As I speak with federal HR and IT leaders, it’s not difficult to understand their uneasiness around some of the HR software that has been pervasive throughout federal agencies for several years.

It’s not necessarily the fact that it’s been less than 3 years since the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) suffered its massive data breach, partly as a result of old technology systems and software. Because after the breach, OPM stated its priority was to fast-track the modernization of its old, legacy technology infrastructure.

But here’s the problem, as reported by Federal News Radio – OPM’s efforts to modernize its software and hardware are struggling. A recent OPM inspector general’s (IG’s) report on the IT modernization initiative questioned the agency’s planning process, stating it’s repeating past mistakes. Despite millions of dollars spent, there is no strategy or cost analysis behind it – “OPM is doing it backwards.”

As Jason Miller of Federal News Radio reports, “legacy technology continues to be an Achilles Heel for every federal agency’s cyber posture.”

This struggle to modernize has federal and IT leaders nervous – and looking at their options.

In 2017, Acendre saw a big upswing in interest in our federal recruitment and federal performance management solutions, and already in 2018, the momentum has picked up even more. There are several reasons, but strong security and our modern, cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings that are the antithesis of some alternatives are key reasons.

At Acendre, we’re not held back with legacy software or hardware. Our recruitment and performance management products, underpinned by advanced people analytics, are hosted on AWS GovCloud, designed to allow U.S. government agencies and customers move sensitive workloads into the cloud by addressing their specific regulatory and compliance requirements.

Furthermore, Acendre has achieved Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) In  Process status. As one of just a select number of solutions to receive this status, this achievement is one demonstration of our commitment to ensuring a secure environment for U.S. government clients looking to effectively recruit, manage and develop their employees.

In addition, the Acendre Talent Management Suite meets the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST’s) High High Moderate security classification, which specifies NIST’s baseline of stringent requirements of confidentiality, integrity and availability. This designation signals an even higher level of security assurance for our customers by meeting the highest standards of data protection.

Sure, our flexible and highly configurable workflow engine that adapts to agencies unique workflows and makes changes quick and easy, without spending time and money, gets HR and IT leaders’ attention and interest. As does the powerful analytics that underpins our solutions and the ability to interoperate with other systems. All are compelling reasons to consider Acendre solutions — and are some of the key reasons more and more federal agencies are turning to Acendre for their HR needs.

Still, without a high level of security underlying an agency’s talent management system, nothing an HR system can do matters.

Much has been written and debated about how the federal government can modernize and address the high cost, security risks and other pitfalls of legacy systems. One straightforward way to begin is to look to secure, modern HR technology.

Our recruitment and performance management solutions have been designed for and in partnerships with federal agencies. No other tools for the federal government provide the level of security provided by Acendre – none.

That’s a critical aspect of any HR technology solution you consider for your agency.