For many years with the advent of pre-packaged systems provided by HR system vendors it is true to say that in short, although there is a dire need to have a fully integrated HR system, it is only there to support HR in the greater scheme of things.
Based on this, I would like to take some time in looking at HR in the greater scheme of things, as without this clearly defined, your HR system will be trying to support something that might not be there, or whose purpose cannot be supported by the selected solution!
The HR department's purpose must be clear to both employees and the HR team. The purpose of the HR team might have been pretty basic to define 20-odd years ago as: the team of staff who need to manage information regarding employees. In addition this could include the paying of the staff if the time office or its equivalent did not reside within the HR department.
As per this definition, the core activity of the team probably revolved around a paper-based filing system and/or the usage of Cardex systems. Later on, this function extended to the capturing of information on either a mainframe or a PC-based system. The types of input were limited, which resulted in an even more limited set of outputs. Taking a step back, one wonders how anything around actual people management was achieved, as the capture of data became an all-consuming effort.
You would be surprised at how the above definition still applies to HR departments today. The all-consuming data capture exercise has ballooned as the amount of information that can now be captured per employee is only limited by the amount of time available to do so. This in itself creates one of two problems - either too much useless data, or not enough data.
Today's HR department also needs to play an important consultative role at both the executive as well as line management levels. From an employee's perspective, HR should be an advisor on all employee related issues as well as being able to provide the employees with any relevant information pertaining to their jobs, careers, performance, training and relevant opportunities that exist within the organisation.
In order to fulfil these additional requirements of the modern organisation, the HR team needs to be as focused and organised as the revenue generating/production teams in the organisation. The HR system in use needs to be a tool or utility at the disposal of HR, to ensure they can perform their role effectively. As mentioned earlier, the administrative side of HR can drown even those with the best of intentions, so beware, acquiring a new HR system might actually add to this administrative burden.
With this in mind, the internal process around acquiring the HR system needs to include some fundamental questions that need to be answered, prior to embarking on the difficult route of acquiring a new system:
Why does the HR team want a new system?
Does the HR team have the skills required not just to operate the system, but make the MOST of what a system with new technology can offer? Does the HR team have the equipment required to run the system efficiently? What is the primary goal of acquiring the new HR system? How will the new HR system contribute to the HR department's purpose/mission/vision, as well as to that of the organisation? If line managers are expected to work on the system - have they been asked to work in the area of/and trained in HR related management issues?
These questions might seem superfluous or rather basic, but they must be asked and answered to the satisfaction of all before any investment is made. It has to be clear as to why a migration is needed to move from the current system to something new. Sometimes the answers to the above questions are obvious, but where companies currently have an HR/payroll solution that is in place and working, the benefits of changing need to be thoroughly investigated. Not only will there be substantial costs associated with the purchase and implementation of the solution, but also the associated risk of getting it right.
To conclude, any HR team that has decided to implement a new HR solution is faced with a daunting task. From the selection process, through implementation and finally to the successful value-added running of the system, the road is fraught with danger. Any HR team that has not established its role within the organisation is faced with an even greater challenge, as the expectation will be that the new HR system will determine their role, as opposed to the system supporting it. The last thing any HR team can afford is for the system to run HR and not HR to run the system.
* Rob Bothma is a Divisional Executive at Q Data DynamiQue, the e-HR specialist in Comparex Africa which is the African division of Comparex Holdings, the JSE-listed multi-national. Comparex Holdings was recently recognised by Financial Mail as SA's top company over five years.
Share