Large Organizations Face Unique HRMS/HRIS Challenges By: Date: May 15 2000 Very large organizations must confront

preconceived notions about their business processes and goals before they can successfully select and implement a new HRMS/HRIS system. "In general, what we find with really large companies is the complexities tend to mean a lot more infrastructure history," said Row Henson, vice president of HRMS product strategy at PeopleSoft. Because their HR systems and operations have usually been in place for many years, big organizations "have preconceived ideas about the HR/payroll process," Henson said. Those ideas can get in the way when it''s time to shop for a new HRMS/HRIS system. "The greatest pitfall is they spend all of their time and energy trying to duplicate their past environment," Henson said. LOOK FORWARD, NOT BACK Seeking to replicate a 25-year-old HR system is a waste of time, effort and money. Instead, Henson said, high-end organizations looking for new solutions should look to the future: what do they want to accomplish in the next five, 10 or 20 years, and what are the best tools now available to help them do so? Then, they should prepare to rethink their business practices to accommodate those tools. "If you''ve been doing something for 25 years, you''d better ask yourself why you''re still doing it," Henson said. Besides, she added, trying to recreate a highly customized system will be more expensive both upfront and in the future as the need to upgrade and grow arises. A company with 25,000 employees worldwide shouldn''t ask, "How can we find a new HRMS/HRIS system that does what we do now?" Instead, it should examine its long-term goals -- to build a workplace culture that attracts and keeps creative people, for instance -- then ask a top few vendors to run scenarios showing how their systems can achieve those goals. "The days of filling out these 1,000-page RFPs are just not an effective way to evaluate anymore," Henson said. SEEK GLOBAL BUY-IN Another challenge for large organizations seeking updated HR solutions is their typically global nature: far-flung operations and diverse workplace cultures can make it harder to win the needed buy-in from senior-level executives and managers. That''s especially true when the company includes numerous business lines encompassing several different industries. However, buy-in is critical to the success of any new HRMS/HRIS system.

"Especially if you''re a large, global company, you need buy-in across the globe," Henson said. "Customers with really successful implementation do a lot of buy-in." When a handful of decision-makers choose a new system without widespread input, "people in the field are going to resent it," she said. Cultural considerations are critical, too. For example, in Europe, information about employees is considered highly personal ... so data privacy is a top priority. KEEP THE END IN SIGHT Another hurdle for the large organization is the sheer size of any new HRMS/HRIS system it chooses to implement. A phased implementation plan can help a company see results quickly. However, too many phases can lead to a plan that''s never done ... and a system that never yields the strategic benefits it''s capable of. For example, an organization with a 10-phase implementation plan -- payroll first, benefits second, resume tracking and recruitment third, and so on -- might never get around to the final phases for knowledge management, succession planning and other tactical applications. The result is likely to be great disappointment for company leadership: a few years into the process, they''ll be asking about strategic applications only to learn the systems for those aren''t yet in place. "They''re going to say, ''But I thought that''s why we bought that product,'' " Henson said. BE CAREFUL WITH THE LIPSTICK Large organizations that might still be running their HR systems on mainframes should carefully consider the next step they want to take: go to client-server, or skip directly to the Internet. Henson said the company that can go straight to the Internet gives itself the greatest advantage for long-term functionality and strategic value. Organizations that aren''t ready for a complete conversion might buy a few years by adding Internet front-end tools to their mainframes, but it''s not the prettiest fix. It''s what HR solutions providers call "putting lipstick on a pig," Henson said -- it can add some analytical capability to an existing system, but it won''t take you as far as a full upgrade. "At least you need to buy something that can grow with you," she said. OUTSOURCE FOR VALUE Finally, large organizations should consider outsourcing some of their more administrative HR functions, rather than seeking HRMS/HRIS systems to handle all the same old tasks. While big corporations have traditionally handled most HR tasks in house, that''s changing, Henson said. For example, BP Amoco recently began outsourcing not just part, but all, of its HR functions. "Ten years ago, we would have never heard of that," Henson said. Even corporations that keep some functions in house are finding there are better areas on which to focus HR''s attention, she added.

