6 most asked questions about human resources management systems

As an HR professional, navigating spreadsheets and rigid systems should be the last thing you have to deal with, especially while working on greater efforts like employee experience management, change management, workforce planning, and plugging skill gaps. As the world of work marches towards automation, having employees manage their HR tasks through traditional, inefficient methods can have a negative impact on your employer branding, making it difficult to attract and retain top talent. Implementing an intuitive human resources management system (HRMS) is truly the way forward. If you are evaluating various human resources management systems for your organization, here are answers to six frequently asked questions that'll help you make a better buying decision:

What are the functions of the human resource management system?

One of the primary functions of HRMS is to automate and simplify HR operations for both employees and HR teams, be it marking attendance every day, documenting attendance data, applying for leave, tracking the time spent behind different projects, or managing approvals. This system should also make it easy for organizations to track how their employees are progressing toward their goals, KRAs, and competencies, as well as gauge employee performance. Your human resources management system should ideally serve as a centralized database for employee data.

What are the features to look for in a human resources management system?

The human resources management system that you select should come with an attendance management system, shift scheduler, leave management system, time tracker, performance management system, employee self-service portal, centralized employee database, people analytics, and workflows to support HR automation. It should also make it easy for organizations to integrate with other useful third-party applications, like a payroll management system or even a rewards and recognition platform.  

When should a company implement a human resources management system?

It's good to implement an HRMS for your organization if you have more than five employees and you plan on hiring more employees in the near future. If you were to wait until after your workforce grew, the HR team would need to migrate all the paper-based information over to the human resources management system. When you implement it early on, all the data and information about your workforce is conveniently centralized. This not only provides better visibility but also simplifies compliance management. Note that if your organization supports remote work, it's best to invest in this kind of system no matter the size of your workforce.

How does a human resources management system ensure data security and privacy?

Since the HR department often has to manage sensitive employee data, going for a system that ensures data security and privacy should be one of your top priorities. Most HRMS vendors make sure that they ensure compliance with data protection laws that apply to the region from which their customers operate. Additionally, most of the systems come with first-class encryption features to protect data from landing in the wrong hands. They should also come with role-based user access control features that ensure only the people with appropriate permissions can add, view, edit, and delete data.

What will the implementation of the human resources management system look like?

As long as you select an option that offers decent customer support, its implementation will be simple. Most HRMS vendors assign a dedicated team of product experts to their customers and make it a point to understand their needs and customize the system accordingly. Most of the time, they offer their assistance to simplify data migration too.

Does a human resources management system come with a mobile app?

Most human resources management systems come with a dedicated mobile application so that their employees can access the necessary information and perform their routine HR operations on the go. This will be particularly useful when you have employees working from different locations.

Final thoughts

Having a human resources management system empowers your HR team, managers, and employees to efficiently complete their HR operations while keeping everybody on the same page. We hope the answers to these frequently asked questions help you make a more informed buying decision!

Zoho People, our human resource management system, has everything your HR team will ever need to streamline its HR operation and provide a wonderful working experience to your employees. Learn more about Zoho People.