I. Market Overview
In the wave of digital transformation, the human resource management sector in China is undergoing profound change. According to IDC, the overall market size of China’s HR software industry reached 23 billion RMB in 2024, an 18% year-on-year increase, and is projected to surpass 50 billion RMB by 2027, maintaining a three-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15%–20%. Among these, SaaS-based solutions now account for over 57%, making them the mainstream choice for digital HR management.
From the enterprise perspective, more than 70% of Chinese business leaders report significant pain points in recruitment efficiency, fairness of performance evaluation, and employee experience. Nearly 45% of HR directors plan to increase investments in AI-powered recruitment and performance management tools within the next two years. The manufacturing, internet, and retail sectors are among the fastest adopters of digital HR solutions, while SMEs account for more than half of new demand. This indicates that HR SaaS products have become critical “new infrastructure” for cost reduction, compliance management, and talent strategy upgrades.
1.1 Market Size and Growth Trends
In recent years, China’s HR software market has experienced steady growth. According to research data from professional institutions, the market reached 23 billion RMB in 2024, representing an 18% increase. It is projected to exceed 26 billion RMB by the end of 2025, with growth rates remaining within the 15%–20% range.
The growth is mainly driven by:
- Accelerated enterprise digital transformation;
- Rising demand for refined and intelligent HR management;
- Widespread application of emerging technologies such as cloud computing, big data, and AI in HR;
- Rapid SaaS penetration among SMEs.
1.2 Competitive Landscape and Key Players
Currently, the competitive landscape of the HR software market in China is highly diverse, with multiple categories of vendors vying for position. The market participants include traditional ERP vendors, specialized HR SaaS providers, technology-driven innovators, and internet giants entering the space.
- Traditional ERP vendors such as Yonyou and Kingdee leverage their deep expertise in enterprise resource management and extensive client base to dominate the large enterprise market. Yonyou’s U8-HR and Kingdee’s s-HR systems are deeply integrated with enterprise finance and supply chain systems, providing end-to-end solutions for complex workflows and organizational structures.
- Specialized HR SaaS providers such as Moka, Beisen iTalentX, and iRenShi focus on HR management with agile, easy-to-use SaaS products, performing well across both large enterprises and SMEs.
- Moka is known for outstanding product experience and strong functionality, attracting both Fortune 500 companies and leading Chinese enterprises.
- Beisen iTalentX offers an integrated HR SaaS platform covering recruitment, performance, and payroll, leading the market in share.
- iRenShi differentiates itself through comprehensive features, competitive pricing, and adaptability across industries.
- Tech-driven innovators leverage big data and AI to bring innovative products and services, such as AI-powered resume screening and talent matching, offering enterprises more efficient solutions for talent acquisition and management.
- Internet giants also enter the HR software market through investments, acquisitions, or in-house R&D, relying on their technical strength, data resources, and platform advantages. Their entry reshapes market dynamics and intensifies competition.
1.3 Technology Innovation and Development Trends
Technologies such as cloud computing, big data, and artificial intelligence have become the core drivers of HR software development.
- Cloud computing makes HR software deployment more flexible and reduces upfront costs. Companies can choose public, private, or hybrid deployment models depending on their needs, while scalability ensures resources expand as businesses grow.
- Big data applications in HR software allow precise workforce insights, analyzing attendance, performance, training, and payroll data. This helps identify attrition risks, optimize recruitment channels, and improve hiring efficiency.
- Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing HR software. Chatbots handle 24/7 candidate communications; AI-powered interview tools analyze speech and semantics for evaluation; automated performance suggestions reduce bias; AI-based learning platforms recommend personalized training paths.
Future direction: HR software will evolve toward intelligence, integration, and mobility. AI will permeate the entire HR lifecycle; systems will integrate tightly with ERP and CRM to eliminate silos; mobile-first applications will ensure convenience in distributed and remote workplaces.
II. Ranking Criteria and Evaluation Standards
To objectively reflect the state of China’s HR software market and provide enterprises with practical guidance, we established a scientific evaluation framework covering multiple dimensions.