"One of the frustrations in HR departments is that HR tends to be so intensely administrative," Henson said. "HR is struggling to find its real place on the boardroom level. If they can outsource (more administrative tasks), it adds more value to their processes." (Shirley Siluk Gregory is a Florida-based freelance business journalist and editor-in-chief of Bookhome Publishing.)

Introduction
The belief that the people working for a firm are one of its main assets and one of the decisive factors in determining its results is one that leaves little room for argument. There is no question regarding the fact that workers' qualities, attitudes and behavior in the workplace go a long way to accounting for a company's success or lack of it. While this type of resource is one over which companies do not have complete control, there do exist certain instruments to enable them to exert their influence on the quality and performance of the human capital on which they rely. The human resource information systems (HRIS) practices that they adopt will have a vital influence in this area and thereby on the results obtained by the firm. Driven by significant internal and external forces, HRIS has evolved from largely a maintenance function, to what many scholars and practitioners regard as a source of sustainable competitive advantage for organizations. HRIS has become a key vehicle for developing and improving organizational effectiveness In the information era, organizations are progressively incorporating ICT into their processes, using different tools and solutions. These tools are applied in a wide variety of ways (i.e., manufacturing resource planning, office automation, computer-supported cooperative work, distributed teams, supply-chain, enterprise-wide resource planning, or virtual integration). ICT is transforming organizations and the way that people work, interact and, feel in knowledge-based organizations. To cope with these new human resources challenges, it is necessary to review and to transform organizational HRM practices. Those in the world of human resources management are often accused of living in an ivory tower, managing the human side of their organizations in ways that lack relevance in the new information era. The impetus for the HRM change comes from recognition of recent developments in the HRM profession and a realization that the current practices do not reflect those changes, especially those changes related with ITC strategies. In the information society, HR/HRIS managers need to rethink how to deploy and mobilize the more valuable corporate resource: the human capital. HR management professionals are becoming strategic business partners in their organizations, capable of contributing to the improvement of the organization's competitive advantage. Whether human resources contribute to competitive advantage in the new business world depends critically on the chosen strategies. Given this strategic focus, practices needed to be revised in order to help HR professionals in their new role. Recognizing the need for substantive revision and greater emphasis on relevant human resources management, any HR manager should begin the process of policies change and

adjustment. Towards that end, this Encyclopedia will focus on describing a collaborative effort between human resource management practitioners, HR faculty, and HR researchers. The effort will be focused on the revision of the human resource management practices in the knowledge era. In this process, a brief review of both personal and managerial competencies and abilities is also needed. This Encyclopedia is a holistic but rigorous analysis about key critical HR variables. Our goal is to become a helpful reference for both practitioners and academics. There are undiscovered issues in HR field. This Encyclopedia can be used to search for key concepts and further information about any dimension related to managing people in the information society. So, the general aims of this Encyclopedia are to describe the current state of HRIS in the ICT era and to provide new knowledge on effective e-HRM practices.

System Challenges for Organizations in a Recession

These days, rare is the organization undertaking a major system initiative. On the contrary, many organizations are struggling to survive and carry out basic operations, trying to do more with fewer employees. This article focuses on system considerations for organizations in lean economic times with respect to enterprise systems. Enterprise Systems, Staff Reductions, and Employee Training Systems do not exist in a vacuum. A state of the art system run by too few or poorly-trained employees poses great risk to organizations. No HRIS or payroll system can possibly catch every type of mistake. The current economic climate exacerbates this risk. With respect to headcount, layoffs increase the vicious cycle of risk to organizations: Organizations have an incentive to trim staff and reduceif not eliminateformal training and opportunities for end-users to learn. This solidifies many end-users bad habits and suboptimal processing methods. Many end-users responsibilities have increased significantly In the event of layoffs, more work among fewer employees means even less time for cross pollination. Management should be careful when cutting non-essential employees, as they can quickly become essential. For example, an organization has four HR clerks to process paperwork. While no one clerk is absolutely essential, reducing that number to two now changes that equation. If staff reductions are truly necessary, organizations must ensure that departing employees daily responsibilities are both sufficiently documented and well-understood by others in the organization before they leave. Organizations need to identify essential employees via succession planning. Which individuals can the organization not afford to lose? It is imperative that they are proactive; they should attempt to anticipate any key employee defections.

