Welcome to Recruiter Roundup, a monthly look at the most exciting recruiting and HR industry news. 

Recruiting Industry Investments / M&A Activity:

B2B marketing agency The Starr Conspiracy analyzed work tech investments for the first half of 2020 and found that, despite the economic upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, investments have largely continued at a normal pace. The Starr Conspiracy reports total investments of $3.78 billion during 2020 so far, compared to $3.92 billion during the same time period in 2019.

• Talent acquisition suite Jobvite acquires data science firm Predictive Partner (source)
• Selleration and DigitalChalk merge to become talent development and workforce analytics software company Sciolytix (source)
• Benefits management startup Swile raises $78.7 million (source)
• Cloud-based workforce management systems provider Vndly receives strategic investment from Okta ventures (source)
• On-demand workforce platform Roamler raises $23 million (source)
• Talent marketplace The Mom Project closes Series B funding round with $25 million (source)
• Communication giant Slack buys business directory company Rimeto (source)

Must-Read Reports:

The American Staffing Association’s Staffing Index reports employment in the staffing industry has continued to recover throughout July. While staffing jobs are still down 25.3 percent compared to last year, July saw the highest index value since the end of March.

• Topia reports that only 17 percent of employees feel their employers provide an “exceptional” employee experience (source)
• Glassdoor traces the rebounding of jobs related to diversity and inclusion after a sharp decline during the opening months of the pandemic (source)
• Connecticut, Oregon, and New Jersey among states seeing the fastest unemployment recovery (source)
• The Conference Board looks at the careers most likely to see large, permanent shifts to remote work in the post-COVID-19 era (source)
• The American Staffing Association finds nearly 80 percent of employees are satisfied with their companies’ return-to-work plans (source)
• The July 2020 Healthcare Staffing Report from Capstone Headwaters finds significant slowdowns in M&A activity in the healthcare staffing segment (source)

Company News:

Indeed is on a bit of a partnership tear, teaming up with the Better Business Bureau to offer $200 sponsored job post credits and strengthening its existing ties with Glassdoor to deliver enhanced job postings and branding bundles.

Meanwhile, LinkedIn is having a tough go of things. In addition to cutting nearly a thousand jobs, the social media giant is the subject of a lawsuit alleging it secretly reads Apple users' clipboard content.

• CultivatePeople launches pay equity solution Kamsa, powered by machine learning (source)
• Common Census launches online benefits administration platform BenefitsUSA (source)
• SAP Fieldglass External Talent Marketplace helps businesses fill temporary roles for free (source)
• Avature releases Avature Video for recruiting and talent management (source)
• Randstad RiseSmart aims to close skill gaps with RiseSmart Skilling (source)
• Hunt Scanlon names ZRG the fastest-growing global executive search firm (source)
• Frederickson Partners expands its diversity and inclusion executive search practice (source)
• LocalJobNetwork rebrands as Circa, prioritizes diversity and inclusion (source)
• Adecco, Manpower, Atrium Staffing among “America’s Best Temporary Staffing Firms 2020,” according to Forbes (source)

Legal and Regulatory News:

• California law AB-2138 makes it easier for state residents with criminal records to earn professional licenses (source)

Upcoming Events:

• IDG and Dice announce series of global virtual tech recruiting events starting in October 2020 (source)
• WorldatWork 2020 Total Resilience Virtual Conference and Exhibition is holding digital events every Wednesday through September 2 (source)

Are you interested in having your company featured in this recruiting industry report? Send an email to our Editor, matthew@recruiter.com, with your company's news or announcements. Our regular publication, RecruiterToday, also features thought leadership from recruiting and talent acquisition professionals and accepts content contributions.