Businesses use enterprise resource planning (ERP) software to integrate and manage common tasks involved in information technology, service and human resources. Designed mainly for large businesses with the resources necessary to support an extensive management system, ERP is divided into modules that address specific areas within a company. Human resource (HR) management is one essential module used to automate administrative work that would otherwise be tedious and time-consuming.

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Why Your Business Needs HR Software

HR management, also known as human capital management or HCM, involves a complex collection of employee data, payroll information, time tracking, schedule management, recruitment duties and performance tracking.  All of these processes can quickly become confusing as information transfers between departments, and occasionally results in duplicated or incorrect records. Fixing the resulting errors wastes precious time that could be spent on more productive tasks.

Without an ERP solution that includes HR software, your business must allocate a significant amount of resources just to input, transfer and manage employee data. Even with a dedicated HR staff, certain tasks such as logging employee hours and translating those numbers into payroll data are difficult to perform with any degree of accuracy. Unexpected delays between the time information is recorded and the time it reaches the appropriate departments can throw off calculations and require entire processes to be repeated. The integrative nature of ERP software all but eliminates this frustrating lag time while maintaining data integrity every step of the way.

Employee performance is a particularly tricky metric to track, but modern ERP platforms are beginning to incorporate tools that take the guesswork out of the process. Knowing where employees excel and where they need help promotes efficiency within the workplace.  You can use this information to schedule and execute appropriate training exercises designed to maintain a competent workforce.

Must-Have HR Features for ERP Solutions

When considering which ERP solution to use for your business, look for software that offers the option of automating as many processes as possible. The greater number of tasks that the program can handle for you, the less your staff has to handle on top of everything else that they’re already busy with.

Generally, HR software automates the duties that are the most time-consuming and the most prone to human error:

• Basic employee data management
• Payroll processing and compensation management
• Time tracking
• Attendance monitoring
• Scheduling
• Retirement account management
• Training and employee development
• Recruitment and placement
• Performance management, tracking and evaluation
• Conflict resolution
• Employee self-service data access
• Analytics and reporting

This combination of features allows you to create and view a compilation of employee data that can be used to make executive decisions about hiring and firing, job assignments and measures to improve performance. ERP tools with cloud access expand functionality by supporting remote access to data from any mobile advice. The resulting improvements in communication between staff members and the real-time updating of data streamlines HR management and bolsters employee success.

Managing HR with ERP

Using the HR module of your ERP software to its full potential requires pre-planning to determine which processes you wish to automate, who has access to data and what level of access to grant each to each department head and employee. If your platform includes a way for employees to log in and view data such as payment history and available vacation time, you have to ensure that each individual only has access to their own files. Data security is a particularly important consideration for HR due to the sensitive nature of the information being stored and transferred.

After your ERP platform has been up and running for a while, you can begin to make use of its analytics tools to track performance within your workforce. Set up a schedule of regular evaluations so that you can watch trends, monitor gains, pinpoint losses and make internal changes as necessary.

ERP HR software provides the integrated platform your business needs to bring employee information and essential HR processes together. Spending less time and money on administrative work translates to higher productivity throughout the company, and improved payroll and management tools support a higher level of employee satisfaction. With a comprehensive ERP solution in place, your company can focus on growth and development without struggling to stay on top of HR duties.

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