How To Profit From Human Resource Management Software?

Human resource management software develops a system on whose foundations an organization is built. In fact it also strengthens the structure of the organization by lending vital fluidity reporting and payroll management. Human resource automation has been in vogue for decades now. The question that continues to sustain interest among corporate human resource manager is:

“How to profit from a human resource management software?”

In the quest for the best answer to this question, companies need to do some introspection on strategy, structure and systems. The interplay of these three factors determines the utility of a human resource management software. Strategy determines how the top management intends to navigate through challenges in the long term. Structure determines reporting relationships in the company and thus indirectly points towards, defining roles, responsibilities and accountability. The system decides employee and enterprise performance. A human resources management software should be used against the backdrop of the three factors mentioned above.

The Strategy Should Encompass Both The Long Run And The Short Run

An enterprise is built for it to last long, not for the leader to last long. At the heart of this statement lies the fact that sustainability of the enterprise holds the key. Sustainability of an enterprise is determined in the long run, by actions that are performed in the short run. It would make good sense here to borrow a leaf out of the book of Indian management style. The short run is about efficiency. It is about actions that the spell excellence of execution. It is about achieving targets with minimum resource and time engagement. A good human resource management software should possess the capability to monitor people performance on the metric of efficiency in the short run. Efficiency can never be compromised upon in the short run. It is the standard on which companies should compare their output against inputs. Most companies do follow efficiency as a metric to execute performance appraisal, rewards and penalties. The other half though is taken for granted by many companies. In the long run, companies should look beyond efficiency. The appropriate metric to measure employee and enterprise performance in the long run is effected. It is worthwhile to understand the following statement:

“The honey bee in its quest for nectar flies in circular formations with every ring leading it forward.”

While companies strive for efficiency in every action they perform, the process of nature is not efficient. The honey bee eventually surges forward in the direction of its destination, but does not move in a straight linear trajectory. It is the same with employees. In the long run, effectiveness counts more than efficiency. As a starting point, companies can reorganize human resource management on the basis of the hundred day rule. Goals can be set for a hundred days. Performance appraisals can be done very hundred days. The top leadership can monitor the direction of the company and also its speed. The human resource management software should practically take two views of employee performance, one for daily performance and the other for a hundred days. The twin lens of efficiency and effectiveness, if embedded in a human resource management software makes it all the more full proof.

The Structure Should Overhaul Reporting Management

Basic organizational structure refers to the skeleton of the company. It defines one to one reporting relationships and indirectly frames boss-subordinate relationships. Of course reporting relationships are necessary. But conventional wisdom of one to one reporting makes for watertight compartments of communication. The same employee may have to report to more than one person on the course of a project. Moreover interdepartmental communication is also used frequently. This is where there is a pressing need for a personal information management system. A centralized platform for communication with customizable access levels of information for different users in the organization can go a long way in dispelling coordination failure. A modern human resource information system works with transparency and openness. Opaqueness leads to secrecy and multiple versions of reporting on the same action. The intelligent way to use a human resource management software is to set different levels of information, access to the communication platform on a “need to know basis.” Enlightened democracy when administered this way through an employee management software removes the “myst on the screen.”

The System Should Empower People At The Grassroot Level

Corporations have paid lip service to employee empowerment in the recent past. Realizing the agenda of employee empowerment needs a bold vision and a positive intent. For employees to be self motivated, it is imperative that decisions be taken at the point where the corporation meets the customer. This leads to customer centric behavior on the part of employees. To put customers first, companies must empower employees at the grass root level to take initiatives. Decisions taken from the office of the CEO and guided behavior has been proven to adversely impact creativity and innovation. Human resource management functions should take cognizance of the fact that unless employees are groomed at junior levels with assignments and decision making, they will not be able to produce a pipeline of leadership for the future. Employees should be assessed on the basis of self motivated actions to solve business problems, rather than simply on the basis of assigned targets. The “compliance school” produces efficient workers, but not leaders. A good employee management software like Netfunda People recognizes initiatives and sets the ball rolling for proactive behavior at the workplace. It should ideally have a customizable platform to enable the measurement of effectiveness of new ideas, self motivated actions and whistle-blowing on the gray areas. In such a scenario, more importance would be given to actual work done than just time engagement at the office.

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