HRTech vendor executives leveraged the Collaboration Zone for top notch networking and copious collaboration at UNLEASH in Vegas
The 2019 edition of UNLEASH America, hosted at the Aria Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, served as a pivotal convergence point for the global HR technology industry. Amidst the high-energy atmosphere of the expo floor, a specialized, invitation-only space known as the Collaboration Zone (CZ) emerged as a critical hub for strategic business development. Powered by HR Tech Advisor and the resources of HRTechAlliances.com, the initiative was designed to move beyond the traditional "booth-circling" approach to networking, fostering instead a structured environment for vendors to discuss the systemic challenges of growth, retention, and ecosystem integration.
The Evolution of the Collaboration Zone
The concept of the Collaboration Zone was first introduced four and a half years prior at HR Tech World in Paris, now rebranded as UNLEASH. The core philosophy driving the initiative is that in a hyper-competitive market, the most successful HR technology providers are those that prioritize strategic alliances over isolated sales efforts. By creating a dedicated space for "vendor-only" interaction, the organizers aimed to increase the Return on Investment (ROI) for attendees by facilitating high-level, candid conversations that typically do not occur in the public, noise-filled environment of a standard trade show floor.
The Las Vegas iteration of the event reinforced the necessity of these curated interactions. With HR technology shifting toward integrated, platform-based ecosystems, the ability of vendors to form cohesive partnerships is no longer just a secondary growth strategy; it is a fundamental requirement for market survival and user satisfaction.
Chronology of Strategic Engagements
The two-day event followed a rigorous schedule of roundtable discussions, each focused on specific pain points within the HR tech lifecycle.
On the first day, the focus was centered on the mechanics of building institutional-grade alliances. Larry Cummings, Chief Connector and Co-Founder of HR Tech Alliances, led a comprehensive session on "Alliances Best Practices & Certification." This session provided attendees with a roadmap for professionalizing their partnership programs, specifically highlighting the certification standards set by the Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals (ASAP). The discussion aimed to standardize how tech companies approach the "do’s and don’ts" of collaborative development, ensuring that partnerships are built on sustainable foundations rather than temporary, deal-specific conveniences.
Simultaneously, the afternoon session tackled one of the industry’s most persistent hurdles: "Ways to Keep Integrations from Killing your Deals and Deliveries." Led by Katrina Paglierani, VP of Partnerships and Alliances at Flexspring, the group analyzed the technical and communication breakdown that often occurs during the integration phase of a client onboarding. The consensus among participants was that poor integration strategy is the primary cause of churn in the mid-to-enterprise segment.
Day two shifted the conversation toward the macro-economic shifts in the industry. One of the standout sessions featured Sankar Venkatraman, Global Product Evangelist at LinkedIn, who fielded direct inquiries regarding the company’s internal product development strategy. The dialogue centered on the perennial "Build, Buy, or Partner" dilemma. For smaller vendors in the room, understanding the internal calculus of a behemoth like LinkedIn provided invaluable intelligence on where the market opportunities exist for third-party integrations versus where they face existential competition.
Data-Driven Insights and Market Trends
The sessions were augmented by proprietary research and industry data. Brad Sutton, Head of Customer Success and Sales at HR.com, provided a breakdown of current buying trends in the HR space. The research indicated that HR buyers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, moving away from monolithic, "all-in-one" suites in favor of best-of-breed tools that require seamless interoperability.
Data presented during these sessions underscored a shift in marketing strategies. The findings suggested that the most effective way for vendors to reach the modern HR buyer is through a combination of social proof, advocacy programs, and transparent integration roadmaps. Rhonda Taylor, Vice President at Advos (by HRmarketer), expanded on this by detailing how internal employee advocacy programs can be leveraged to build corporate brand equity, a strategy that is often overlooked in the B2B tech space.
Official Responses and Participant Feedback
The success of the Collaboration Zone was measured not just by the volume of attendees, but by the qualitative feedback from industry leaders. Todd Asevedo, VP of Talent CoE & HCM Strategist at SAP SuccessFactors, emphasized the efficiency of the format. "The session in Las Vegas was a great and efficient way to meet up with so many early-stage companies to discover what partnering with SAP could look like," Asevedo noted. His participation in the roundtable "How to Partner with SAP" highlighted the growing demand for clear pathways to integration within major enterprise ecosystems.
Roy Baladi, Head of Marketplace at SmartRecruiters, noted the difference between the standard conference experience and the curated environment of the CZ. "Conferences get busy with interest-driven, surface-level conversations, but the Collaboration Zone was the exact opposite," Baladi stated. "The topics were top-quality, and the participants were curated to focus on one engaging topic, allowing everyone to walk away with true insight and quality connections."
Further support came from the integration sector, with Katrina Paglierani stating, "As a provider of an HR Integration platform as a service, the Collaboration Zone has helped me facilitate bringing deals together the same way we bring data together."
Broader Implications for the HR Tech Ecosystem
The implications of the discussions held in the Collaboration Zone extend well beyond the confines of the Aria hotel. As the HR technology market matures, the barriers to entry are increasing, and the cost of customer acquisition is rising. The industry is moving away from a fragmented landscape of thousands of standalone tools toward an integrated "HR Tech Stack" model.
The focus on "Alliances Best Practices" reflects a broader trend: the transition from transactional vendor-client relationships to long-term, collaborative partnerships. Companies that fail to adapt their product roadmaps to account for interoperability and partner ecosystems are increasingly finding themselves locked out of enterprise-level deals.
Furthermore, the emphasis on advocacy and social marketing suggests that HR technology firms are beginning to treat their own employees as primary brand ambassadors, recognizing that the "human element" of HR tech is as important as the underlying code. The "Build vs. Buy" debate, as illustrated by the LinkedIn session, remains the single most important strategic consideration for product leaders, as it dictates the future of market consolidation and competitive positioning.
Conclusion and Future Outlook
The Collaboration Zone at UNLEASH America 2019 demonstrated that the most valuable commodity at any trade show is not the physical booth space, but the time spent in high-level, focused dialogue. By replacing generic networking with structured, topic-driven roundtables, HR Tech Alliances successfully bridged the gap between product vision and market reality for dozens of participating firms.
As the industry looks toward future global events, such as the upcoming UNLEASH World in Paris, the model established in Las Vegas serves as a blueprint for the next generation of professional development in the HR technology sector. For vendors looking to scale in an increasingly crowded market, the message is clear: success is no longer an individual pursuit, but a collaborative effort that requires a disciplined approach to alliances, integrations, and strategic market positioning. The return of the Collaboration Zone to the global stage confirms that this philosophy is not merely a trend, but a fundamental shift in how the industry will conduct business for the foreseeable future.