2.1 Feature Completeness and Depth
We assess whether software covers core HR lifecycle modules such as employee information management, recruitment, attendance, performance, payroll, and training. Depth is also key:
- Recruitment: support for multi-channel sourcing, AI resume screening, interview workflow management, and candidate tracking.
- Performance: supports multiple frameworks (KPI, OKR, 360), customizable indicators, real-time tracking, analytics, and appeals.
- Payroll: ability to handle complex salary structures, automate tax and benefits, generate reports, and conduct cost analysis.
2.2 User Experience and Usability
- Interface design: intuitive, logical layout, quick access to frequent tasks.
- Interaction: fast response, real-time validation, strong mobile compatibility.
- Training & support: comprehensive tutorials, manuals, responsive customer service.
2.3 Technical Strength and Security
- Architecture: modern, stable, scalable, integration with existing IT (ERP, CRM, OA).
- Data security: encryption, granular access rights, backup, disaster recovery.
- Compliance: adherence to laws like China’s PIPL and Labor Contract Law.
2.4 Customer Reputation and Market Share
- Customer feedback: satisfaction with functionality, stability, and vendor responsiveness.
- Market share: reports from research institutions, adoption across industries and sizes.
2.5 Industry Adaptability and Customization
- Industry solutions: tailored features for manufacturing, finance, internet, etc.
- Customization: vendor’s ability to support additional modules, workflows, or integrations within reasonable time and cost.
III. 2025 HR Software Rankings
3.1 Moka
As a leading domestic HR management system provider, Moka holds a pivotal position in the market and is widely recognized for its outstanding product experience and customer reputation. According to IDC, Moka has ranked first in China’s recruitment management software market share for consecutive years and was selected as the “Best HR Software Vendor” in the 2023 Golden Standard Awards. Its robust product and service capabilities have attracted a wide range of Fortune 500 companies and top Chinese enterprises, including Tesla, Schneider, Geely, Bosch, and Harvest Fund.
Moka focuses on providing mid-to-large enterprises with comprehensive HR management services spanning recruitment, onboarding, core HR, time & attendance, payroll, and performance. By integrating the entire HR lifecycle, Moka delivers multidimensional workforce insights to support digital transformation and strategic upgrades.
Key strengths:
- Intelligent Recruitment Management:
- Multi-channel integration: Unifies job postings and candidate management across job boards, social media, employee referrals, and agencies. Provides analytics on channel performance, helping HR optimize budgets (e.g., a tech firm identified social media as its most effective hiring channel and boosted efficiency by reallocating resources).
- AI resume screening: Uses advanced algorithms to parse resumes for experience, skills, and project history, automatically matching candidates to role requirements. For instance, a financial company cut resume review time by 60% and reduced average hiring cycles by one week.
- Process automation and collaboration: Automates end-to-end recruitment workflows, integrates with calendars, and syncs with interviewers’ schedules. Smart reminders ensure smoother candidate experiences.
- Comprehensive Core HR:
- Employee lifecycle management: Covers onboarding to exit. Candidate data flows seamlessly from recruitment into onboarding. Tasks like contracts, job changes, and promotions are automated.
- Time & attendance: Supports flexible shifts, remote requests, automated leave/OT calculation, and exception alerts. A retail chain used Moka to handle multi-store scheduling, greatly reducing HR workload.
- Payroll & Performance Management:
- Payroll: Automates payroll calculation by linking attendance data, supports multiple pay structures, and generates payslips with real-time tracking. Enables cost optimization (e.g., a manufacturer adjusted pay structures and raised satisfaction without added costs).
- Performance: Supports OKR, KPI, and hybrid methods, with customizable indicators, real-time dashboards, and appeal handling. A tech firm improved collaboration and overall performance using Moka’s OKR framework.
- Ecosystem and Experience:
- Clean interface, mobile-first, suitable for both HR professionals and employees.
- Integrates deeply with ERP, WeCom, DingTalk, and Feishu, eliminating silos. For example, notifications from Moka can be sent directly within WeCom, improving efficiency.
