People Systems · HR Technology

Huan Ma

I'm a builder and innovator at heart.

For twelve years I've led HR transformation in China and the U.S., using various technologies and tools. In my current role I built our global HR ecosystem from the ground up. It now runs the full employee lifecycle for 3,400 people across 25 countries, and I'm leading the integration after an acquisition that doubled our size.

Huan Ma
12 yrs
HR transformation in China and the U.S.
30+
Countries where I built the platform from scratch
3,4007,700
Workforce, before and after the acquisition
5
Core SuccessFactors modules live: Employee Central, Recruiting, Onboarding, Performance, Compensation
About

A bit about me.

I started on the people side of HR, recruiting and building early-career programs at a fast-growing company in China. One project from those years still stands out. I co-designed a coaching app that empowered emerging talent to initiate one-on-one conversations with executives. It drove more than 4,000 conversations in its first six months. The company recognized us with its best-team award that year, not just for the idea but for the execution behind it: the change management, the user adoption, and the genuine enthusiasm we built around it. That was when I figured out I'd rather build the tool than keep working around the gap.

Now I lead HR technology for a publicly traded company. I own the strategy and the roadmap, and I built the platform they sit on. It ties HR data into payroll, the ERP, Microsoft Entra ID, our recruiting tools, and the rest of the business through integrations and automation I designed. I stay close to the people using it. I like learning new tools, finding where the work still hurts, and getting my team together to come up with something better.

I lead with trust and openness, giving my team real ownership while staying by their side to brainstorm, find resources, solve problems, and celebrate each step along the way.

1
I'm a curious, quick learner. I pick up new tools fast because I want to understand how they work, not just use them.
2
I ask why, then simplify. I get the right people together to make the work clearer and simpler, not just different.
3
I think about downstream impact. Before I change one thing, I trace where the data and the decisions land so the fix doesn't break something else.
4
I lead with or without authority. I earn respect first. Trust tends to move a project further than a title does.
Selected work

What I've built.

A few projects, and what actually came of them.

Foundation

The platform, built from scratch

When I joined, HR had no single source of truth. I implemented SuccessFactors for Employee Central, Performance and Goals, and Compensation, covering 3,400 people across 25 countries, then connected it to payroll, the ERP, and the intranet. It gave the company its first live global org chart and its first real job architecture. Over the years we cut outside vendor use by about 70%. We now rarely need them, because we documented the customized solutions as we built them and grew our own internal knowledge base.

25 countries First global org chart First job architecture ~70% less vendor use
Mergers & acquisitions

People integration and divestiture

I lead the people workstream for the acquisition that doubled the company. That means the Day-1 model for a combined 7,700-person organization and the analytics and self-service tools underneath it. The headcount planning alone protected about $13.4M in savings by Day 60. At the same time I'm running a separation across the US, Canada, UK, China, and Japan: the HRIS carve-out, the transition-service planning, and the readiness work for union and non-union sites.

~$1.6M Yr-1 synergy ~$3.6M run-rate $13.4M protected by Day 60 Presented to the CEO
Talent acquisition

One way to hire, everywhere

Each region used to run its own recruiting tools, all bolted onto the company website, which turned every change into a coordination exercise. I moved everyone onto one global recruiting and onboarding process, wired in the job boards, texting, and background checks, and made applications work properly on a phone. That last part matters for plant candidates who don't sit at a desk. Updating the careers site used to take days of back-and-forth. Now it takes about two minutes.

Mobile-first applications One global process Job-board & SMS integrations
Automation, analytics & AI

Less manual work, better decisions

I automated the HR identity lifecycle through Microsoft Entra ID, which tightened access control and made SOX audits much less painful, then connected our workforce data to Finance and Power BI so the reporting is something people actually open. AI is part of the daily work too. Claude, Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT, and NotebookLM help me automate routine tasks, run market and policy research, and work through problems faster. It's how the team operates now, not a side experiment.

Entra ID identity automation SOX-ready Power BI reporting AI: Claude · Copilot · ChatGPT · NotebookLM
Skills

What I work with.