On the training front, organizations should strongly consider cross-training end-users in multiple functions. Two super users with substantial skills and a global perspective may be able to do the work of three or four limited end-users, especially if they are skilled in different automation methods. For example, consider Mary, an end-user who is very skilled at Microsoft Excel. Her organization has a Crystal Reports license, but no one really uses it. Sending her to a class would allow the organization to finally realize the benefits of Crystal; no longer would reports have to be cobbled together manually. Considerations for Existing Systems Organizations have many options with regard to their current enterprise systems. Maintain the Status Quo Many organizations have postponed current system optimization, enhancement, and upgrade initiatives. Projects cut or put on hold mid-stream almost always lose momentum, increasing total costs if and when they are resumed. While this may save money in the short- and midterms, there may well be long-term strategic implications of such a stoppage. A company may save money by cancelling its business intelligence (BI) project but will not be able to mine its data for key business trends and drivers. Optimize If the budget exists, organizations should utilize consultants to identify ways in which currentlydeployed systems can be improved. They should focus on known applications and processes with significant room for improvement. For example, a recent client of mine manually entered time cards for biweekly payroll for over five hundred employees every two weeks. The payroll manager asked me, Should we purchase and implement Kronos? Time and cost did not justify this. Instead, I recommended deploying the current applications automation tools and employee self-service. Those would provide much of the benefit at a fraction of the cost. Go Naked Organizations can forgo annual vendor support, in the process saving thousands in support fees. Risks and considerations of this option include the following: This is easier if the organization is on a very mature version of an application. Organizations should not even think about this if they take out local taxes in states such as Ohio Pennsylvania. It requires a very knowledgeable end-user base. Organizations need to have a contingency plan through an independent support party should a technical issue manifest itself. Despite the benefits, the squeeze is probably not worth the juice. Renegotiate Support Agreements with Vendors

Clients should talk to vendors about renegotiating support agreementsor at least locking them down. Senior management may be able to haggle over support with vendors over existing agreements. Some vendors will commit to a more palatable annual support number if the client agrees to purchase additional products or services in the mid- or long-term. Vendors decommission older versions of applications, in effect forcing clients to upgrade to supported versions. A vendor that has eighty percent of its clients on version 8 probably will not continue to support version 6 forever. System Expansion If end-users have sufficient capacity, organizations may be able to deploy add-on technologies to eliminate redundant processing methods and increase efficiencies. However, if current or planned staffing levels do not support the use of add-on technologies, then organizations should postpone purchasing and implementing them. It is better to undertake these projects when end-users will have time to actually use them. One benefit of increased IT investment stems from the tax code. The current stimulus bill contains increased Section 179 limits and extra depreciation for business capital expenditures. This includes software (source: irs.gov). Consult your tax department to see how these provisions can benefit your organization if it purchases software in 2009. Perhaps tax advantages may result in a project essentially paying for itself. Make sure that your organization has enough resources to support any new initiatives. Conclusion Many factors drive each organizations system-related activities. In todays economy, those activities are viewed under an increasingly powerful microscope. The options discussed in this article should help senior management make the right system-related choices.
Sharing your HRIS Data: The Benefits and the Challenges

By Diana Matwichuk, CHRP

A show of hands who likes to share? The amount of arm movement in response to that question can depend on a lot of factors, not the least of which is: what is being shared?

In terms of an HRIS, sharing data is usually a given, and there are measures that can be taken to facilitate this - allowing for significant benefits to the organization, while avoiding the need for group therapy data-sharing sessions!

The Big Picture

Think back, think way back, to a time before your HRIS was implemented. This may have been a period marked by widespread spreadsheet usage. Everyone has a job to do, there is data required in order to complete those tasks, and that data needs to be maintained. As adaptive humans, we generally do what needs to be done. But that widespread spreadsheet use probably also involved redundant data and duplicate maintenance effort.

Consider, too, the amount of effort required to update employee data in the HRIS and respond to questions from employees regarding that data. Is it significant?

