There’s a reason that well over half of all small businesses and nearly all larger ones use a human resource information system (HRIS) of some kind. Few things can help benefit your organization quite like a HRIS. While most smaller organizations rely solely on payroll solutions, there are a wide range of other HR functions that a HRIS can help the HR department with. Knowing when to invest in a HRIS solution can be easier than you might think—there are clear signs that it’s time you upgraded to a HRIS. Here are five of them.
- HR Overload – If your HR team has been showing signs of decreased productivity, a HRIS may be just what the doctor ordered. The HR department handles more tasks than most people know and automating or simplifying some of those tasks with a HRIS is the best way to help them get out from beneath the mountain of redundant, non-strategic tasks and focus on more pressing, strategic issues. If you’ve noticed that your HR workers seem extra-busy or burnt out lately, you probably need to consider a HRIS.
- Benefit Craziness – Employees love their benefits—so much so that a recent survey said that over ninety percent said they’d begin to look for a new job if they lost their benefits—wow! But that love for benefits could create a real need for a HRIS. If you’re noticing a constant influx of benefit-related inquires to your HR department, a HRIS that automates benefit enrollment might be needed. Your HRIS can help your HR department’s workload and boost employee morale.
- Errors and Noncompliance – Errors can cost you big bucks. Noncompliance with laws like the ADA, FLSA and FMLA can be even more expensive. If you start to see an increase in human errors, whether it’s missing new-hire paperwork or forgetting to add a decimal-an HRIS could be needed. Since a HRIS will use fail-safe measures and automation, the frequency of errors and noncompliance issues can decrease dramatically. A HRIS could literally save your company from going out of business.
- Costs You Can’t Find – One of the greatest things about a HRIS is its unique functionality to track data. If you start noticing that your organization is losing cash quickly, using HR metrics provided by a HRIS can help you identify just what aspects of your organization are costing you the most. This aspect of a HRIS can let you create strategies for your business’ future.
- You Think It Is – Simply put, if you think it’s time to add a HRIS, there’s a good bet it probably is. You’ve led your organization to its current point with skill and instinct and there’s no reason not to trust your gut now. If you understand all that a HRIS can do for your organization and feel it’s time to make the investment—the odds are that you’re right.
