IT and HR Planning
Since
late 1990s, unprecedented growth and advancement in the Information Technology
(IT) sector has been witnessed. As a result, most organizations have set aside
funding for research and development activities with a major focus on how to
effectively integrate technology in the business operations. One of the major areas in which information
technology has proven to be useful is in human resource (HR) planning, where IT
application ranges from employee data storage to the provision of employee
self-assessment and the guidance into career development. Such IT applications are utilized by the departmental
heads especially in planning for the future succession of the retiring or
promoted employees and in the determination of ways to improve the employee
participation and performance (Torres-Coronas, 2009). Thus, the paper explores the various ways in which IT aids in HR
planning, various application software most appropriate to the HR departments
and the difficulties faced by the human resource management during the
implementation phase of the IT usage.
Definition
of Terms
1.
Information
Technology
IT
mainly basically comprises all the computer application software and the
hardware components including computer networking and other advanced
communications technologies. IT is ideal in the projection of the approximated
supply and demand levels in a business organization with the basis on the
utmost realistic scenarios. Additionally, the reliability of information
technology has been confirmed over the years in the provision of a solution to
complex problems faced by the human resource decision makers with regards to
the hiring and firing of the personnel (Boroughs et al. 2012).
2.
Human
Resource Planning
HR
planning is the entire process that seeks to make a proper identification of
both the current and the future workforce needs for the corporation to successfully
implement its mandate. Notably HR planning serves as a link between the
personnel top level management and the institutional strategic plan as a whole.
It includes the employer brand creation, the strategy for retaining the
employees, how to manage the employee absence and the selection and recruitment
strategy.
3.
Human
Resource Information System (HRIS)
HRIS
is composed of the system software and the appropriate hardware, the system
procedures and policies, and other functions that support, gather, and ensure
the reporting of the human resource related activities.
4.
Enterprise
ERP
refers to the commercially available software systems used in the integration
and the automation of the entire business process that is set in a given
organization. Essentially, ERP promotes the utilization of a centralized
database containing organizational data and can be shared and retrieved by
various departments (Ray , 2011).
Integration of this software with the HR planning software ensures automation
of most of the tasks, hence saving on the cost of hiring experts. Also, the
software effectively cut on wastage of time observed in the manual system of
resource planning.
HR
planning Activities Supported by IT utilization
1.
Data
Storage
One
of the core capabilities of the information system is data storage for future
reference and easier retrieval. As such, the HR department utilizes this
computer ability to keep employee data regarding their monthly or annual wages,
the assigned vacation period and the times for sick leave. The data is crucial
especially for future planning as to who should relieve an employee on vacation
or sick leave. Thus, such early plans enabled by IT greatly minimize the level
of irregularities and uncertainties and other challenges that can ensue in the
case of its non-utilization.
2.
Data
transfer to the Outside Payroll System
The
stored data in the Human Resource Information System is easily transferrable to
an external payroll system, provided there is adequate internet connectivity.
Therefore, the burden of the data inaccessibility and the time constraint in
planning for future payments for the employees --as in the case of a manual
system --is effectively neutralized.
3.
Generation
of the Organizational Charts
Organizational
charts are important, especially in planning and clearly outlining the
organizational chain of command, both vertically and horizontally. In a growing organization, the creation of
new posts requires ample planning and careful consideration of where the new employees
would best fit in the organizational structure. It is a tedious and a
time-consuming process if done manually (Dua et al. 2012). However, there is
already designed application software that aids the HR planners in the
generation of the organizational Charts. In fact, the software accurately
eliminates the flaws as they emerge in the initial stages of the chart
generation, hence improving its reliability.
4.
Posting
of Job Openings
The
ability to link the organizational database system to the Worldwide Web enables
the HR planners to easily post job openings and the application procedures to
the potential recruits. Due to the wider exposure of the positions to the wider
public, the firm shall receive a large number of applications, of which the best
few can be selected for consideration. The entire application process can
further be automated, enabling the HR planners to engage in other tasks of
importance to the organizational development.
5.
Labor
Cost Tracking
From
the employee data and their remunerations stored in the system, the HR planners
have an opportunity of retrieving the data when needed. For instance, the
planners can determine the and regulate the labor cost through tracking the day
to day expenditure on labor activities, which is made easier through the
facilitation of the information technology. Tracking of labor cost eases the
planning process due to its ability to provide data for projection of future
labor requirements; hence the need to come up with the strategies in the
present to help mitigate that leads to the cost hiking.