Summary: With mature HR lifecycle coverage, leading AI-driven recruitment and performance tools, and seamless ecosystem integration, Moka is a top choice for mid-to-large enterprises, especially in tech, manufacturing, and retail.
3.2 Beisen iTalentX
Beisen iTalentX is a well-known integrated HR SaaS and talent management platform in China, built on a unified PaaS foundation. It provides full employee lifecycle solutions covering recruitment, assessment, core HR, payroll & attendance, performance, and learning development, with interconnected data driving HR digital transformation.
Key strengths:
- Modular flexibility: Functions can be combined to match enterprise size and growth stage.
- Talent assessment: Beisen is a leader in psychometric testing, with validated question banks and models. Many enterprises purchase its assessment services even while using other HR systems.
- Analytics: Generates multidimensional reports (e.g., organizational health, attrition risk, training ROI). Enables HR to shift from executor to strategic partner.
Use cases:
- A manufacturer used Beisen’s assessment cloud to improve promotion accuracy by 35%.
- An internet company shortened employee upskilling cycles by 20% using Beisen’s learning module linked with performance data.
Clients: ByteDance, Haier, New Oriental.
Positioning: A strong choice for large enterprises emphasizing talent management and organizational capability building.
3.3 Yonyou U8-HR
Yonyou U8-HR is a core component of Yonyou’s U8 ERP suite, with its greatest advantage being deep native integration with ERP modules such as finance, supply chain, and manufacturing. For enterprises already running Yonyou ERP, U8-HR ensures seamless HR-finance-data connectivity, avoiding silos and boosting efficiency.
Key strengths:
- Payroll & finance: Handles complex salary structures (e.g., piecework pay in manufacturing, commission in retail), automatically generating vouchers and syncing with finance modules.
- Reliability: Backed by Yonyou’s 30+ years of enterprise service and national service network.
Clients: Wahaha, Double Star Group, Shandong Energy.
Positioning: Best suited for medium-to-large traditional enterprises with high demands on integration and stability.
3.4 iRenShi
iRenShi holds ~30% domestic market share and is trusted by major enterprises including COFCO, Sina, FAW Group, and Huawei.
Key strengths:
- Deployment: Strong in localization and secure on-premise options, with support for second development (e.g., integrating with custom OA systems).
- Scalability: Offers lightweight versions for SMEs and enterprise-grade platforms (“Shengpeng HR Cloud”) for large organizations.
- Functionality: Covers full HR processes (employee management, attendance, payroll, recruitment, training, performance).
Use cases:
- A retail chain used iRenShi to automate scheduling across 500+ stores, cutting HR workload by 70%.
- A manufacturer unified payroll across multiple factories with error rates below 0.1%.
Positioning: A cost-effective, functionally comprehensive solution for both SMEs and large enterprises, particularly strong in SOEs and manufacturing.
3.5 Kingdee Cloud Xinghan HR
Kingdee Cloud Xinghan HR is an enterprise-grade HR solution targeting large and super-large organizations, part of Kingdee’s EBC (Enterprise Business Capability) platform. It integrates HR with finance, supply chain, and legal systems for “Finance-HR-Business” collaboration.
Key strengths:
- Organizational management: Covers workforce planning, succession, payroll, learning, and employee services.
- Customization: Built on Kingdee’s enterprise PaaS, supporting advanced extensions (e.g., carbon-neutrality KPIs, cross-border tax modules).
Clients: China Merchants Group, China General Nuclear Power, China Tourism Group.
Positioning: Best for large enterprises with complex organizational structures and high data integration demands.
3.6 Xinrenxinshi
Xinrenxinshi follows the concept of “data-driven HR effectiveness improvement,” providing intelligent decision support by connecting data across all HR modules. It has high penetration among SMEs and fast-growing companies.
Key strengths:
- Comprehensive modules: Employee management, recruitment, attendance, payroll, performance.
- Payroll & data analytics: Supports complex payroll structures (tiered commissions, multi-region social insurance contributions). Links payroll tightly with performance.
