Users and your HR system

In the last blog, I wrote about the top most factor that organizations usually consider while making the choice for a HR system. This blog discusses the next important aspect that needs to be considered – the users of the HR system. While technically this is getting listed second, Users are as important as Budget when it comes to making a decision.

Any system rollout is declared a success only when the users adopt to it and use the system as it should be rightfully used. The role of IT is to leverage automation and enable business processes and hence usability is a single most criterion in determining the success of an IT project. In case of HR, users and usability matter even more than other processes, because for most HR systems user group comprises the entire employee base. It is almost impossible to train all of them to use a new system and employees are notorious in adopting manual short cuts if systems are hindering their day to day work instead of helping them get things done faster.

When it comes to users, it helps to keep two factors in mind.
1. The nature of the users – Think about if your users are computer savvy or even access to computers at the workplace. This can determine the extent of Self Service and automation you can introduce with a new HR system.
2. The nature of interaction – Consider how business critical the nature of user interaction is. For example, Annual Enrollment happens once a year and most employees access a Benefits Administration system only in that period of the year. However, the piece of information that gets captured during that process is critical for the HR process. Such process capsules should be kept clear and clutter free to make it easy for the end user.

Interestingly, most of the latest HR systems are built on web technologies and don’t make a huge distinction between enabling Self Service and not providing one. Most HR products have made it very easy to turn the Self Service bit on or off. So while you may not save a lot by not exposing your larger employee base to all the process nuances of the HR application, depending on your users, it may just make the process more efficient not to do so.

Use Self Service where it makes sense. Make an automated process accessible to the end user where it makes business sense and the application is simple enough for the user to handle.

More importantly think about the end users, their pain points and what will make them adhere to and manage a process. Your new system should make your HR processes simple, direct and easy to use for them, because therein lies the actual success of your implementation.