When 80% Becomes Good Enough: How Categories Collapse Into Features

Posted on January 20, 2026January 30, 2026 by Kyle James

We are seeing more GTM categories compress into platform features, not because point solutions stopped innovating, but because platforms already own two advantages that are hard to overcome: the system of record and distribution. Once a platform owns where data lives and where work happens, it gains the ability to embed capabilities directly into existing workflows, bundle them into existing contracts, and price them at or near zero marginal cost. At that point, even a strong point solution faces a tougher question than feature parity: Is the incremental value worth the incremental cost and complexity? Why This Is Happening Now Several forces are reinforcing each other: Systems of record are consolidating. CRMs and revenue platforms increasingly serve as the canonical source of truth. Distribution has […]

Five AI Signals GTM Leaders Should Be Paying Attention to in 2026

Posted on January 20, 2026January 20, 2026 by Kyle James

In December, I had a conversation with Matthew Stein on the Agent.ai podcast about AI predictions for 2026. The discussion ranged across models, platforms, media, economics, and some fairly bold ideas about where things might break or consolidate next. On the surface, it was framed as a set of predictions. But as I revisited that conversation, what stood out was something more practical. Almost everything we talked about shows up directly in the day-to-day reality of go-to-market teams. Not as abstract future bets, but as signals that are already shaping how GTM leaders think about tooling, trust, productivity, and ROI. These are the same tensions I hear in conversations with CROs, CMOs, RevOps leaders, and heads of customer success who are trying to make sense of AI while still hitting numbers. So rather […]

Council Guest Post: HR Transformation – Implementing Agile Methodologies within HR for Flexibility and Responsiveness

Posted on January 15, 2026January 15, 2026 by Aman Shaik

Transforming Human Resources for the Modern Era Introduction In an era where change is the only constant, traditional Human Resources (HR) practices often struggle to keep pace with the dynamic nature of modern business environments. Agile HR practices offer a transformative approach, enabling HR departments to become more flexible, responsive, and better aligned with organizational needs. Let’s delve into the concept of Agile HR, its benefits, and practical steps for implementation. Understanding Agile HR Agile methodologies, originally rooted in software development, emphasize iterative progress, collaboration, and responsiveness to change. When applied to HR, these principles help create a more adaptive and resilient HR function. Agile HR is characterized by the following core principles: Iterative Processes: Emphasizing continuous improvement through short, iterative cycles. Collaboration: Fostering cross-functional […]

The Hidden Cost of AI in Marketing: When Thinking Gets Outsourced

Posted on January 14, 2026January 14, 2026 by Kyle James

Why critical thinking is becoming marketing’s most valuable skill AI has changed marketing faster than almost any technology before it. In a matter of months, tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Claude have made it possible to generate campaigns, content, ads, and messaging variations at a speed that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. For many teams under pressure to do more with less, that speed feels like a lifeline. But there’s a quieter question emerging beneath the hype: If marketing is getting easier to execute, why does so much of it feel increasingly forgettable? That tension sat at the center of a recent GTM Innovators conversation with Joey Lai, B2B Marketing Director at Mastercard. What followed wasn’t an anti-AI rant, but something […]

Why Conversation Intelligence Is Quietly Becoming a Feature, Not a Category

Posted on January 12, 2026January 8, 2026 by Kyle James

A New Year, a New Set of Field Notes As we head into 2026, we’re kicking off a new weekly series we’re calling GTM Field Notes. These posts are not meant to be definitive market maps or polished frameworks. They are closer to working notes. Observations pulled from conversations with GTM leaders, patterns we keep seeing in buying decisions, and signals that show up repeatedly as teams try to simplify, consolidate, and justify their go-to-market stacks. One of the clearest signals right now centers on conversation intelligence. Not because it’s failing. But because it’s becoming too successful. What We Mean by “Conversation Intelligence” Before going further, it’s worth defining the term, because it’s still relatively new and often used loosely. Conversation intelligence refers to tools that capture live or recorded conversations, typically sales, customer success, or discovery calls, and […]

Monthly Research Recap | December 2025

Posted on January 5, 2026January 5, 2026 by 3Sixty Insights Editorial Team

Recent Research Research Agenda: Changing Workplace Dynamics & The Future of Work in 2026 This 2026 research agenda from Dylan Teggart examines how accelerating AI adoption, shifting labor market dynamics, declining employee engagement, and mounting compliance complexity are fundamentally reshaping the world of work. As employers regain leverage and HR technology enters a period of consolidation and commoditization, the focus of this research is on separating signal from noise—understanding what is truly driving measurable workforce outcomes versus what remains aspirational rhetoric. Through in-depth analysis of real organizational experiences, technology decisions, and execution strategies across the employee lifecycle, this agenda aims to equip HR and business leaders with practical, data-driven insights to turn modern HR, AI, and workforce management investments into tangible results in 2026 and […]

Video: Human in the Loop or Just a Checkbox? Rethinking AI in HR and Support

Posted on December 10, 2025December 10, 2025 by Nicholas Biron

In today’s video, Nicholas Biron break down a growing problem in both customer service and employee experience: AI is being used as a barrier, not an enabler. Vendors love to talk about “human in the loop,” but in reality, that human is usually sitting behind the scenes, not where customers and employees actually interact. The result? Frustration, loss of empathy, and an experience that feels increasingly robotic. He shares real example; from trying to reach a live agent at major providers, to a recent doctor’s visit where AI-driven prompts replaced real human connection, to how AI is affecting performance management. But it’s not all doom and gloom. AI can dramatically improve experience when used correctly. Payroll support is a great example, where AI agents can […]

Video: Are Vendors Losing by Overloading on AI Features?

