The  Investor Experience at HR Tech

 

 

For the Capital Behind the Next Generation of HR Tech

At HR Tech, you get a 360° view of the HR tech landscape — from raw innovation to real traction. Connect directly with the founders building what's next, validate product-market fit through live buyer feedback, and identify your next big opportunity—and uncover the deals others will wish they saw sooner.   

Who Should Attend

  • Venture Capitalists
  • Private Equity Investors
  • Corporate Development Leaders
  • Strategic Investment Professionals
  • Angel Investors

If you’re actively investing in or acquiring HR technology companies — whether funding early-stage startups or identifying scalable platforms — HR Tech delivers unmatched access to what’s next.

The Investment Case for HR Tech

The WorkTech market is entering a new phase of maturity. Investment capital continues to grow — reaching $6.24 billion globally — but deal volume is shrinking as investors prioritize strategic relevance over broad experimentation. From agentic AI to platform consolidation, the landscape is shifting toward fewer, higher-conviction bets where market traction, integration, and real-world adoption matter more than ever.

HR Tech is where capital meets innovation — and where strategic value is being redefined in real time

 

Source: WorkTech

What You’ll Gain

High-Efficiency Deal Flow

Quickly zero in on early-stage companies using investment-focused startup profiles in the HR Tech event app — to help you find the right fit fast.

Frontline Market Intelligence

See how real HR buyers respond to solutions across sessions, demos, and conversations — giving you in-the-moment insight on traction and fit.

Direct Access to Founders

Connect 1:1 with the founders behind early- and growth-stage startups to assess vision, execution, and fit — giving you deeper insight than any pitch deck can provide.

Market Landscape Visibility

See how startups align across emerging segments and gain a broad ecosystem view that helps you spot gaps, assess positioning, and act before categories mature.

High-Impact Zones for Investors

More Startups than Any Other Show

Tap into the highest concentration of early-stage HR tech innovation anywhere. HR Tech’s Startup Pavilion brings together nearly 100 emerging companies in one high-energy zone — designed for discovery, validation, and direct engagement with founders. 

See Who is in the 2026 Startup Pavilion (opens in a new tab)

Pitchfest

Get front-row access to the live competition where top HR tech startups pitch their solutions for up to $40,000 in cash prizes & major industry visibility. Watch investor-ready founders go head-to-head, hear how their solutions land with buyers, and spot the ones gaining real momentum.

2026 Pitchfest Details (opens in a new tab)

Sessions Built for Investors

The Intelligence Is in the Program

The HR Tech 2026 program includes sessions that go directly to the questions investors are asking: where capital is moving, which categories are forming, and what the live buyer response looks like on the ground. These sessions are curated specifically for the investor lens — independent data, M&A intelligence, and founder-level access to the categories being built right now.
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10:45 AM
  1. Where This Market Is Going: The Work Tech State of the Market
    Pitchfest Theater - Expo Hall
    30 mins
    • Investor Experience
    $65B+ in tracked funding. 60+ Work Tech categories. In this annual State of the Market session, the opening of the HR Tech Investor Experience, WorkTech Founder George LaRocque brings the deepest inde …
    Speakers
    Speaker image for George LaRocque
    George LaRocque, Founder and Principal Analyst - WorkTech
11:45 AM
  1. The Emerging Category Investors Are Watching and CHROs Need to Own: Agentic Workforce Management
    Pitchfest Theater - Expo Hall
    30 mins
    • Investor Experience
    AI agents are already inside your organization — hired by engineering, deployed by finance, built by vendors you've never vetted. But who owns them? In this session, WorkTech Founder George LaRocque s …
    Speakers
    Speaker image for George LaRocque
    George LaRocque, Founder and Principal Analyst - WorkTech
    Speaker image for Michael Beygelman
    Michael Beygelman, Co-Founder and CEO - Insygna
2:15 PM
  1. The New Investment Thesis: How AI Is Rewriting What VCs Fund and What Platforms Buy
    Pitchfest Theater - Expo Hall
    30 mins
    • Investor Experience
    AI isn't just a category attracting capital — it's changing the logic of how capital moves across all of Work Tech. In this panel discussion, venture investors and strategic platform leaders examine w …
    Speakers
    Speaker image for Todd Grierson
    Todd Grierson, VP Corporate Strategy - BambooHR
    Speaker image for Jason Corsello
    Jason Corsello, Founder & General Partner - Acadian Ventures
    Speaker image for Usman Khan
    Usman Khan, SVP - ADP Ventures
3:45 PM
  1. Build, Buy, or Partner: What Greenhouse’s Acquisition of Ezra AI Labs Tells Us About Where Talent Technology Is Heading
    Pitchfest Theater - Expo Hall
    30 mins
    • Investor Experience
    In this session, WorkTech Founder George LaRocque sits down with Greenhouse CEO Daniel Chait to dissect the acquisition of Ezra AI Labs as a live case study in how leading talent platforms are navigat …
    Speakers
    Speaker image for George LaRocque
    George LaRocque, Founder and Principal Analyst - WorkTech
    Speaker image for Daniel Chait
    Daniel Chait, CEO - Greenhouse
10:00 AM
  1. The Deal Market in Full: M&A, Late-Stage Capital, and What the Rest of 2026 Holds
    Pitchfest Theater - Expo Hall
    30 mins
    • Investor Experience
    2026 has been a defining year for Work Tech M&A — and it isn't over. In this panel discussion, advisors, investment bankers, and private equity investors who have been inside the deals dissect what dr …
    Speakers
    Speaker image for David Hain
    David Hain, CEO - Gotham Growth Group
    Speaker image for Heiko Roth
    Heiko Roth, Founder and CEO - Workerbee
11:00 AM
  1. Signals, Surprises, and What to Watch in the Next 12 Months
    Pitchfest Theater - Expo Hall
    30 mins
    • Investor Experience
    The best intelligence doesn't come from any single session, it comes from the pattern that emerges across a week of conversations, deals, pitches, and debates. In this closing session of the HR Tech I …
    Speakers
    Speaker image for George LaRocque
    George LaRocque, Founder and Principal Analyst - WorkTech

Insight in Your Inbox, Before You Even Arrive

Ahead of HR Tech, all registered investors receive an exclusive pre-conference report curated by George LaRocque, founder of WorkTech and lead for the Investor Experience. This high-value briefing is designed to help you identify high-potential companies in advance, streamline your time on-site, and gain a sharper perspective on where the market is headed next and includes:

  • Updated market sizing and category growth trends

  • Recent M&A activity and funding benchmarks across HR and Work Tech

  • Detailed startup profiles, including stage, solution focus, and fundraising status

Where Smart Capital Gets Ahead

"HR Tech isn't optional for serious investors in this space. It's where you see what's real, what's resonating with buyers, and who's ready to scale.

If you're not here, you're already behind."

— George LaRocque, Founder, WorkTech