Principal: Avoiding Redundant Data

Redundant data implies that it exists elsewhere in the organization. It is a standard data management principal to avoid redundant data, given that it poses risk of error and introduces additional effort to maintain it, both of which are immediate or potential costs to the organization.

It is that redundant data of the past that will be the starting point for your shared data in the HRIS.

Trend: Employee Web Services

Advances in technology are now making it possible to open up HRIS data to employees on the web, and even via handheld communication devices. This can virtually eliminate the chunk of effort that was identified earlier, to update HRIS employee data and respond to employees' questions.

The Benefits

When HRIS data is made available on a need-to-know basis to stakeholders, this opens up reporting possibilities that can provide needed metrics to support the setting of strategy, or provide for consolidated corporate reporting. Integrity of data is more assured when redundant data is eliminated, because the data is only being maintained in one place there isn't the chance of discrepancies that can exist between multiple versions of the same data.

If employee data is being opened up on web services for update, not only is this an instant time-saver, but it can actually act as an audit of that data. Employees will be quick to update data on the web that is not current, or inform you so that it can be corrected!

The Challenges

Redundant data must be identified and owners of that data established for the sake of its maintenance. This decision can sometimes produce unrest in the organization if any qualms about sharing exist. There needs to be trust that the data will be maintained accurately so that reliance can be placed on reporting by all stakeholders. Adequate securities must also be in place to ensure that the opening up of HRIS data is not too wide, in order to maintain privacy of data. Identification of where data exists in the organization can also be an issue, if this has not already been mapped out.

Follow these steps to prepare for sharing your HRIS data:

1. Take a Step Back

Whether you are firmly entrenched in your current HRIS, or embarking on its implementation, a first step to effectively sharing data is to know exactly what data will be shared. Scoping this out and documenting it is invaluable, as it will be the basis for planning for, or enhancing use of your HRIS. Sometimes management support is required to encourage stakeholder buy-in for this analysis.

2. Define Data Ownership

Discuss who will own each piece of shared data and establish procedures for maintaining that data.

3. Define Securities

Set up security levels for accessing different data sets. In the context of web services, for any particular piece of data, you may need to define securities at a broad level, as well as at the employee level this would allow the HRIS user to be able to update employee data on an exception basis, even though the general responsibility for maintaining that data would be on the employee.

4. Ensure that Stakeholder Reporting Requirements are Met

Ensure that it is easy for stakeholders to obtain the information and reports they require from the HRIS. If this is not done, then individuals in the organization who rely on the shared data will revert back to maintaining it themselves on spreadsheets. Encourage use of the HRIS and its reporting capabilities.

5. Establish a Process for Additions to the Shared Data Pool

Since organizations are not static, it is inevitable that future additions to the pool of shared data will arise. Establish a set of standard procedures for defining that new data, and its addition to the HRIS. Having these procedures in place will ensure that stakeholders do not begin maintaining the new data on their own, when its logical place for maintenance is in the HRIS that is how situations of redundant data begin.

In Summary

The effort involved in revamping your organization's HR data situation to eliminate redundant data, place data maintenance in its rightful spot and set yourselves up for best practice HR data maintenance can be justified by the resultant benefits. Risk of error and duplicate data maintenance effort can pose costs to the organization. Elimination of these costs is often enough to justify the effort, but the added (and sometimes unexpected) benefit lies in the process. When stakeholders come to the table for these discussions, and as sharing of data infiltrates the organizational culture, there is an inherent feeling of team-work which can spill over into other areas.

Best Answer
Ads exist for one reason and one reason only, to influence people in some way, whether that is to influence them to buy or to influence them to your point of view. A bad ad is one that does not get the response that you desire. If you want more people to buy your product and it doesn't happen then the ad is bad. If you want to drive people to a web site and it doesn't happen then the ad is bad. One ad can be good and it can also be bad. It could be that you use the same ad in two different publications, in one it gets the response you desire in the other it doesn't. So the ad is good in one set of circumstances but bad in another. You could say here that the ad placement choice was bad and not the ad itself. It should have either been a different ad for that publication or that publication should not have been used.
HR Technologies helps organizations gain a competitive edge by increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the way they manage their most valuable asset: people.

