Embracing the Latest HR Technology Trends

by Jim Torrence Posted: 3/1/2009 Advancements in communication and software technology are creating significant productivity improvements, particularly for the human resource professionals who use contemporary human resource and talent management systems. Watson Wyatt's 2007 HR Technology Trends Survey finds that companies are turning to technology to give employer and employee access to pertinent information and tools. From portals to software solutions, HR technologies are providing a bridge to the information that employers and employees need to understand their changing workplace. One of the key findings in the survey is that one in five companies expects to change its HR delivery structure in the coming year. Many talent management system software providers, including those who develop applicant tracking/recruiting systems, integrated payroll/human resource systems, and learning management systems are actively working to embed several features into their products. Some of the most notable advancements include: Alert Technology Conditional Workflow E-mail Based Actions Even though these features have been in existence for many years, it takes time for software developers to incorporate these features into their products. In many cases, it requires significant redevelopment of the providers software application. For example, the concept of employee self service has existed for decades. However, it required the affordable access to an enabling communication medium (Internet/World Wide Web) and developers to assimilate this technology into their products. Today, employee self service is a common feature that most human resource applications utilize. Here are some brief definitions and examples of the newest state-of-the-art features that are available for you to implement and what you should now expect from using these solutions.
Alert Technology

Alert technology automatically monitors your human resource system(s) and proactively distributes information to your HR and payroll personnel, managers, and employees via your email system. Specified actions and dates trigger automated messages, informing relevant parties about key activities and pending issues. For example, alerts can be established to:

Monitor key dates and send notices to employees and managers about annual performance reviews. Send automatic replies via e-mail for items such as thank you notes to applicants who send in resumes. Generate standard e-mail scripts to welcome new employees, while informing relevant departments of the new hire.

Before alert technology arrived, reports would have to be manually initiated by users to identify the needed information. Alerts can significantly reduce time-consuming administrative tasks associated with paper flow. More and more human resource teams are demanding that their applications utilize alert technology. In many cases, it has become apparent that simple, yet time consuming activities have to be automated to save time and increase effectiveness. Software providers have created predefined, easy-to-use templates for common activities like new hire and termination actions, performance review tracking, overtime and paycheck related listings, attendance records, applicant tracking, and training management tracking. In other cases, the software provider can work with a third party company, like Cognos, who specializes in providing alert technology for software applications. In this case, a number of sophisticated alerts can be established with different output formats (e-mails, document files, spreadsheets, or printed paper).
Conditional Workflow

Workflow automation is not new to the human resource system software industry. However, significant advancements in the sophistication of workflow and adoption by all facets of business management software are motivating many human resource system software providers to include conditional workflow technology in their applications. Workflow is a term used to describe the tasks, procedural steps, organizations or people involved, required input and output information, and tools needed for each step in a business process. Workflow automation takes an existing chain of work, like initiating an employees pay increase, and making it automatic, usually with workflow software that guides information from point to point without human intervention. Early versions of workflow within human resource applications usually limited users to predefined workflows with limited functionality. Typically, automated workflows included routing requests for approval and/or notification. However, the same workflow actions were taken regardless of who and/or what it was for. Simple workflow templates worked with a limited ability to differentiate the datas conditions. The workflows worked on an unconditional basis. To illustrate an example of a non-conditional workflow in human resource management process, we will use a pay increase. For example, let us assume a company has a policy that requires division president approval for all exempt personnel pay increases over 10%. In an environment that uses simple, non-conditional workflows, all pay rate requests would be forwarded to a designated number of approvers. In most cases, the chain of approvers may be different depending on your organizational assignments (company, department, location, etc.). However, with non-conditional workflow, there is no way to define a different course of action (number of approvals, type of notices, messages, etc.) based on whether certain data conditions exist. In this case, all pay increases would require the same number of approvals. In our example, the division president could either approve all or no exempt personnel pay increases. If conditional workflow technology is utilized, we would be able to identify different courses of action, depending on whether certain conditions are met. In our example, we would be able to

tell the system to include the division president as an approval step if a pay increase for exempt personnel is greater than 10%.
E-mail Based Actions

