In 2013, 61 percent of HR professionals will replace their human capital management (HCM) software, according to Bersin by Deloitte. Its report, Managing Talent Through Technology: HCM Buying Trends in 2013, reveals that more than half of all HR software is more than seven years old. "Aging functionality, inability to support a global enterprise, disparate talent management applications, and tired talent acquisition tools are among the challenges facing many of today's HCM technology users," says Katherine Jones, lead analyst of HCM technology at Bersin.

Yet the software isn't the only thing needing an update. Globalization, the mobility of today's workforce, and the rise of contingent workers means that the entire HR function must undergo a fundamental shift. To make themselves over, HR departments are turning to software that integrates data from various systems into one suite. Data must then be interpreted to reveal workforce trends, performance drivers, and predictors of future performance.

"Human capital data has to move from numbers to both correlative and predictive analytics," says Jones. "What traits, for example, are characteristics of \[high potentials\] who are very successful in our organization? What characteristics are evident in an employee who is about to leave the company? How can answers to questions like these be used in planning for the workforce of the future?"

Besides integration capabilities and talent analytics, HR departments want technology that provides a great end-user experience, with social and mobile capabilities.

"We see the replacement of HR and talent technology as a major trend over the coming several years," says Josh Bersin, founder of Bersin and a principal with Deloitte Consulting LLP, "which will help HR organizations propel their companies into an age of more data-driven decision making."