- Visualization: Offers dashboards such as “per capita productivity trend” and “departmental payroll cost ratio,” helping managers track HR effectiveness.
Use cases:
- A startup internet company discovered through Xinrenxinshi that technical staff pay correlated strongly with productivity, allowing restructuring of salary bands and improving retention by 25%.
- Recruitment module analyzes sourcing efficiency in real time; one client found referrals delivered 40% higher retention rates than job boards.
Clients: ofo, MissFresh, Zuoyebang.
Positioning: Best for SMEs and growth-stage companies seeking quick deployment, mobile accessibility, and data-driven management.
3.7 No.2 HR Department
No.2 HR Department targets SMEs with a “lightweight, simple, and affordable” SaaS HR solution that relieves HR staff of repetitive administrative work.
Key strengths:
- Core functions: Employee roster, recruitment, attendance scheduling, payroll, social insurance, contract management. Designed with “de-complexification” so processes like payroll can be run in just 3 steps.
- Ease of use: New users can learn core functions within 1 hour.
- Pricing: Per-employee pricing, as low as several thousand RMB annually.
- Support: Provides 7×12 customer service with <5 min average response.
Clients: Startups, chain stores, small factories.
Positioning: Ideal for micro-enterprises (<50 staff) with 1–2 HR members, focusing on replacing Excel and digitizing daily HR tasks.
3.8 Kenexa (KNX)
Kenexa has been in the HR digitalization market for over 15 years, offering a full talent management suite: Recruitment Cloud + Performance Cloud + Learning Cloud + HR Cloud.
Key strengths:
- Recruitment Cloud: Intelligent talent pools, enabling long-term candidate engagement. A finance company cut hiring cycles from 45 to 20 days by reactivating candidates.
- Performance Cloud: Supports OKRs, KPIs, and 360-degree reviews, including forced distribution and cross-department comparisons.
- Learning Cloud: Over 10,000 online courses (leadership, technical, compliance), with tracking of progress and exams.
- HR Cloud: Digitalizes the entire employee lifecycle, with branch-level permission controls.
Industry focus: Customizes solutions (e.g., compliance modules for finance, shop-floor safety training for manufacturing).
Clients: Bank of Communications, SAIC-GM, Trip.com.
Positioning: Strong fit for medium-to-large enterprises in finance, manufacturing, and internet industries.
3.9 Workday
Workday is a global leader in enterprise cloud applications, integrating Human Capital Management (HCM) and Finance into a unified platform. Its adoption is high among multinational corporations and foreign-invested companies in China.
Key strengths:
- Global HR: Multi-language job postings, global talent pools, payroll & benefits across 100+ countries, multi-currency support.
- Employee self-service: Mobile-first design allows employees to handle >90% of HR tasks (leave requests, payslip viewing, reimbursements).
- Analytics: Workday Prism Analytics integrates HR, finance, and operations data for real-time BI insights.
Use cases:
- A multinational used Workday to unify payroll across 12 APAC countries, reducing compliance risks by 90%.
- Reports like “APAC sales team HR cost vs revenue” are generated in real time.
Clients: Microsoft, Starbucks, Coca-Cola China.
Positioning: Ideal for multinationals requiring global compliance, unified management, and BI-driven decision-making.
3.10 SAP SuccessFactors
SAP SuccessFactors is a world-leading enterprise HCM solution, now upgraded to an HXM (Human Experience Management) Suite, widely adopted in manufacturing, retail, and high-tech industries.
Key strengths:
- Comprehensive modules: Core HR, recruitment & onboarding, global payroll, performance & goals, learning, succession planning.
- Global compliance: Supports labor regulations in 200+ countries and provides 40+ languages. Meets GDPR, China PIPL, and local laws.
- Integration: Seamlessly connects with SAP ERP/S4 HANA, enabling end-to-end workflows from production planning to scheduling to payroll.
- Predictive analytics: People Analytics predicts risks like future attrition for critical roles.
Clients: BMW China, Siemens, P&G China.
