Recapping Ultimate Software’s 2020 conference: ‘An awkward date’

Move forward. Faith. Trust.

That was the overarching message that I took away March 3 as I watched the opening keynote on day one of Ultimate Software’s Breakthrough Connections 2020 user conference in the cavernous Wynn Las Vegas and Encore Resort.

Less than two weeks into Ultimate’s merger with workforce management software provider Kronos Inc., the message of positivity was to be expected. And given Ultimate’s deeply ingrained people-first culture, maybe it wasn’t such a big ask of employees to believe in the process.

Moving forward seems the simplest to accomplish. As I tried to put myself in the shoes of an Ultimate employee, I couldn’t help but think, there isn’t much choice but to push ahead. Because try as they might, things will never be the same as they were pre-merger.

I give credit to Ultimate’s Chief Relationship Officer Bill Hicks for addressing the merger head-on during the opening session because frankly, that’s what most attendees wanted to hear about. Hicks, who has been an “Ultipeep” for 16 years, likened the post-merger atmosphere to that “awkward dating stage” when you are trying to figure out where the relationship is going.

I think that crystallized as Hicks, who in years past would have handed the microphone to former Ultimate CEO Scott Scherr or outgoing CEO Adam Rogers, instead introduced Ultimate’s new boss, longtime Kronos CEO Aron Ain, to the Sister Sledge tune “We Are Family.” It probably was asking too much to play George Michael’s “Faith” or Devo’s “Whip It” (with the lyrics “go forward, move ahead”).

Ain’s initial message to the assembled 4,500 combined Ultimate customers and employees preached the move ahead-faith-trust mantra. Ain, who became Kronos’ CEO in 2005, talked about his background, his philosophies and his legacy. “How I want to be remembered is as a great father, husband and friend, not a CEO,” Ain told the crowd. Touching.

Still, there were a couple of moments during Ain’s 20-minute talk to ease his new customers’ angst that gave me cause to pause.

“Your investment is safe. You made the right choice when you chose Ultimate as your partner,” Ain reassured the assembled Ultimate customers. OK, got it.

Then he asked for one favor. “Don’t listen to people calling you up now,” a clear reference to the inevitable phone calls that come in after a merger or acquisition. Of course there will be concerns on the part of customers after their HR software provider merges. If Ultimate did their jobs properly — and it appears that they have — a request to ignore competitors is unnecessary. It seemed a bit perplexing to me, as if he didn’t have the faith and trust in Ultimate’s sales and service teams.

And if we are being honest here, isn’t that what any competitor worth its salt is going to do? I mean, this is business.

Why not put forth your faith in your new team and trust that the relationships built over Ultimate’s 30-year history will endure?

Then Ain took aim at pundits. First, who is a pundit in HR technology? Was he lumping analysts, the HR influencer community, bloggers and business writers into one big melting pot of pundits?

I personally did not see blowback written after the merger’s announcement. Most of the experts and analysts I followed were taking the “wait and see” approach in their comments.

Yet Ain opted to tell us, “Pundits, give me my strategy. … They are not telling you the truth. They have another agenda, and look out for their best interests,” and added, “We will communicate honestly, we will tell you what’s going on. Trust is everything and makes everything else easier.”

He then curiously added, “Don’t read all the propaganda about Kronos.” In the story I wrote about the merger on the day it was announced, I stated, “Considering this is a merger of like organizations, the dreaded ‘duplication of efforts’ specter hangs heavy. Are layoffs, buyouts, rightsizing or downsizing in the future of this new marriage?”

I also pointed out, “With the meshing of cultures, perhaps no department or staff member will be downsized. Maybe they’ll reskill portions of their workforce. … For those of us who have been through a merger or acquisition, the reality is people leave. Some leave voluntarily because it’s not a good fit anymore, or they’re simply laid off. … I hope and pray that the people will retain their jobs and blend into one big, happy, 12,000-employee company with room to grow.”

I still stand by those statements.

The point was a bewildering dig at the media — sorry, the pundits — that we see all too often coming from this country’s overly emboldened leadership.

Merging Kronites and Ultipeeps: A few uncomfortable chuckles broke out when Ain referenced what post-merger employees might be called. Ultimate’s employees are known as Ultipeeps, while Kronos workers are Kronites. He said he received a suggestion: “Kronites and Ultipeeps … Kreeps. I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” 

Coronavirus concerns: Before introducing Ain, Hicks immediately addressed another pressing concern of attendees — the growing threat of coronavirus. He noted that hand sanitizers would be placed throughout the conference — which they indeed were. Hicks also said that even a traditional handshake is under the microscope now, so to speak. How did he plan to greet people? “Some people are huggers, some are fist bumpers. I’ll do whatever you want.”

Clearly the coronavirus is having a huge effect on travel and is taking a toll what is typically a busy time during conference season. SXSW shut down. Oracle took its conference online.

My Monday afternoon flight to Las Vegas was barely half full. I don’t ever recall a flight where my row on both sides of the aisle was empty, as was the row in front of me.

And, word came during the conference that SAP Fieldglass canceled its mid-March user conference. This announcement came March 3 via Twitter:

“The health of our employees, customers, partners and communities is our top priority. Due to concerns surrounding COVID-19, we are cancelling #SAPAribaLive Las Vegas 2020 and look forward to seeing you at our upcoming Ariba Live virtual experience.”

What’s in a name: A bit of a surprise that the merged organizations have yet to settle on a new name for the company. Attendees were informed that the new name will be revealed in the next three to six months.

One observer pointed out to me that it could come sooner, possibly during the annual Unleash conference in early May. It is beneficial to have an assembled audience that will include a bevy of analysts and influencers for such an announcement.

Just a guess here that the new name won’t be Kreeps.

Bakersfield Beat: In a week of ups and downs, country singer-songwriter Dwight Yoakam’s performance March 4 was a high point. Yoakam performed for over three hours straight without so much as a sip of water. His show at the Wynn Theater in the Wynn Hotel-Encore complex was not affiliated with the Ultimate conference and came as a welcome diversion as Yoakam took the full house on a 70-plus-year musical journey laced with plenty of anecdotes across Southern California’s rich musical landscape.

Yoakam focused primarily on the legendary Bakersfield Sound that influenced so much of his own music. But his finale was a nod to Las Vegas (no, not a Brandon Flowers tune, although that would have been pretty sweet). “You can’t play Las Vegas and not play this one,” he said as he launched into Elvis Presley’s “Suspicious Minds.”

Thanks, Josh Cameron. I really, really enjoyed the show.