When the Software Designed to Make Life Easier Actually Causes More Problems
As your company grows, your HR team will need to lean on software solutions for everyday transactional tasks (new hires and terminations, performance issues, employee questions, etc.) as well as long-term projects (onboarding strategy, benefits administration, and payroll management). These systems help to alleviate the burden, especially if you’re a small to midsize business (SMB) with limited resources and a small HR team.
While these tools make life easier at first, they may cause more headaches and challenges as the business continues its growth path. For example, many businesses have separate solutions for different parts of HR. Most payroll providers and brokers offer a SaaS solution as part of their services. HR and recruiters use standalone applicant tracking systems (ATS), and internally, separate time and attendance solutions might be in use. It’s the fact that these systems are separate that causes issues.
Often, they’re not properly or fully implemented or integrated, which creates more work and leads to potential errors from your HR team, recruiters, and employees. Depending on the solution, your team might’ve handled the setup process and cross-system integration themselves. That takes a lot of time, and even if setup is “done,” your team might not be able to maximize their value due to lack of technical expertise, workflow design, etc. These tools might’ve been sold as plug-and-play solutions, but in reality, they’re not.
Enter HRIS Technology
HRIS technology is a management tool that helps HR teams centralize processes, streamline tasks, and store data. Whereas smaller HR teams might use a basic tool with features and functionality designed specifically for them, ongoing company growth will eventually diminish the value that tool provides. As a result, teams may resort to handling tasks and functions manually, bringing inefficiency back into the equation. But with HRIS technology, virtually all HR functions are covered in a single solution that scales with you.
But here’s the kicker — while a centralized HRIS technology solution will help bring multiple HR functions into one efficient system, it still won’t be enough. Work itself is changing, and as a result, companies and their HR teams are having to change, too.
How many of your employees are still working from home (WFH)? How many are doing a hybrid work schedule? Here’s an important one: How many are working from different states? It’s much easier for SMBs to adopt WFH, hybrid, and distributed workforce models than larger organizations, but that doesn’t mean the requirements are any different.
You still have new policies to develop, implement, share, and enforce. You still have state- and city-specific employment and payroll laws to uphold and monitor. You still have hiring and onboarding practices to manage and benefits to provide. The more flexible your workplace becomes, the more complex your requirements become.
An HRIS technology solution will certainly make your life easier, but it won’t navigate these challenges for you. There will always be a human element to the complexities of HR, and as a result, SMBs and even larger organizations utilizing HRIS technology should still consider partnering with an expert HR firm to ensure their employees and the business itself are protected and in a strong position to keep moving forward.
The Right Partner Maximizes HRIS Technology Value
It’s easy to think that with the right HRIS technology, your HR team will have all that they need to manage this critical function efficiently. However, as with the implementation of any other technology or automation system, the system still needs to be configured, the team still needs to be properly trained, questions will arise as time goes on, and the needs of the business will change alongside growth.
All the while, your HR team will still be trying to make progress on strategic goals. It makes sense to work with a managed HR services company with an HRIS so they can provide the larger HR support while still offering the technology needed to make daily HR tasks faster and more efficient.
HRIS will be part of the package. Partnering with a company that not only provides HRIS technology but also outsourced HR services means you get the best of both worlds. In addition to assisting you with payroll, benefits, policies, and other needs, they’ll provide you with an advanced, all-in-one solution for managing the repetitive aspects of this work (and also giving employees a self-serve option).
They’ll assist with proper, accurate implementation. As described above, the last thing you need is to implement a system internally. Even with IT supporting you, there’s more to proper implementation than simply setting the HRIS up. Implementation design is an essential part of large-scale systems like these. Working with a partner that manages implementation while also configuring it to your goals will yield significant time and cost savings up front and down the road.
They’ll design efficient workflows that are specific to you. While standing an HRIS up is one step, ensuring it functions properly each daily is just as important. Information, data, messages, and more need to be channeled to the right people and systems. The right partner will work with you to understand how this information needs to move throughout your organization and will design the proper workflows to make it happen efficiently and accurately.
They’ll provide training and support. Up front, your partner will provide training to your team on how to use the HRIS technology and obtain the most value from it. As your team grows, they’ll be available to train new employees so they’re up to speed as quickly as possible and are in a strong position to start supporting both individual employees’ needs as well as contributing to the goals of the HR team as a whole.
They’ll assist with needs outside of the technology. A partner that provides both HRIS technology as well as professional employer organization (PEO) services will be available at all times to support your daily and strategic HR needs. At Cognos HR, this covers four key areas of 1) HR infrastructure, expertise, and support; 2) payroll administration and compliance; 3) group benefit plans, administration, and reporting; and 4) risk management.
They’ll be available as needs change. The past 18 months threw the world for a loop, and while we’re all still adapting and putting the pieces back together, expect this process to continue on for some time. As hiring, onboarding, benefits, and other areas of your HR function change, having a reliable partner on hand who understands policy development, regional tax and employment law, and HR best practices will be invaluable.
Partner with Cognos HR for Technology and HR Support
Our team has been supporting SMBs and large organizations alike with all aspects of HR for years. If you’ve been looking for a solution to a technology challenge, or are ready to partner with a firm that will be there for you at all times, connect with us today.