We can probably all agree that e-mail has been embraced by business as one of the primary communication tools between people and, more recently, software systems and people. People send people e-mails. Software systems also send people e-mails. Common e-mails from software systems include alert notices from your bank or credit card companies, internet order confirmations, notices that e-mail was not delivered, etc. Only just a few years ago, the e-mails we received from software systems were typically just notices. However, as technology advanced, we began to receive e-mails requiring some form of required action. These e-mails typically contained web-site links to the sites/software requiring the action. However, in most cases, e-mail recipients had to sign-in to the originating software system and perform the required action indicated by the e-mail. Using todays e-mail and software technology, the e-mail recipient is now able to react to the request within the e-mail itself, thus bypassing the sign-in requirement. The benefit of using this technology is that users do not need to learn the underlying software application and can respond instantly using a familiar communication medium: e-mail. Using the pay rate increase example in the previous section, an automated workflow may have been designed to send an e-mail indicating that an approval action needed to be taken. Using older technology, the e-mail may have contained a web-site link to the human resource system. However, it still required a user to sign into the system and process an approval for the workflow request. Using current technology, the e-mail may include an Approve or Deny button that the user can select, thereby performing the action without signing into the originating system.
What to Consider

Todays human resource management systems are embracing the latest trends in software technology. Some of the recent state-of-the-art features include alert technology, conditional workflow, and e-mail based actions. As your company is upgrading or adding to its human resource management system, consider selecting a partner whose systems use any or all of these time and money saving technologies. Not only will this allow you to improve how you execute todays business processes, but prepare the foundation you will need for continuing to add capabilities, efficiencies and speed in a business environment that only promises to be more demanding.

Top 8 HR Technology Trends 2007

By Brittany Maling The Internet revolution brought countless innovations to businesses. Companies expanded communications, integrated networks and went wireless, changing every aspect about how business was done; that is, except HR. While employers were busy updating or replacing all of their other systems to adhere to the latest technology, they still clung to their old, outdated HR methods. These systems stuck employees with one-size-fits-all benefits packages and little inspiration to work harder. But things have finally changed. HR solutions are starting to improve, offering new technologies that put the employee in the driver's seat. These systems allow workers to choose and manage benefits themselves, eliminating the need for HR staff and boosting employee satisfaction. An important shift in HR is taking place, and here are the top eight trends from 2007 that highlight this transformation: 1. Out with the old, in with the new. In a dramatic shift from the years when HR systems were as old as the company, one in five businesses plans to change its HR delivery system in the upcoming year. 2. With power comes responsibility. As these new self-service HR systems are only as effective as the employees who manage them, engaging and informing workers has become a key focus for companies. 3. Communication is key. HR systems are now being used to communicate benefits information to employees, preparing them for their new active roles. 4. Keep it in the family. Companies prefer to use internal or ERP (enterprise resource planning) systems to handle HR, with less than 25 percent of companies outsourcing HR whenever possible. While companies cite improving internal processes as a primary goal, less than 70 percent have succeeded. Also, most businesses have their own HR call centers and strongly prefer all employee inquiries to be handled in the United States. 5. Cream of the crop. The biggest concern with HR systems is talent management keeping valuable employees and attracting new ones. Many companies are looking for technological solutions to help solve this problem. Companies are least concerned with retirement and health and welfare. 6. The future is now. Retirement planning has come to the forefront of benefits priorities, with companies looking to take advantage of new technology systems to define and deliver policies. One in four companies plans to change its current methods over the next two years. 7. Time is money. Case-management systems are saving time and improving HR operations, leading to high satisfaction with call centers. 8. Do it yourself. The Internet has become a popular tool for employee self-service transactions to manage benefits, mostly in the areas of health and welfare. These trends mark the beginning of a great development in HR. Gone are the days of automated, ill-suited benefits and disorganized resources; now is the time for customized, dynamic plans and connected systems. Employees are more satisfied, and companies are saving time and resources.

