TRChats S3:E2 A Look at the Larger HR Tech Space

In this episode of Totally Rewarding Chats, Sean Luitjens and Paul Reiman are joined by George LaRocque, founder of WorkTech, for a market level read on where HR technology is heading and what it means for comp. George brings a 30 year view of the space, tracking capital flow, M&A, and buyer adoption across every category of work tech. Key themes include: The hourglass shape of the market: legacy platforms at the top with the time and options to build, buy, or partner, AI native new entrants at the bottom, and a crowded middle where most vendors are getting squeezed Why the technology alone is no longer a moat, and how data depth and expertise are becoming the real differentiators in a niche category like compensation What recent acquisitions of comp point solutions signal about HCM and HRIS platforms filling gaps, and whether compensation ever becomes a platform of its own Compliance versus ROI as the two forces that actually drive buying decisions, including what happened to comp tech messaging after the EU Pay Transparency Directive landed with less force than expected How buyers should evaluate vendor risk, from asking emerging providers for financials to checking how well a platform has delivered on past roadmap promises and integrated what it has acquired