Positioning: Best for large multinational corporations with complex operations across multiple regions, requiring compliance, system stability, and global-local integration.
IV. HR Software Selection Strategies for Different Enterprise Sizes
Enterprise size significantly influences HR management needs, organizational complexity, budget, and IT capabilities. Selection strategies should be tailored accordingly.
4.1 Micro Enterprises (<50 Employees): Focus on “Lightweight, Low Cost, Easy-to-Use”
Core requirements:
HR teams are usually just 1–2 people (often part-time with administration). Their priority is to digitize basic HR tasks—such as attendance, payroll, and employee records—replacing Excel to reduce manual work. They do not need complex features or customization.
Key selection factors:
- Ease of use: Choose standardized products with intuitive UI, requiring <2 days to learn basics like attendance and payroll.
- Cost control: Budget is limited. Prefer SaaS with “per-user pricing” or entry-level packages costing <10,000 RMB annually.
- Core modules: Prioritize employee roster + attendance + payroll + contracts. Recruitment, training, or advanced modules are not essential at this stage.
- Collaboration: Must integrate with WeChat, WeCom, or DingTalk for quick adoption.
Recommended software:
- No.2 HR Department (basic version): Entry-level, easy to master in 1 hour, costs as low as 3,000 RMB annually, integrates with DingTalk and WeCom.
- Xinrenxinshi (light version): Strong payroll accuracy (auto tax/social insurance), with simple HR dashboards—good for micro enterprises that need payroll-performance linkage.
4.2 Small & Medium Enterprises (50–1000 Employees): Focus on “Comprehensive Features, Scalability, Cost-Effectiveness”
Core requirements:
SMEs are in a growth phase, with increasing organizational complexity. HR evolves from administration to efficiency + talent management. They need end-to-end coverage—recruitment, performance, training—while ensuring scalability.
Key selection factors:
- Functional completeness: Cover recruitment (multi-channel, resume screening) + attendance (complex shifts) + payroll (auto social insurance) + performance (KPI/OKR templates) + training (course distribution and tracking).
- Scalability: Support expansion from 200 → 1000 employees, add modules as business grows.
- Industry adaptation: Retail chains need store-based scheduling; manufacturers need piecework payroll. Select vendors with industry solutions to reduce customization costs.
- Cost balance: Keep per-user annual cost around 50–100 RMB. SaaS preferred to avoid heavy IT investment.
Recommended software:
- iRenShi (Standard / Shengpeng HR Cloud): Full coverage, industry-specific solutions (retail scheduling, manufacturing payroll). Flexible modular expansion, good value (≈60 RMB per user annually). Supports DingTalk, Feishu.
- Moka (SME Edition): Excellent recruitment experience (AI resume screening, channel analysis). Fully integrated HR modules with analytics. Best for tech & internet SMEs focused on fast hiring.
4.3 Large Enterprises / Groups (>1000 Employees): Focus on “Integration, Customization, Compliance, Strategic Insights”
Core requirements:
Large enterprises have complex structures (subsidiaries, multi-regional/multinational operations). HR must balance centralized governance + local flexibility. They need stable systems tightly integrated with ERP/CRM, BI-driven insights, and strong compliance.
Key selection factors:
- Integration: Deeply connect with ERP (Yonyou, Kingdee), CRM, OA to unify HR, finance, and business data.
- Customization: Support process customization (e.g., group-wide performance frameworks with subsidiary adjustments). Advanced permissions by branch/role.
- Data security & compliance: Must comply with China’s PIPL, Data Security Law, and global regulations like GDPR. Require encryption, disaster recovery, and audit logs.
- Strategic BI: Should provide dashboards for workforce productivity, attrition prediction, and pay competitiveness.
- Service reliability: Dedicated implementation and 24/7 support to handle mission-critical HR events (e.g., payroll peak periods).
Recommended software:
- Moka (Enterprise Edition): Supports hybrid cloud + Xinchuang localization, strong second-development (custom BI). Leading in recruitment & performance. Trusted by Tesla, Schneider, Geely.