6.
Employee
Self-Assessment and Career Development
Much
application software have been designed specifically designed to meet the needs
of the assessment of employees t the workplace to determine their potential and
the benefit gained by the firm through utilization of their skills. In
addition, the system offers the employees an opportunity to develop their
skills to meet their career requirement. It should be noted that the employee
assessment data records can be retrieved by the HR planners for use in
determining best-suited employee for promotion or a new job offering (Werner et
al. 2009).
7.
Ergonomics
Assessment Assistance to Employees
Years
of careful observation of the employee behavior and performance enable the HR
strategists to design ingenious programs aimed at offering assistance to the
employees by exploiting their full potential. The programs can be executed in
the HR IT system to enable easier reference and utilization of employees as per
the recommendations of their departmental heads. Eventually, its effective
utilization will yield fruits, enabling the entity to move closer towards
attainment of the set long-term goals.
8.
Measurement
of Needs and Diversity Initiative Results
Information
technology use incorporates the provision of a statistical analysis and
graphical depictions of the progress of the newly diversified initiatives with
a focus on the HR department. The analysis enables the HR planners and
strategists to tactfully come up with a classification of the employee and
organizational needs in accordance to the priorities and appropriateness.
Eventually, such measurements can be used in improving the level of employee
satisfaction, hence their motivation to fulfill the needs of the organization.
9.
Benefits
Records by the Employees
Large
organizations utilize a personnel IT system that enable the employees to open
up virtual data accounts. As a result, the workforce is provided with a unique
opportunity to feed in personal information, with an assurance of utmost
confidentiality by the HR department. In
turn, the HR planners have a chance to gather first-hand information about the
employee welfare, for instance, their benefits records. Armed with the data,
the planners can easily conceive ideas on how to improve the future performance
of the employees in the organization.
10. Online Service Delivery
In
the present times, the HR strategists and planners have and the option of
incorporating a workforce that can be able to work at home or anywhere on the
globe. The initiative is made possible by the advancement and reliability in
the internet connectivity, the introduction of the cloud computing and the
digitization of most of the tasks in the modern society. The integration eases
the burden for hiring of the office space; further diminishing the operational
costs.
Steps
for the Selection of an IT Solution for HRM Planning
The
following are some of the steps adhered to when choosing the most appropriate
HRM planning IT application (Nasir, 2013):
1. Needs Analysis
The
HR management should determine the major needs that will be fulfilled by the
technology. This involves considering the system credibility, the growth
progress of the company and the level of effective management of the company’s
human capital.
2. Marketplace Exploration
The
strategists are required to have a keen observation of the latest product in
the market that has a higher chance of meeting the current needs in the
organization. This should be done with reference to the outcome of the initial
step.
3. Issuance of a Proposal request
After
the careful exploration of the marketplace and the subsequent determination of
the appropriate IT product, the HR department has a chance of notifying the IT
Company’s sales department of their Interest in the IT product. As such, it is
necessary for the planners to request for a demonstration on how the product
works before fully committing the firm’s resources on the same.
4. Vendor and Product Evaluation
Vendor
evaluation is necessary for determining the capability of the provision of
future maintenance and repair services when needed. Additionally, the vendor
should be able to meet or exceed the needs of ISO
certification. On the other hand, critical evaluation of the product enables
the HR department to have a clear and an in-depth understanding of the
product’s capability. In essence, it will aid in the decision-making process
about the integration of the product in the business operations.
Technology
Applications for HR Planning
The
following are some of the technology applications that are highly responsive to
the unique requirements of Human Resource Planning and Strategies (Niehaus,
2013):
1.
Workforce
Analytics
Workforce
analytics is the application software that focuses on addressing the imminent
challenges experienced when gathering the business intelligence data to HR
management in the planning as well as the entire strategic decision-making
process. In fact, the best-designed applications have the ability to provide an
on- demand access to the performance of the workforce at any given time.
Secondly, the software provides dashboards; enabling the HR planners to have
adequate information at their disposal. Lastly, it enables the determination
and analysis of the root cause, comparison provisions and the current trends in
human resource (In Disselkamp, 2013)
2.
Management
and Scheduling of Workforce
The
application software specifically designed for the scheduling and optimization
of the workforce has numerous applications necessary for effective and optimum
deployment of employees. The application software, for instance, has an ability
to create schedules that can account for various variables including call volumes
and time for holding meetings.
