cloud communication tools such as Salesforce, Workday and Google allow us to easily do that without investing millions of £s in building bespoke systems.

Cloud is helping organisations to reimagine their business. By applying technology to overarching issues, companies can maintain an agile stance, benefitting from an integrated IT infrastructure and from employees who know how to use it to its maximum potential.

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Your Employer Wants To Know When You’re Sleeping

Chicago Grid

Employees at Appirio in San Francisco may not see their Chicago-based CEO on a daily basis, but they know how he slept last night.

Appirio, a cloud services provider, bought 200 Jawbone Up wristbands for employees as part of a wellness program launched this year. The bands, which retail for $129.99, use motion sensors to track sleep patterns and activity. Employers see only anonymous data, and employees can choose to share (or not share) their personal information with co-workers via a Web interface.

Appirio is among a growing number of companies buying fitness monitors for employees in an effort to reduce health insurance costs. The company’s health insurer gave Appirio $20,000 to start a wellness program, says VP of human resources Shannon Daly.

“I want to get enough data to go back to our benefits carrier this summer and say, ‘Look how we’ve been making change and traction on health,’” she says. “If we can get our benefits to stay static or go lower, that’s money for [employees] in their pockets.”...

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