Trends in Human Resources Management Systems

Long-term employment practices are generally supported by both employers and employees at present, and will be supported by many employers, although with partial modifications. However, the number of regular employees placed under long-term employment is expected to decrease for some time to come. Human resources management systems for regular employees are becoming increasingly individualized and diverse. There is a trend developing where differential promotion is starting at an earlier stage, screening, therefore, is expected to become more stringent in the future. Due to the importance of personnel evaluation systems in performance-based systems, it is important to gain the assent of workers by clarifying evaluation criteria and enhancing disclosure systems. Enhancing evaluation and treatment of non-regular employees, including conversion to regular employees, will also contribute to business. This is achieved through maintaining or improving motivation for working among non-regular employees and making greater use of their abilities. Awareness of Long-Term Employment Practices Surveys of employer attitudes toward the so-called lifetime employment indicates that "scheduled to continue as a rule" and "partial modification unavoidable" accounted for more than half of the total, which is roughly at the same level as in 1999 (Figure 44). Workers also appear to be supporting long-term employment practices, although the level of support is slightly low among young workers (Figure 45). It should be noted, however, that the number of regular employees placed under long-term employment practices is decreasing as a result of harsh economic conditions, and is expected to continue decreasing for some time. Recruitment and Job Change In order to deal with tougher competition between companies and the faster pace of change in business conditions, there has been an increase in the hiring of mid-career workers, who are capable to contribute to business immediately, as corporate human resources strategy. Although many companies favor the recruitment of new graduates, hiring of mid-career personnel is expected to continue to increase in the future (Figure 46). Furthermore, more companies are using a diverse measures of recruitment, such as year-round recruitment, hiring by job type, trial employment, hiring for a designated place of work, etc. On the workers' side, the rate of changing job is on the rise among young workers, reflecting diversification of workers' attitudes toward job (Figure 47). Personnel Allocation and Promotion In an aging and academic background-oriented society, there is a general shortage of managerial posts, resulting in reduced promotion opportunities for workers in their professional careers. In order to heighten the sense of competition among workers under these circumstances, differences in promotion are starting at earlier stages of employment and screening is expected to become even more stringent (Figure 48). Companies' needs for a diverse workforce combined with the workers' attitudes and reduced opportunities for promotion, have led toward diversification of personnel allocation systems,

through the introduction of specialist systems, etc. In addition, an increasing number of companies, mostly large ones, are introducing self-application systems, in-house staff recruitment systems, etc., that emphasize worker autonomy and enhance their motivation for working. In 2002 the self-application system was implemented in 16.2% of companies (79.7% for companies with 5,000 employees or more), while in-house staff recruitment systems were used by 3.4% of companies (57.7% for companies with 5,000 employees or more). Furthermore, as performance-based wage and treatment systems are introduced, gaining the assent of employees with regard to the personnel evaluation system becomes even more important due to the increased weight that performance evaluations have in determining wages and other aspects of worker treatment under such systems. The challenges associated with personnel evaluation systems lie with the evaluation methods and criteria, training of evaluators, etc., and therefore clarification of evaluation criteria and enhancement of disclosure systems are important (Table 49). Short-time Working Regular Employee System As types of employment diversify for non-regular employees, some companies are introducing the short-time hour regular employee system, which is a type of employment lying between fulltime regular and part-time non-regular employment. This system allows individuals to select working styles that suit their lifestyle. Only 4.3% of companies had introduced such systems for those who are not engage in child-care or nursing care, while 20.0% stated that they might consider introducing in the future. Human Resources Management System that Allows Non-Regular Employees to Exert Their Abilities The number of non-regular employees is expected to increase quantitatively as well as qualitatively, in the future. In order to improve their productivity, the challenge will be to stimulate their motivation for working and to get more satisfaction by enhancing worker evaluation and treatment. Part-timers prefer personnel systems that feature "treatment based on ability", and "opportunities to receive education and training", followed by "opportunities to be converted to regular employee". On the other hand, "difficulties in conversion to a regular employee" ranked high among the causes of dissatisfaction and unease cited by non-regular employees. Survey results of non-regular employees show that the degree of satisfaction of part-time workers regarding evaluation and treatment tended to be higher in cases where there were conversion systems to regular employees or within non-regular employees, support for selfdevelopment, or training systems (Table 50). This indicates that enhancement of conversion systems as well as education and training systems are key factors in increasing the degree of satisfaction and motivation for working among non-regular employees. Enhancing the evaluation and treatment of non-regular employees, including systems for converting to regular employees, will also contribute to business by maintaining or improving motivation for working among non-regular employees and making greater use of their abilities.