From accepting and reviewing job applications to timesheet processing, expense reimbursements and more, the typical human resources department has many responsibilities. Years ago, these activities were almost entirely completed manually. The technology was simply not available to automate common HR tasks. Today, companies have adopted automation for payroll processing, resume review and more. However, many companies still continue to manually tackle HR tasks that they otherwise could be automating.
Benefits of HR Automation
If your business is not taking full advantage of human resource automation opportunities, you may unfortunately be missing out on several important benefits. For example, through automation, you may be able to collect, track and analyze data about your employees. This could help you to predict absences and even make smarter hiring decisions going forward. Improved data collection and analysis may also assist in various decision-making processes, such as those related to employee benefits, raises and other important matters.
Why HR Should Embrace Automation and How to Cope with Changes
As beneficial as HR automation can be, there is a general resistance from HR professionals in this area. This may be related to the fear that automation will result in fewer HR jobs, reduced hours or other factors that may affect them on a personal level. While this may seem like a classic “robots taking our jobs” issue, it is not that simple. For instance, when automation was introduced to the auto industry, it did not eliminate jobs. In fact, when automation became a crucial element of car production lines many decades ago, it enabled more output and reduced the cost of production so substantially that more people could afford to buy cars. This revolutionized the auto industry and most of our lives in positive and profound ways.
With this in mind, you may be wondering how HR automation can benefit your department without eliminating the need for your job. Through automation, you become leaner. You can reduce the amount of time spent on repetitive tasks and basic administrative tasks. You can focus on more important tasks that require human skill and expertise, and you will have access to more data that will help you make data driven decisions. In this way, you may add more value to your organization than you currently have time for.
Best HR Areas to Automate
While there are many aspects of human resources that can be automated, you understandably want to focus on the areas that are most advantageous overall. These are some of the primary areas to focus on as you implement automation in your department.
1. Recruiting and Screening
Regardless of the type of position that you are hiring for, you may receive dozens or hundreds of applications. Your initial task is to review these applications to a short list of candidates who are actually qualified. Automation is available to help you narrow down the options to only the most skilled candidates. Keep in mind that you must still conduct or facilitate interviews. Automation software is not feasible for this step.
2. Onboarding
When you bring a new employee into the company, you understandably must complete a substantial amount of paperwork for tax purposes, for benefits and more. Many of the details are repetitive, and a significant amount of this process can be automated to eliminate redundancy and human error.
3. Performance Records
Human resource professionals are also tasked with working with managers or supervisors to maintain performance records. This no longer needs to be tracked on paper and you can eliminate any manual input thanks to performance management systems. Such system can track employee efficiency and include employees to give feedback too. In addition to this, systems recognize high performers and help with development goals.
4. Employee Data and Time Sheets:
In some companies, tracking hours and days off continues to be done on paper. When someone wants to take a day off, they have to file a form, which has to be sent to the right department for approval and then sent back. Through automation, this can all be done online from a central hub that ensures the request reaches all involved parties on time. This is then saved with the rest of employee data, which helps reduce losses or errors.
5. Payroll, Travel and Expenses:
The data from online timesheets may be fed directly into payroll processing software or programs. This saves time and reduces the chance for human error. Employees may also use these same programs to obtain reimbursement for travel and expenses. Be aware that managers or HR departments may still need to review and approve timesheets and expense reimbursement requests, but can do so from a central point instead of going though tons of paperwork.
6. Leave Management
Tracking paid time off, medical leave and other related factors can be time-consuming. There may also be communication errors between employees or management and the HR department. This entire process can be automated to reduce errors and to facilitate improved tracking.
You can see that automating these areas can dramatically improve your regular activities. However, you can also see that many of your responsibilities remain and that automation will not be effective with some of those responsibilities. You may also see that automation does not alleviate all aspects of your responsibilities in these areas. Instead, it simplifies and improves your efforts. Now is a great time to explore HR automation programs and applications.