Leveraging HR Software to Build a Culture of Trust And Transparency

HR teams across organizations have had to gear up to face new challenges in deploying and managing an increasingly diverse and globally dispersed workforce. The answer to some of these challenges have been through technological interventions such as  Human Resource Management Systems that have helped bridge the communication gap between employers and employees. While Human Resource Information Systems have helped in managing and analyzing employee data for better decision making, challenges in administering employee benefits program remained till Employee Self Service applications came into being.

Why HR Software is needed?

Organizations are increasingly realizing the value of deploying HR software to enable the HR time to be more productive and reduce cost and time spent on routine administrative activity. An integrated Human Resource Management system which combines Leave Attendance System, Leave Management System and Performance Management System with Payroll Management enables organizations to do away with tons of paperwork and establish work flow based systems which can be easily tracked and recorded for future reference as well.

Employee Self Service (ESS) is an application that enables employees to interact directly, through their HR software to view, and in some cases edit or update data, in the system. A tool that is gaining ground very rapidly, Employee Self Service portal empowers an employee to manage a number of self related tasks like leave or reimbursement application, personal information updation and accessing company related information otherwise routed through Human resources or management.   ESS is one HR software that directly impacts employees in a positive manner by giving them access to their information on demand, anytime anywhere without having to follow up with the HR or any other business support teams.

Need for an integrated HR system

A Human Resource Information System or HRIS enables organizations to maintain a secure and central repository for confidential information and processes related to Human resources.  It makes it easy to track and assess employee trends and movements and to determine the future shape of employee initiatives in the organization. A workflow based leave management system enables employees to apply for leaves online as well as keep a track of their leave balance without any outside intervention. It also allows managers to access leave records of team members reporting to them as well as track how many team members have applied for leave simultaneously in a given week or month. Managers can also approve or reject leaves online which then reflect in the system so that the employee can view the status of his application. Likewise managers can also submit their own leave application which then flows to their reporting manager and so on and so forth making the whole process flow seamlessly and effortlessly.

A well designed Human Resource Management System with interconnected modules, has the potential to reduce at least 2/3rds of routine administrative operations from HR function, enabling them to focus time and resources on more strategic value adding propositions and initiatives. It also helps to build a culture where employees are self driven with more accountability as all data pertaining to themselves and their teams are available to them online. Read more.