The Human Capital Institute (HCI), a global professional association and educator that is advancing the science of strategic talent management, announced today that SilkRoad technology, inc., a software as a service (SAAS) provider of talent management solutions designed to help companies maximize employee talent, will sponsor a live Innovation Tour in Atlanta and Boston. The tour, Onboarding Socialization: Improve Retention & Accelerate Productivity of New Employees, will focus on Onboarding Socialization, a critical practice for organizations working to attract, hire and retain top talent.

Washington, D.C. (EMWNews) July 24, 2008 — The Human Capital Institute (HCI), a global professional association and educator that is advancing the science of strategic talent management, announced today that SilkRoad technology, inc., a software as a service (SAAS) provider of talent management solutions designed to help companies maximize employee talent, will sponsor a live Innovation Tour in Atlanta and Boston. The tour, Onboarding Socialization: Improve Retention & Accelerate Productivity of New Employees, will focus on Onboarding Socialization, a critical practice for organizations working to attract, hire and retain top talent.

The networking and breakfast event will take place from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET on Tues., Sept. 9 at Hyatt Regency Suites in Marietta, metro Atlanta, Georgia, and on Tues., Sept. 30 at Hyatt Regency Cambridge in metro Boston, Mass.

Expert panelists speaking at both locations include John Furcon, Principal, HR Management for Buck Consultants; Joy Kosta, Director of HCI Communities; Brian Platz, Chief Operating Officer for SilkRoad technology; and Mark Walztoni, Managing Director, Center for Effective Leadership Changes. Each four-hour session features active discussion of onboarding socialization with key thought leaders and colleagues. Participants will learn to adapt onboarding socialization techniques for different generations, hear techniques for reaching virtual teams and sample technology for enterprise-wide and targeted onboarding socialization efforts.

“After making a significant investment to find and acquire the right talent, it’s especially important for organizations to integrate new employees quickly and successfully,” said Joy Kosta, Director of HCI Communities and a tour panelist. “You want them feeling a part of things so that they can begin using their skills to produce as quickly as possible. We’re pleased to partner with SilkRoad to bring key onboarding ideas and techniques to talent professionals.”

“AberdeenGroup’s 2008 research into this topic found that 94 percent of best-in-class companies incorporated socialization into their onboarding, and thereby accelerated new talent productivity and engagement,” said Brian Platz, SilkRoad’s Chief Operating Officer and a tour panelist. “Technology is just one way to help new talent get up to speed, skillwise and socially. SilkRoad’s experience in this area has yielded a number of anecdotes and case studies that we’re eager to share during this Innovation Tour.”

In addition to tour sponsorship, SilkRoad supports HCI’s Recruitment Techologies education and research track, one of several topics addressed in HCI’s Talent Acquisition online community of interest. The Recruitment Technologies track aims to familiarize employers with available talent management tools and technologies, as well as to streamline and personalize the acquisition process.

HCI’s Onboarding Socialization Innovation Tour is recommended for C-level executives, as well as vice presidents and directors of human resources, talent management, recruiting, organization development and training/learning. Registration is $99. HCI Professional Members attend free of charge.

To register for the Innovation Tour, inquire about HCI Professional Membership or get more information about HCI’s Recruitment Technologies education and research track, visit www.humancapitalinstitute.org or contact HCI member services at 866.538.1909.

About SilkRoad Technology, Inc.:

SilkRoad technology, inc. provides software as a service (SAAS) solutions that significantly improve the talent within its more than 800 customers across the globe. Through SilkRoad’s Life Suite™, an integrated talent management solution, companies are able to hire better employees, identify high and low performers, drive a pay-for-performance culture and improve employee tenure. The SilkRoad Life Suite solution set includes OpenHire™ for recruiting management, RedCarpet™ for employee onboarding and life events, WingSpan™ for flexible employee performance management, GreenLight™ for compensation management, and Eprise™ for employee intranets and content management. SilkRoad technology is headquartered in Winston-Salem, NC with offices in Bedford, MA; Chicago, IL; West Long Branch, NJ; Jacksonville, FL; and Hamburg, Germany. More information is available at www.silkroad.com.

About The Human Capital Institute:

The Human Capital Institute (HCI) is a global network of more than 118,000 members in 40 countries committed to shaping the world’s new talent economy. Leaders, executives, and practitioners in HCI’s network represent organizations of all sizes across public, charitable and government sectors, and collaborate on the next practices in strategic talent management. Through communities, education, events and research, HCI provides actionable, results-driven solutions to help members foster talent advantages to ensure organizational change for competitive results. In tandem with HCI’s training, peer-to-peer learning, and public and private research on talent management best practices, the HCI Human Capital Strategist designation sets the bar for expertise in talent strategy, acquisition, development and new economy leadership. www.humancapitalinstitute.org

Press contacts:

SilkRoad technology, inc.

James Finch/Sabrina Vito

Beck Media & Marketing

310-689-7363

Laura Polas or Aimee Diehl

866-538-1909

This press release was distributed through eMediawire by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.