Posted on December 4, 2025December 4, 2025 by Nicholas Biron

In this video, Nicholas Biron discusses a growing trend in vendor presentations: overloading audiences with AI features instead of focusing on solving real business problems. He shares observations from virtual analyst updates and emphasizes that line-of-business executives often lack advanced AI sophistication. Vendors are urged to differentiate by addressing customer challenges and practical outcomes rather than feature dumps.

Efficiency, Precision, and Discovery: Lessons from Vanillasoft’s Marketing Leaders

Posted on December 4, 2025December 3, 2025 by Kyle James

As part of our ongoing Go-to-Market (GTM) Research, I recently sat down with Jeannie Zaemes, Senior Vice President of Marketing, and James Bishop, Vice President of Marketing at Vanillasoft, for an open conversation about how marketing and GTM strategies and programs are evolving. Vanillasoft is a leader in sales engagement and lead management, giving marketing and sales teams a structured and consistent way to reach prospects, respond quickly, and convert more opportunities. The platform helps organizations streamline outreach, focus on the right accounts, and run GTM programs that are both efficient and precise. By unifying workflows and surfacing actionable signals, Vanillasoft enables customers to turn data into real discovery and momentum in their pipeline. What unfolded was a candid discussion about the state of modern marketing and how efficiency, data precision, and […]

Video: Executive Turnover Is Disrupting Business – Here’s How to Keep Momentum

Posted on December 2, 2025December 2, 2025 by Nicholas Biron

In this video Nicholas Biron explores the rising challenge of short executive tenures, now averaging around 18 months, and how this trend disrupts organizational strategy, marketing plans, and product execution. Drawing on research and firsthand observations, Nicholas emphasizes the importance of leadership retention and institutional knowledge for business success. He cautions that frequent executive changes can stall momentum, create strategic uncertainty, and ultimately hinder organizational growth.

Monthly Research Recap | November 2025

Posted on December 1, 2025December 1, 2025 by 3Sixty Insights Editorial Team

Recent Research: Research Agenda: 2026 Go-to-Market B2B This 2026 Go-to-Market B2B Research Agenda explores how efficiency, authenticity, and AI collaboration are reshaping modern revenue organizations. Building on insights from 2025, this year’s focus highlights five major shifts: the move toward efficiency as the dominant GTM operating model, the growing importance of human-centered advocacy supported by AI, the evolution of precision demand creation, the rise of Customer Success as a revenue engine, and the transformation of search and discovery driven by generative AI. Together, these themes capture the key questions and opportunities facing GTM leaders in 2026 and invite continued community input to refine and validate their real-world impact. Market Alert: Dayforce Expands Its Single AI Platform to Strengthen Enterprise HCM Capabilities Dayforce, Inc. is strengthening […]

California Labor Laws and Compliance: Burden, Benchmark, or Competitive Advantage? | Perception, Future Trends, and the Role of HR Tech

Posted on November 21, 2025November 24, 2025 by Dylan Teggart

Part 3 of 3: Perception, Future Trends, and the Role of HR Tech In this final installment, we shift from diagnosis to implications. After situating California within the US and global context, we’ll explore why the “impossible to operate” narrative persists and how HR technology can transform high-compliance environments into lasting advantages. High wages, aggressive enforcement, litigation exposure, and complex rules do create real operational friction, and business-oriented groups consistently highlight these burdens. But in practice, part of this also stems less from irrational rules but more from the collision of California’s modern workforce standards with outdated, under-resourced HR teams and fragmented systems. For many companies, these laws and their internal resources are like oil and water. Multi-jurisdiction employers face friction, especially if their HR […]

California Labor Laws and Compliance: Burden, Benchmark, or Competitive Advantage? | Global Context & Real-World Impacts

Posted on November 19, 2025November 24, 2025 by Dylan Teggart

Part 2 of 3: Global Context & Real-World Impacts Having established California as a state with high compliance standards in the US, this second installment broadens the perspective to a global context. We’ll compare California with similar economies and analyze how its policies impact workers and employers in real-world situations. How Does California Compare Globally? Compared to other major Western economies, California is much less extreme. To start, most of these countries already have many of these workplace laws in place, but also have unique nuances. In Canada, the American concept of “at-will employment” is not recognized and broadly considered illegal. Unlike in the US, where employment can be terminated at any time for any legal reason, Canadian employers are required to provide proper notice […]