3.
Skills Inventory
These
are the application software best suited for retrieval of vital information for
use in the assessment of talent supply within the organization. The application
holds data regarding the personal employee records and their skill profile. The
data can include the names, the employee rank and their work history. Other
information includes the recommendations and the education level: all of which
are useful in the planning process in the organization.
4.
Charts
Focused on Replacement
The
application software designates the entire process of sourcing for the most
suited replacement personnel for a vacant managerial post. This software for
replacement planning gives the management an opportunity to track the overall
performance of the incumbent employees and those of the potential candidates.
Additionally, specified personal information from the uploaded resume can
easily be obtained through the use of the software. It is also important to
note that the application is designed to allow for the tracking of the potential
candidates payment history and their performance for all the year in
professional service.
5.
Succession
Management Plan
The
software is mainly focused on an adequate preparation of the employees for the
potential job opportunities in the future within the firm. Its design ensures
intensive information gathering procedure on the employee’s welfare that
includes their level of competency and talent, the future development plans,
and the possible opportunities. Furthermore, the system integrates assessment
of performances from varied sources, for instance, the all-around feedback (360
degrees) that allows an independent assessment of the staff's individual
skills.
Challenges
in IT implementation
The challenges experienced in IT implementation by
organizations include the following (IRMA ,
2014):
1. Lack of User Feedback
The
feedback from the software users to the vendors offers a chance to vendors to
improve the service delivery as per the recommendation of the users. The
failure of such renders the vendors unaware of the needs and the main
objectives that the firm aims to achieve by adopting the technology.
Additionally, the changing organizational needs cannot be addressed without the
appropriate feedback.
2. Lack of Managerial Support
The
HR management needs to provide a constant support for the maintenance and the
upgrade of the IT System in order to ensure optimal service delivery, hence
full exploitation of its benefits. Lack
of support financially or user training time renders the entire planning
process futile and headed to failure.
3. Redundancy of the Technology
The
fast pace of the technological advancement in the modern times can easily
render the recent technology useless or of little help to the HR planning
process. Therefore, it is recommended that the management conduct a wider
consultation before committing funds on a technology that will soon become
irrelevant. Additionally, there is a need to set aside resources to constantly
upgrade the existing technology to reach the modern standards of service delivery,
thus saving on the cost of having to fully obtain the latest technology in the
market.
4. Unrealistic Expectations
Due
to the inadequate information regarding the new HR planning technology in the
market, the management can develop a wrong notion on the capability of the
application software. As such, unrealistic expectations can grow among the
users. In the end, failure of the system to meet the heightened threshold of
the requirements can lead to its total abandonment and disillusion in the future
advanced releases. Also, the organizational resources will have gone to waste
due to the investment on non-working projects.
Conclusion
In
conclusion, it is evident from the above discussion that the adoption of the
latest technology in Human Resource offers a significant assistance to the
Strategists by improving on the efficiency in the decision-making process while
ensuring more information on employees is gathered. However, it is notable that
the software users have to undergo rigorous training in order to ensure the
full exploitation and tapping into all the benefits that the technology can
offer. In so doing, the department is guaranteed on the improvement in the
service delivery and the timely fulfillment of the organization's set goals and
objectives
References
Boroughs,
A., Palmer , L., & Hunter , I. (2012). HR Transformation Technology:
Delivering Systems to Support the new HR Model. Aldershot , England Gower : 6-13.
Dua,
Sumeet, Gangopadhyay, Aryya, & Thulasiraman, P. (2012). Information Intelligence, Systems,
Technology and Management: 6th International Conference, Icistm 2012, Grenoble , France
In
Disselkamp, L. (2013). Workforce
Asset Management Book of Knowledge.
Information
Resources Management Association (IRMA), & Khosrow-Pour, M. (2014).Information
Technology & Organizations: Trends, Issues, Challenges & Solutions.
Harrisburg , Pa.
Nasir,
S. (2013). Modern Entrepreneurship
and E-business Innovations. Hershey ,
PA
Niehaus,
R. J. ,
Price, K. F. New York
Torres-Coronas,
T., & Arias-Oliva, M. (2009). Encyclopedia
of Human resources Informationssystems: Challenges in e-HRM. Hershey :
Information Science Reference.
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