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IBM Kenexa vs PeopleStrong comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM Kenexa
Ranking in Talent Management
17th
Ranking in Applicant Tracking and Recruiting Software
10th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.3
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
Benefits Administration (16th)
PeopleStrong
Ranking in Talent Management
11th
Ranking in Applicant Tracking and Recruiting Software
5th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Cloud HCM (15th), Talent Acquisition (11th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Talent Management category, the mindshare of IBM Kenexa is 1.6%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of PeopleStrong is 1.8%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Talent Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
PeopleStrong1.8%
IBM Kenexa1.6%
Other96.6%
Talent Management
 

Featured Reviews

Karan Grover - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Suitable for larger-scale companies aiming to streamline and automate their processes digitally
The deployment of the solution took between six to eight months. When we introduced BrassRing at my company, we encountered several challenges. First, moving data from our old system to BrassRing was tough because it needed reformatting. Second, connecting BrassRing with our HR data was tricky due to manual processes for roles and departments. Third, setting up the workflow in BrassRing was complex. Fourth, configuring user access and approval levels was a detailed task. We also had to manage the change process, including running both old and new systems in parallel, communicating changes, and training users. Lastly, monitoring and reporting were needed to ensure data accuracy and proper system usage once everything was in place. We had a team of six to eight people managing the project from our side during the BrassRing deployment. I'm not sure about the size of the BrassRing team, and we also had our own technical team, which had three to four members. The solution required maintenance, particularly from my side as the administrator. Maintenance responsibilities were divided into two parts: some tasks we, as end-users, could control, while others were the responsibility of the BrassRing team. Payment-related tasks were a regular part of our responsibilities. I wasn't the only person maintaining the solution. There were three power users from Infosys, each responsible for a specific geography. My counterpart managed it in the US, and I, along with my colleague in India, managed it for other geographies.
Vibha  Mishra - PeerSpot reviewer
Global L&D Lead at Tieto Sweden AB
Provide performance management and HR operations but lacks AI capabilities
Using PeopleStrong, uploading modules, and downloading reports was very easy. The process was hassle-free and user-friendly. We use PeopleStrong for performance management and HR operations, such as storing data and handling documentation when a new person joins the company. For learning and…

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It allowed for truly global listing for all open positions."
"Scalability is great, as we use the system for everything from a very low-volume, high-touch corporate recruiting model to our tax office, high-volume approach, which is 80-100,000 people each season."
"As I said, IBM are doing a great job with us at the moment, but we're always looking and speaking and open to having conversations with other people because the market's changing and IBM are aware of that."
"We acquired a pharmacy retailer three years ago, and Kenexa enabled us to actually standardize our employee engagement across both of those organizations, helping us understand at an enterprise level what was going on and, most importantly, how people were starting to feel about being acquired and joining the broader company space."
"I think the advantage of Kenexa is the degree to which we can configure to meet our specific needs."
"Great value and flexibility in an ATS, mainly through the automation and the configuration through Workbench you can do to manipulate the candidate experience to really be something that candidates like and allows them to apply to your site easily and put them in a pipeline for recruiters to access and move through a process and get somebody hired."
"Overall, from a recruiter's perspective, it is an excellent product and is probably one of the best recruitment products out there in terms of usability, ease of understanding, and management of large applicant pools."
"Without this solution, we would have more administrative functions and would need to hire more HR employees."
"With PeopleStrong, you will be able to do all of those things while working at home."
"PeopleStrong Alt is flexible because it allows customization and the user's experience is very good."
"The product has valuable flexibility for customization, user interface, and search capabilities."
"It is priced low."
"The mobile responsiveness is strong."
"It has the capability of reporting. We, as a business team, found it good. In fact, we migrated to PeopleStrong essentially because of its reporting feature."
"The hiring process is good. It will create a process-oriented procedure in terms of hiring, promotion, the movement of people, and other related HR tasks."
"Some of the most valuable features are the onboarding experience of new employees, the employee service portal, and the entire performance management system."
 

Cons

"It needs to update its reporting and analytics tools."
"It was a little rocky, as they always are, but we went live on time and that's all that matters."
"I would not recommend IBM Kenexa to others."
"We have about 50 requests for enhancements in the system right now."
"Once-a-year engagement kind of seems to be a little bit lagging in terms of how we can actually shape and improve organizations, so I was looking forward to understanding a bit more where IBM Kenexa's thinking is going in terms of pulsing with the employee voice and how that kind of integrates and works with tell-it-as-it-is, and the other two applications we have; it's just too early to know."
"Improvements can be made from the back end, with the workbench."
"The downside is it's a system that was created many, many years ago and so it just evolves."
"Maybe there's some room for improvement in the functionality around the actual tools that we build with."
"Sometimes, we feel that we should have an API-based integration aspect."
"The solution's workflow can improve by adding more customization at the organizational level."
"It would be helpful if you could work offline because sometimes, we have problems with internet connectivity."
"They had challenges getting the performance management system up and integrated with our systems."
"They could improve talent management capabilities."
"The global scalability and support could improve."
"They could include a sort of collaborative platform where employees are able to work together with a chat mechanism like WhatsApp and video chat."
"PeopleStrong could make it AI-friendly."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Kenexa was fairly priced. However, in 2019, before I left my previous organization, they significantly increased their pricing. It can be affordable, but their pricing is going up. It is not just licensing; it is how many applicants you have in your system on the database side."
"It's very reasonably priced. It is paid per employee."
"The product has reasonable pricing."
"The pricing is reasonable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Construction Company
18%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise28
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for PeopleStrong Alt?
It is priced low. I rate the product’s pricing a three out of ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive.
What is your primary use case for PeopleStrong Alt?
Using PeopleStrong, uploading modules, and downloading reports was very easy. The process was hassle-free and user-friendly. We use PeopleStrong for performance management and HR operations, such a...
What advice do you have for others considering PeopleStrong Alt?
It offers multiple options since it’s a comprehensive platform. You can detail any session and create custom reports tailored to your needs, rather than relying solely on pre-generated reports. Ove...
 

Also Known As

IBM Smarter Workforce, Outstart
PeopleStrong Alt
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Sweet Spot International (SSI), Leo Burnett Worldwide (LBW), Sika AG, Legacy Health, Apollo Group Inc., Regeneron, Transurban Group, National Health Service, New Zealand Police, Overland Footwear, Yealands, Johnson Controls, Allscripts, Kerry Foods, Masterpet, AMD, Balfour Beatty
Hyundai, Amara Raja, Air Asia, Tata Motors, Aviva, Schneider Electric, JLL Business Services, Schindler, Tata AIG, novo nordisk, Cipla
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Kenexa vs. PeopleStrong and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,270 professionals have used our research since 2012.