The power of one: Why integrated HR systems are the way forward

As the world continues its progress towards digital transformation, data generation has multiplied exponentially, making it necessary for organizations to maintain seamless data flows. Doing so is essential for organizations as it ensures optimal functioning and allows for all processes to remain efficient.

Organizations that have embraced digital transformation have multiple functions that require this optimization of data flows but more so within the HR space which is focused towards building a conducive workplace.

Technology is at the core of workplace transformation:
The evolution of the workplace has been tied closely with the influx of technology that has been geared towards making both interpersonal and professional functioning more efficient. The key concerns that have emerged over the course of the implementation of these new technologies, however, are twofold: a surplus of technology with a lack of active adoption from end users, thereby leading to low ROI.

In many workplaces, employees tend to be intimidated with the introduction of multiple tools on a regular basis, leading to reduced motivation amongst them to utilize the available resources. The fact that these tools are distinctive in their look and feel as well as the navigation only adds to the disinterest.

Using an integrated platform helps resolve these issues by presenting a single platform that employees can easily use to access the necessary tools and resources. Consistent look & feel of the system across stages leads to higher adoption and thus better productivity.

Here are some other advantages that stem out of using an integrated tool for all HR needs at work:

Analytics made easy & holistic: An advantage that integrated systems have over their disjoint counterparts is the fact that data from across multiple stages of an employee’s lifecycle is housed and analyzed at one place. This firstly reduces the data leakage, redundancy and thus the efforts that would typically go into maintaining data sanity.

In the era of AI, the larger impact of an integrated system is its ability to bring out the seemingly non-intuitive correlations between disjoint data sets. The effectiveness of a recruitment source need not be just analyzed based on the hiring rate but can, in fact, be validated based on the longevity of the resource in the organization or even the performance demonstrated in subsequent appraisal cycles.

Similarly, to predict probable attrition, engagement platform alone cannot present the factors that influence it, and neither can a standalone talent management solution do so effectively. It is required to look at a 360° data map of an employee to analyze and predict attrition. Diverse factors ranging from the tenure they have spent, to the critical engagement surveys they responded to, to their relative compensation ratio w.r.t market, and the historic changes in his/her manager & work role can be analyzed. Only integrated systems will be able to enrich the analysis with data from across their employment helping organizations to make the right choices and take the necessary action when it’s time.

Talent mobility leads the force: Along with the organizational benefits of an integrated HR systems, employees too stand to gain from the change in the way systems are structured. As organizations begin focusing on talent mobility, existing employees gain the chance to upskill themselves for open positions, thereby helping them in their own career paths. This is even more relevant when one considers the fact that organizations must now deal with a multi-generational workforce that possesses different inherent and acquired skills.

Here again, integrated systems will bring together multiple aspects like an employee’s performance, role requirements and learning plans to one central system helping employees make an effective career development plan. Also, with these plans constantly tracked on one platform, it thereby expands the organizations view into the talent pool and reduces the need for constant data verification and other hygiene processes.

Hassle-free Compliance & Maintenance: To comply and protect one of the most fundamental records of data from cyber-attacks & privacy breach is critical. Having multiple systems unfortunately also means multiple points of failure. Organizations will need to invest multi-fold to ensure that every single one of the systems is monitored for threats and basic compliance needs. Integrated systems on the other hand, minimize the threat as well as the effort to maintain data.

The world today is entering a new phase of HR functioning that must now deal with larger sets of data with a variety of inputs. HR systems must hence look to unify and evolve at a similar pace to ensure they meet the new demands. Technologies like AI and ML is set to play an important part in this evolution as they help augment the analytical capabilities of HR tech. The integrated HR system is truly the way forward and organizations must look to incorporate these systems into their everyday functioning in the time to come.