By James Fields
As I have been meeting with Superintendents and Assistant Superintendents I have noticed one very common trend. School Districts do an outstanding job of data collection and data analysis on their students. However, many school districts have been slow to embraced technology in their Human Resources/Personnel Departments. These departments have historically been seen as administrative offices. Administrators are seeing that Human Resources is a discipline that is the cornerstone for building a successful organization. The challenge is that Human Resources also has numerous administrative tasks it has to perform. Without automating these administrative tasks, the department will not be able to focus on the strategic aspect of HR. The department also will not have the data needed to make strategic decisions.
Below is part one of a series that I will post outlining the steps, tasks, and considerations required to successfully automate a Human Resources/Personnel Department.
Step one: Start with the end in mind
Determine what you are looking to accomplish with automation and work backwards. Determine what the end result is to be. This is a key step that should drive all your decisions throughout this process. I recommend creating a vision statement, if you do not already have one, that articulates how you want your department to be viewed within the organization.
Do you want the department to be viewed as a key strategic department within the organization, or do you want the department to be viewed as an adminstrative department?
As an example, a HR/Personnel department that is focused on strategic initiatives would be one where the Superintendent is looking at implementing a new learning system, but is unsure if the district's personnel possess the necessary skills to make the program successful. In this situation the HR/Personnel department would serve as an advisor to the Superintendent regarding what percentage of the district's personnel meet the requirements, and what type of effort and timeline would be required to get the district's personnel properly trained. They would then put together and execute a plan that would train and develop the remaining teachers. They would also incorporate those requirements into their recruiting profile.
Step two: Communicate your vision
Communicate your reasons for automating to the employees within the department. The thought of automation is scary for employees who haven't worked in an automated HR department. Automation equals greater effeciency. Greater efficiency to an employee can mean lack of job security. Sharing your vision with your employees, and their role within the department, will lead to greater buy-in.
Step three: Document the workflow processes within the department
In this step you will document each process that takes place within the department. It is not necessary to perform a detailed process flow analysis. It is necessary to outline the medium used to start the process, all the people who approve or are involved, all the places the data is stored.
Step four: Prioritize
It is highly unlikely you will be able to automate the entire department at the same time. Break the project into smaller projects based on function. Prioritize these functions based on importance and amount of tasks which can be automated. For example, recruiting is a high priority function for districts, with numerous steps or tasks which technology can impact. Therefore, recruiting would be an area which I would strongly consider working on after you have assessed your needs for the system of record. Because integration is very important if efficiency is what you are looking to gain, it is strongly recommended that you look at vendors who offer a Human Capital Management solution. These systems integrate all the functions of Human Resources/Personnel with Payroll.
Step five: System of Record
As I mentioned above, it is important to prioritize this project. Automating your department is just like building a house, you must start with a solid foundation. The foundation for a Human Resources/Personnel Department is the system of record, referred to as a HRMS or Human Resource Management System. This is the core or foundation from which everything else needs to integrate. A HRMS has the following core components housed within the application:
- Personal information
- Job & Compensation
- Position Management
- Performance & Development
- Compliance
- Staff Relations
- Benefits
This system serves as the driver for many of the other modules or best of breed solutions that need to be successfully integrated with it. Integrating an HRMS with payroll creates numerous efficiencies. An HRMS has multiple integration points, which if they are not integrated, can cause more work for employees in both payroll and HR. I will list some of the integration points, but will talk at greater length about this later in the series.
- Employee Personal Information
- Job & Compensation Information
- Benefits
For those of you wishing to automate your Human Resource/Personnel department this article gives you the first five steps to perform at a high level. In Part II of this series I will talk in greater detail about documenting your workflow process.
Comments