Small Gestures, Big Impact: Elevating Customer Experience in HR Technology

Posted on November 18, 2025November 17, 2025 by Dylan Teggart

In our calls with multiple HR tech end-users in 2025, Nick Biron and I repeatedly came across a similar theme: when vendors appear similar on paper, service and genuine human relationships often become the real differentiators. This ties into a video Nick recently shared with me that touches on the concept of creating ‘moments that matter’ in sales and customer service. It’s those moments where a vendor goes just a little bit further than they need to to make you feel special or like your specific needs are being heard. According to the presenter, a 10% improvement across seven such moments can “double” revenue with that customer. I’m not sure the math is that simple, but anecdotally, it tracks with what we hear in HR […]

California Labor Laws and Compliance: Burden, Benchmark, or Competitive Advantage? | Myths, Realities, and US Benchmarks

Posted on November 17, 2025November 24, 2025 by Dylan Teggart

Part 1 of 3: Myths, Realities, and US Benchmarks In more than one phone call with customers, vendors, or other analysts in the HR technology industry, I’ve heard the claim that it’s hard to do business in the state of California. According to these conversations, the state is riddled with unnecessary compliance, too many hoops to jump through, a mountain of litigation risk, and constant changes to the rules. Business groups frequently cite labor, wage, and climate regulations as part of a broader, burdensome business environment. So I decided to take a look. In this opening installment, I outline the context: Is California’s situation truly as dire as they say? Why do so many executives say that California presents challenges for employers, and what does […]

Zero Trust in the Age of AI: Why Enterprise Security Principles Are Becoming the Blueprint for Digital Trust

Posted on November 13, 2025November 13, 2025 by Kyle James

As enterprises wrestle with how to adopt AI responsibly, they’re rediscovering the same lesson cybersecurity mastered years ago: trust must be earned, verified, and continuously monitored. The Trust Recession in Technology I recently had the opportunity to sit down with John Armstrong, Senior Product Marketing Manager for Application & Network Security at Ivanti. Our conversation started with Ivanti’s approach to cybersecurity and the growing importance of Zero Trust. But as these conversations often do, it quickly expanded. We found ourselves talking not only about the challenges of securing networks but also about the growing challenge of trusting artificial intelligence. That connection between cybersecurity and AI is not accidental. Both domains are struggling with the same fundamental problem: trust. Cybersecurity spent decades building systems to verify […]

Council Guest Post: HR Transformation – Continuous Improvement and Feedback Loops

Posted on November 10, 2025November 10, 2025 by Aman Shaik

Establishing Mechanisms for Ongoing Evaluation and Improvement Introduction In the ever-evolving landscape of human resources, continuous improvement and feedback loops are crucial components for ensuring sustained success and adaptation. As organizations strive to stay competitive and relevant, the establishment of mechanisms for ongoing evaluation and improvement becomes essential. The Importance of Continuous Improvement in HR Continuous improvement in HR refers to the ongoing efforts to enhance processes, policies, and practices within the human resources function. These efforts are driven by the recognition that the business environment is dynamic, and staying static can lead to obsolescence. Continuous improvement helps HR teams to: Increase Efficiency: By regularly evaluating and refining HR processes, organizations can eliminate redundancies, streamline workflows, and reduce waste, leading to greater efficiency and productivity. […]

Infographic: Scaling GTM Responsibly – Cohere Health Demonstrates the Power of Maturity-Aligned Platform Choices

Posted on November 5, 2025November 5, 2025 by Kyle James

UKG Aspire | November 3 – 6, 2025

Posted on October 30, 2025October 30, 2025 by 3Sixty Insights Editorial Team and Nicole Roberts

We’re excited to share that Nicole Roberts, a valued member of the 3Sixty Insights team, will be attending UKG Aspire 2025, one of the premier gatherings for HR, workforce management, and technology leaders. At this year’s event, Nicole will engage with leading industry professionals, explored the latest trends in human capital management, and gained firsthand insights into the evolving role of AI and advanced workforce technologies. Her participation reflects 3Sixty Insights’ commitment to staying at the forefront of HR innovation and delivering actionable intelligence to our clients. Stay tuned for Nicole’s key takeaways from the event, where she will highlight the most impactful strategies, emerging technologies, and thought leadership shaping the future of workforce management. Learn more about UKG Aspire here: https://aspire.ukg.com/event/dd109a60-ebf8-4e79-9ad5-5fe3a903aabb/home-new-brand?RefId=home-ukgevents

3Sixty Insights Named to Fama’s Favorite Influencers in Q3 2025

Posted on October 30, 2025October 31, 2025 by 3Sixty Insights Editorial Team, Nicholas Biron, Dylan Teggart, Nicole Roberts, Geoff Webb and Mark Feffer

We are thrilled to announce that 3Sixty Insights has been recognized alongside our own Nicholas Biron, Dylan Teggart, Nicole Roberts, Mark Feffer, and Geoff Webb as part of the esteemed Fama’s Favorite Influencers in Q3 2024! This honor underscores our commitment to providing actionable insights and research that shape the future of HR and talent acquisition. View the full list: Fama’s Favorite HR Influencers: Q3 2025 Edition

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