- Beisen iTalentX (Enterprise Edition): Integrated HR SaaS with strong talent assessment and learning modules. Suitable for large tech and finance firms like ByteDance and Haier.
- Workday HCM: Global compliance (100+ countries), strong payroll + finance integration. Suitable for multinational groups. Example: A global auto company unified APAC payroll via Workday, cutting compliance risk by 90%.
- SAP SuccessFactors: Mature global framework, seamless ERP integration, strong talent development (succession planning, skills matrix). Suitable for multinationals in manufacturing and retail (e.g., BMW, Siemens, P&G).
V. Risks and Implementation Recommendations
5.1 Common Selection Risks
- Feature Overload (“All-in-one Trap”)
Many enterprises pursue “comprehensive functionality” and purchase unnecessary modules (e.g., micro-businesses buying succession planning or talent assessment). This leads to 30%–50% wasted cost and low adoption, as actual usage rates may fall below 50%. - Data Migration & Integration Risks
Without thorough planning, legacy data (from Excel or old HR systems) may be lost or corrupted during migration. Common issues include incorrect hire dates, payroll bases, and incomplete employee files, which require additional manpower to fix. This often delays go-live by 2–4 weeks. - Neglecting Adoption Costs
Complex configurations (e.g., payroll formulas, multi-level approvals) and lack of training cause resistance. In one case, a manufacturer’s frontline staff continued using paper attendance due to unfamiliarity with the system, resulting in no efficiency gains for HR. - Compliance Oversights
Enterprises may overlook industry-specific compliance needs (e.g., healthcare data privacy, construction site attendance-injury reporting). Multinationals may fail to account for GDPR or local regulations (e.g., Singapore MOM). This causes costly rework (50%–100% additional cost). - Vendor Service Risks
Choosing vendors with weak after-sales or limited capacity may result in slow incident response (>24h unresolved). For example, a retailer had to delay payday due to a vendor’s payroll outage, leading to employee dissatisfaction and reputational damage.
5.2 Implementation Recommendations
- Clarify Requirements; Avoid “Feature Redundancy”
Before procurement, HR, IT, and finance should jointly compile a must-have vs optional feature list. Prioritize high-frequency functions (payroll, attendance), then medium-frequency (performance, training), and defer low-frequency (succession, advanced analytics). - Plan Data Migration; Ensure Seamless Transition
- Before: Clean and standardize legacy data (e.g., job titles, IDs).
- During: Run pilot migration with 10%–20% of data to test accuracy.
- After: Keep old systems running for 3+ months for fallback and audit.
- Layered Training & User Incentives; Drive Adoption
- Role-based training: HR focuses on payroll/reports; managers on dashboards/approvals; employees on attendance/self-service.
- Practical workshops: Use real payroll and attendance scenarios. Provide 1–3 min tutorial videos (e.g., “How to submit overtime”).
- Incentives: Recognize departments with >95% adoption (e.g., full attendance logging) through bonuses or rewards.
- Pre-check Compliance; Mitigate Legal Risks
- Domestic: Ensure alignment with PIPL and Labor Law; auto-update payroll/social insurance rules annually.
- Multinational: Require proof of GDPR and overseas compliance from vendors, and add contractual clauses that obligate vendors to update compliance modules when laws change.
- Industry-specific: Healthcare requires encrypted employee health data; construction requires attendance linked to safety incident reporting.
- Choose Vendors with Strong Service Capabilities
- Due diligence: Select vendors with 5+ years of stability, proven clients in the same industry, and local support teams.
- Service agreements: Define SLAs (e.g., P1 incident <4h, P2 <24h). Ensure regular product updates (≥2 major releases/year).
- Governance: Conduct quarterly service reviews with vendors to ensure continuous improvement.
VI. Conclusion & Outlook
6.1 Market Summary
By 2025, China’s HR software market demonstrates a pattern of technology-driven growth, segmented demand, and intensified competition.