Deep in the systems I've run, and the parts that carry over to any platform.

People systems

  • SAP SuccessFactors: EC, Performance & Goals, Compensation
  • Recruiting & Onboarding
  • ADP: Workforce Now & Enterprise
  • Platform-agnostic HRIS architecture
  • System implementation & configuration

Integrations & automation

  • Enterprise data integrations & interfaces
  • API & middleware (SAP CPI)
  • Microsoft Entra ID / Active Directory
  • Identity lifecycle automation
  • Payroll & ERP connectivity

Data & analytics

  • Workforce & human-capital analytics
  • Power BI reporting
  • Workforce budgeting with Finance
  • Data governance & quality

AI & tools

  • Claude
  • Microsoft Copilot
  • ChatGPT
  • NotebookLM
  • AI-assisted workflows, research & automation

Program & governance

  • M&A integration & divestiture
  • Intake & prioritization
  • SOX & audit readiness
  • Vendor & partner management

Ways of working

  • Cross-functional partnership: HR, IT, Finance, Payroll, Legal
  • Executive communication
  • Global, multi-region rollouts
  • Bilingual: English & Mandarin
Leadership & culture

Leading across two cultures.

My career splits almost evenly between China and the United States. In China I helped grow a company from 300 to 1,500 people. I hired more than 800 early-career employees, co-founded the internal leadership academy, and built the coaching program that ran those 4,000 conversations in its first six months.

In the U.S. I've worked across a global, publicly traded manufacturer, with everyone from plant HR teams to the CHRO and CEO. Doing the job on both sides taught me how differently trust gets built, feedback gets given, and decisions get made from one culture to the next. It also taught me how to translate between a global plan and what a regional team can actually take on.

Most global rollouts don't fail on the technology. They fail on that translation. It's the part I'm best at.

3001,500
People, as the company grew in China
800+
Early-career hires I brought in and developed
4,000+
Coaching conversations in the program's first six months
China + U.S.
Built and led HR functions on both sides, across very different work cultures
From the boardroom to the back-end
I've designed and presented five-year HR strategy to the CEO, and turned around to configure workflows alongside my team.
Speaking

On stage at SAP SuccessConnect.

I was picked to present our HR transformation at SAP SuccessConnect: how we built the platform, the ecosystem that grew around it, and what we got right and wrong along the way. A few moments from the talk are below.

Behind every "no" is a "why," and every "why" is a potential "wow." From the talk, on bringing along the teams that weren't sold yet.
Tap to play with sound · SAP SuccessConnect 2025
Experience

The track record.

2021 – PresentColumbus McKinnon (CMCO)
People M&A Integration & Divestiture LeadDec 2025 – Present

Lead the people side of the acquisition and a parallel divestiture across several countries, as part of the enterprise program team.

Supervisor, HR TechnologyMay 2023 – Present

Own the global HR technology strategy and roadmap. Currently leading the launch of SuccessFactors to 7,700 employees following the acquisition, and integrating SuccessFactors with ADP Workforce Now to sync data automatically for payroll processing and benefits administration.

HRIS AnalystMay 2021 – May 2023

Built the HR technology foundation. Implemented SuccessFactors for Employee Central, Performance and Goals, and Compensation, and designed the core integrations.

2012 – 2018Envision Technology Group · Shanghai, China

Senior HR Manager & Deputy Department Lead

Progressive promotions from HR Trainee

Grew the organization from 300 to 1,500 people during a stretch of fast hiring. Brought in more than 800 early-career employees, co-founded the leadership academy, and built the coaching app that ran more than 4,000 executive conversations in six months.

Education
M.S., Industrial & Labor Relations
Cornell University
2021
B.Econ., Finance
Southeast University · Nanjing, China
2012
CMCO CEO Recognition Award (Equity Grant). Awarded twice for leadership on enterprise initiatives, including the people side of the acquisition and the global HR technology work.
Get in touch

Let's talk.

I'm always glad to compare notes with people working on people systems, HR technology, and the parts of AI that are starting to change both. If that's you, reach out.