In this guest posting from Sam Higgins, StepStone's US Marketing Manager, we hear about what some HR departments are doing to avoid the bloopers of previous downturns.

In reading a recent article by David Shadovitz over at HR Executive Online, I found some encouraging news for HR.  Shadovitz quotes a report, released late last month by Towers Perrin, showing that 2/3 of companies surveyed planned to either increase or keep steady their level of investment in HR Technology during 2009.

This data, while counter-intuitive, dovetails with the anecdotal experiences shared by many vendors in the space of lengthened buying cycles, larger buyer selection teams, and a greater scrutiny of, and demand for, clear business value.

This graphic shows the breakdown:

What strikes me about this data, is that it seems to go against the conventional wisdom of the HR pros I have discussed this topic with in the past.  For many, it is believed spending in these areas can often be viewed outside HR as a "Nice to Have" investment, and consequently one of the first areas on the chopping block when budget cuts are demanded.

In fact, we recently discussed this very topic with noted expert Heidi Spirgi from Knowledge Infusion.  In the clip below (excerpted from this full Talent Management Webinar), Heidi shared with us the "Past Mistakes" that HR has made during previous economic downturns. These endemic errors in thinking are areas in which she spends a great deal of time counseling clients.

Past Mistakes Include:

• Being Over Reactive
• Engaging in little to no strategic planning
• Allowing technology projects to come to a halt
• Failing to see the opportunity available in the downturn

My question is this: Given these traditional shortsighted mistakes made during financial crises, coupled with this new data from Towers Perrin, it is fair to say that HR appears to have learned its lesson from history?

Are these new numbers indicative of a change in thinking about strategic talent management, or simply the result of a rising tide of talent technology ubiquity?

I would love to hear how your company's views on technology expenditures have changed, and how your HR Tech projects have been influenced or eliminated as a result of the events of the last year.