Digitization of HR - Why you need it and how to do it best

HR is often left behind as the organization transforms and goes digital. Often the reasoning is along the lines of "they're just doing payroll and holiday applications anyway". Suddenly, the department that works with the company's most important resource - people - becomes something of a Cinderella. The laggard who has to put up with working with yesterday's solutions while the stepchildren get new fancy digital systems.

In today's knowledge society where skills are hard currency, there is every reason to digitize HR. It's the department that recruits and nurtures the people who drive innovation and lead you to success. It deserves tools that allow HR staff to work efficiently.

When you collect information digitally on salaries, hiring, skills needs, working hours, employee opinions and engagement, you learn much more about your organization. You'll have a solid foundation that allows you to make better forecasts and more informed decisions, leading to better results.

Data analytics can add value to training, development and, most importantly, employee engagement. Digital HR systems with simple processes to measure engagement, and with smart analytics tools, improve HR processes and boost engagement.

A digitized HR department makes life easier for all parties. Mobile solutions allow employees to do their business quickly, smoothly and location-independently, such as time reporting, expense reimbursement, leave requests, sick leave, and attaching electronic receipts to travel expenses. The same goes for interested talent, who can easily view, find out about and apply for vacancies. Management can access important and up-to-date data on employees, allowing them to spot and address anomalies, trends, etc. at an early stage.

Project work, gig economy, remote work and flexible workplaces are the new normal. All your employees need to access their tools wherever they are. Digital HR gives them the power to work as flexible and mobile as needed.

There is a battle for the most skilled workforce and the attractive talents can choose where they want to work. Their first encounter with a potential employer is HR. If they are met with outdated methods and technology, they may turn around at the door and seek out a more up-to-date competitor. Today, digital recruitment processes are more or less considered standard by the new generation of talent.

Pre- and onboarding now need to be complemented by reboarding. That is, reintroducing employees, for example after a long absence, when they change departments, are rehired, etc. But reboarding is also a long-term process of informing and engaging employees so that they retain the same spark and level of knowledge, whether it's their first week or twentieth year on the job. That process requires smart and effective tools.

It's not just in production and sales where efficiency equals cost reduction. Efficient and faster processes, deeper insights and automated tasks save tons of time and resources in HR too. Any savings are good savings.

When automated processes free up time, HR can use it to tap into its goldmine of information, contributing to the company's strategy and development. After all, they work with the company's most important resource. HR has a unique insight into the workforce, seeing what skills are available and what are needed. HR understands what employees need to do their job, has deep insights into what motivates and engages them, and knows how to keep them healthy and happy. When it's time to recruit, HR knows where to find and how to attract top talent. It also knows how to make them stay. HR can also carry out quantitative assessments to increase productivity. Give it the right tools to do its job and it will guide you to success.

Today, once an organization realizes that HR needs a boost, it is mainly individual areas that go digital. The most common are recruitment, employee surveys, salary mapping and personnel data. All the other HR processes are forgotten because they are not seen as important. This is usually because there hasn't been a full ROI calculation that takes into account all the benefits. There is also the old attitude of 'let's do what we've always done, it's worked so far'. An old and outdated truth that today has aged to become a pure brake block. With the right calculations that provide the right justification, it is possible to move forward with digitization, but do it in the right way.

Start by carefully analyzing the needs of your business and translating them into a clear requirements specification. This makes it much easier to evaluate and find a suitable solution and supplier. It also makes it easier for the supplier to produce exactly what the organization needs.

Involve employees and find internal ambassadors for HR digitalization. They know which processes are most important. They will also be more comfortable with the new way of working if they are involved from the start and have a say.

Leverage the expertise of business consultants who not only know ERP and HR systems, but also have experience of the unique needs of the different parts of a business. This type of supplier can develop a well-planned delivery that meets all requirements (including future ones) and can be rolled out smoothly without disrupting daily operations.

If the organization already uses an ERP system that is scalable, it is easy to replace and adapt it so that HR is involved and works in the same solution. Solutions such as Visma.net are very flexible and scalable. They are developed precisely so that all parts of an organization can work with the same system, even if they have different tasks and working methods.

With a modern ERP solution, it's easy to digitize your entire business. With the right partner, bringing HR into the digital world doesn't have to be a hassle, where it definitely belongs.

Talk to us at Traventus today if you want to know more about digital HR!