HR Technologies' products and services are designed to help organizations achieve this fundamental business goal.

Our solutions are aimed at solving real-life business challenges. Below, we have identified some of the more common employee information-management problems and have provided you with the most effective solutions. HR Technologies works with organizations to address these issues and more . . . every business day!

Choose the items from the following list of problems to view the suggested solution(s). If you can't find a problem that is relevant to your situation, click here to tell us about it. Our solution consultants will work diligently to provide you with the most appropriate answer. HRIS Challenges

Employee information located in too many different places. Difficult to access historical employee information. Difficult to identify vacancies and create accurate Org Charts. Missed employee reviews. Inability to generate "What If" analysis. Employee information is not available to management or employees. Difficulty in managing Vacation accruals and balances. Lack an effective tool to track and analyze staff competencies, skills, or training. No simple and powerful reporting tool. Manual Benefits Administration Finding a global system to meet the needs of international organizations

Business Problem

HR Technologies' Solution

Employee information located in too many different places.

Information maintained in multiple sources and formats is a major source of inefficiency in HR departments. This problem results in a tremendous amount of needless duplication, which in turn inevitably results in inaccurate reports. The HR function plays an administrative game of catch up and becomes reactive as opposed to proactive.

Solution: SuperHR TM & OdysseyHR TM

Consolidate all your employee information in one integrated and easy to use database. The system allows you to integrate all of your employee's personal information, benefits, vacation/sick, salary, performance, and the list goes on. The system will help you to more efficiently manage all aspects of the HR function by eliminating redundant activity.

Difficult to access historical employee information.

Maintaining an accurate history of employee activities and interaction with your organization can be difficult. Reporting on such historical information when it's not located in a centralized and integrated database is often impossible.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM

Track and report on all employee activities with an unlimited amount of history. Record and report on historical items such as salary, performance reviews, discipline meetings, job and position, department, union affiliation, seniority dates, plus much more. Intergrated report writing also allows you to quickly develop historical management reports including a unique "Point in Time" mode that provides you with an accurate picture of your organization at any point in its history.

Difficult to identify vacancies and create accurate Organization Charts.

One of the most frustrating times for management occurs when they want a picture of the organization's structure. Without a tool to manage this structure, the process of accurately knowing who reports to whom, exactly what positions are filled and which are vacant is a tedious manual process. Producing organization charts becomes a grade 3 level exercise in cut and paste.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM

By implementing Position Control (SuperHR) or supervisor management with requisitions (OdysseyHR) you are clearly defining the true reporting structure of your organization. Open Positions and Open Requisitions allow you to clearly report on Job Openings within the organization. When an employee is moved or terminated, processes are put in place to update the supervisor relationships throughout the database.

Missed employee reviews.

HR departments continually have to remember future activities. Such activities include annual salary and performance reviews, training or license re-certification, and service awards - to name just a few. Having a manual "bring-forward" or "tickler" file is tedious and is just asking for something to be missed. Managers and employees need to be notified

about upcoming events, and the organization needs to be able to report on reviews still outstanding.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM

The system allows you to automatically remind yourself of upcoming events such as employee reviews, annual training re-certification, or license renewals. The system will also identify missed or incomplete reviews so that the appropriate managers can be notified in a prompt fashion.

Inability to generate "What If" analysis.

In addition to reporting on the current situation, management needs to analyze the effect of any proposed changes throughout the organization. For example what is the effect of a 3.5% increase in salary in this region, 4.5% in another region, and what are the changes in associated costs such as salary-based benefits and proposed bonus plans? In addition, once a proposed increase has been authorized, it is often difficult to efficiently apply the increase and update payroll.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM Salary and Benefits Administration, Intergrated Report Writing

The system provides you with the ability to carry out "what if" scenarios on employee's rates of a pay and the company's salary grade structures. The ad report writer, SuperQR, allows you to perform a nearly unlimited array of calculations on your data so that you may create management reports on the effect of any proposed changes. After these changes are implemented in a mass update, the new values are then electronically sent to payroll.

Employee information is not available to management or employees.