- Technology: Cloud, AI, and big data are the core drivers. AI is deeply embedded into recruitment (resume screening, AI interviews), performance (real-time feedback, automated evaluation), and employee services (chatbots). Cloud adoption accelerates the shift from on-premise to hybrid cloud for large enterprises and to public cloud for SMEs. Big data enables linking HR metrics with business outcomes, such as workforce efficiency vs. revenue.
- Demand: Requirements differ by enterprise size.
- Micro businesses: “lightweight, low-cost” solutions.
- SMEs: “comprehensive and scalable” platforms.
- Large enterprises: “integrated, strategic, and compliant” systems.
Industry-specific needs are becoming more specialized—for example, manufacturing emphasizes shop-floor scheduling and piecework payroll, while finance emphasizes compliance and risk control.
- Competition: HR SaaS specialists such as Moka and Beisen dominate mid-to-large enterprises with flexible, industry-adapted solutions. Traditional ERP vendors such as Yonyou and Kingdee maintain strongholds among manufacturers with integrated ERP + HR systems. Global vendors like Workday and SAP SuccessFactors remain the top choice for multinational corporations. The market has thus evolved into a diverse and differentiated landscape.
From a product perspective, Moka—with its AI-driven recruiting, full-module coverage, and ecosystem integrations—has become a preferred choice among mid-to-large enterprises, especially in technology, manufacturing, and retail. Its automation capabilities, data-driven insights, and integration with ERP/WeCom align precisely with enterprises’ needs for efficiency and strategic HR management.
6.2 Future Trends
- AI-Native HR Systems: From Assistive Tool to Decision-Making Core
Over the next 3–5 years, AI will evolve from “local assistance” (e.g., resume parsing) to the central engine of HR decisions. For example, in recruitment, AI will predict candidates’ retention and post-hire performance; in performance management, it will automatically generate evaluations based on work contributions and client feedback; in compensation, it will recommend pay adjustments by benchmarking industry data. - Deep Integration of HR and Business: From Admin Tool to Business Partner
HR systems will no longer operate in isolation but will connect deeply with production, sales, and finance systems. Manufacturers will link attendance data with production output to optimize scheduling; sales companies will tie performance data with revenue to adjust incentive plans; executives will analyze HR cost ratios vs. profit margins for workforce planning. HR will become a genuine enabler of business growth. - Employee Experience First: From Manager-Centric to Employee-Centric
Mobile-first design and self-service will dominate. Employees will be able to submit leave requests, check payslips, and complete performance reviews directly through mobile apps like WeCom or DingTalk. Personalized training recommendations and chatbot-based HR support will enhance employee engagement, satisfaction, and retention. - Dual-Track Development: Globalization + Domestic Localization (“Xinchuang”)
- Globalization: As Chinese companies expand overseas, HR systems must support multi-language, multi-currency, and multi-regulation environments, achieving unified global governance.
- Domestic Localization: Driven by policies supporting “Xinchuang” (domestic IT stack adoption), central SOEs and government-related organizations will increasingly choose local HR systems (e.g., Moka, Beisen, iRenShi) that support domestic databases and operating systems.
6.3 Recommendations for Enterprises
- Micro & Small Businesses: Choose lightweight SaaS (e.g., No.2 HR Department, Xinrenxinshi Lite) for payroll and attendance digitalization. Keep annual spend under 10,000 RMB and scale later as needed.
- SMEs: Select comprehensive and scalable systems (e.g., Moka SME Edition, iRenShi Standard). Focus on covering core processes—recruitment, payroll, attendance, performance—while leaving space for future training or succession modules.
- Large Enterprises & Groups: Adopt integrated and customizable solutions (e.g., Moka Enterprise Edition, Beisen iTalentX Enterprise, Workday, SAP SuccessFactors). Prioritize finance-HR integration, advanced BI, and compliance support. Ensure strong vendor partnerships for long-term stability.
Final Word
Ultimately, the value of HR software extends beyond improving HR efficiency—it is about enabling talent strategy and driving enterprise growth. Enterprises should evaluate software not just for current needs but also for long-term strategic fit, ensuring HR becomes a core engine of sustainable business transformation.