In traditional organizations, employees outside of the HR function do not have access to HR information due to the sensitive nature of the data. Many of today's organizations want management to have this information to interact effectively with their employees. Communication can also be extremely inefficient with the volume of the calls to HR regarding reviews, discipline meetings, vacation accruals, benefits eligibility and more.

Solution: Manager and Employee Self-Service

The system will allow users outside of the HR department to access the information they need to do their jobs more effectively. Typically organizations will allow employees to see and update their personal information such as home address and emergency contact information. They will also allow employees to "read only" information such as vacation accruals and benefits summaries. You can also push some administrative tasks out to the front line managers by providing access to appropriate areas of the system, and see only the people they supervise.

Difficulty in managing Vacation

Organizations usually have well defined and often complicated vacation accrual rules and

accruals and balances.

policies. Administering these policies can be difficult in areas such as: identifying employees to move up from accruing at a rate of 2 weeks/year to accruing at a rate of 3 weeks/year, or calculating a terminated employee's vacation pay, or accurately reporting the company's vacation liability at any point in time.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM Attendance Administration

The system allows you to automate the process of managing vacation accruals and calculating balances. Your organization's policies are entered directly into the system, and accrual rates and amounts are maintained by the system. As vacation days are entered in the system, the balances are updated accordingly and you simply run reports to analyze the data in order to identify trends and anomalies. No more having to track who should move from one accrual rate to another.

Lack of an effective tool to track and analyze staff competencies, skills, or training.

Organizations know the importance of developing and maintaining a well-trained workforce. The first part of the challenge however is to determine the requirements of the jobs within your organization. The second part is to record training, skills, and competencies of your employees. The third is to identify employees best suited for a job, and for those who don't have the required skill set, determine the best available training to close the gap.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM Training/Skills/Competencies

This system provides you with the ability to clearly define both the requirements of any job and the skill set of your employees. Using reports you clearly see the gap between the desired skill set at the job level and the acquired skill set at the employee level. Based upon this gap, you may now create a training plan to effectively close this gap.

No simple and powerful reporting tool. It's fair to say that most of us in Human Resources do not have a computer programming background. This situation can make it difficult to use many of the sophisticated reporting tools used today. As the reporting tools become more powerful, the user has to be more like a programmer. As a result, the HR department will increasingly place greater demands on IT resources.

Solution: Simple Intergrated Ad Hoc Reporting

Our intergrated report writers provide a balance between reporting power and ease of use. The system is powerful enough to perform calculations and produce the type of analysis necessary for organizations today, in combination with the ease of use that HR Professionals demand. The system puts power and system ownership clearly in the hands of the HR department, while providing the autonomy within the timelines that HR Professionals expect.

Manual Benefits Administration

Benefits administration can be a frustrating and costly area of data management. The

challenges seem endless. Some of these challenges include: communicating new/expired benefits and benefit changes to the carrier, re-keying information into the software provided by the benefits carrier, lack of control over reconciling the Premium Billing Statement, remembering when new benefits are to become effective, communication details of benefits coverage to employees, manually updating benefits when rates/salaries change, and the list goes on.

Solution: SuperHRTM & OdysseyHR TM Benefits, Carrier Interface, Premium Statement

Benefits administration has never been easier. The system automates all aspects of your benefits program. Enter a new hire in to the system and the benefits effective dates are calculated automatically based on the business rules of your plans. As changes occur such as benefits rates, family status changes, as well as salaries, benefits are recalculated on mass in a single step. The appropriate changes automatically appear in the monthly Premium Billing Statement, and your carrier can be notified electronically via the Benefits Carrier Interface.

Finding a global system to meet the needs of international organizations

OdysseyHR takes advantage of our technical expertise to empower your organization to meet the challenges of the global realities. OdysseyHR will help you deal with the challenges of cultural diversity, foreign government requirements, language issues, data privacy and document retention

If you can't find your specific problem in the above list that is relevant to your situation, click here to tell us about it. Our solution consultants will work diligently to provide you with the most appropriate answer. You can also call us at us at 1-800-613-5317 and we will be delighted to help. Privacy Policy | Legal | Request For Information | Contact Our Team Copyright 2001 HR Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. Web site development by AVA Multimedia Inc.