5 Manual HR Functions That Digital Technologies Can Resolve

In 2024, digital is king. The COVID-19 pandemic has especially highlighted the need for traditional companies to employ digital technologies to improve their workflows and adjust to changing work processes.

Perhaps one aspect of the business that requires digital transformation the most is the HR department. HR leaders have so many responsibilities on their plate that some become overlooked.

In this day and age, the obvious solution to such matters is technology. In this blog, we’ll tackle five manually-accomplished HR functions that can now be resolved with digital technologies.

Payroll distribution

When it comes to distributing salaries, HR managers need to have great attention to detail as any mistake with numbers can lead to heavy consequences. Apart from full-time or regular employees, part-time or contractual workers are especially mindful of the pay that they receive, so it’s important that HR leaders correctly compute their salaries.

With this in mind, it would be good for HR managers to turn to technology to accurately record, organize, and calculate salary numbers and pay employees on time. Technology can also help employers correctly calculate the salaries of their employees, reducing the chances of payroll distribution being delayed. Hong Kong’s Employment Ordinance particularly states that employers who fail to pay an employee within seven days after they become due are liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, to a fine of HK$350,000 and to imprisonment for three years. To avoid these penalties, HR managers must learn to integrate technology into their payroll distribution process.

Scheduling shifts

HR managers are also responsible for scheduling and organizing the shifts of employees. However, it’s not as simple as writing down everyone’s working hours. HR managers need to consider the availability, skills, and productivity of every employee before setting their shift schedules. HR managers must also take note of possible last-minute changes such as tardiness or absences to make sure that the company runs as smoothly as it does when the workforce is complete.

Fortunately, scheduling systems are making it easier for HR managers today to organize the shifts of employees. For instance, Workstem’s Rostering & Scheduling System allows HR managers to seamlessly apply shift templates and modify them if working arrangements need to be adjusted. It also allows users to create shifts for multiple staff in bulk, saving time and effort. With such a system in place for HR managers, scheduling shifts will now be easier and more efficient.

Attendance and leave management

Managing the attendance and leave requests of employees is often a tedious process, especially when a company has a big workforce, and rightfully so as attendance and leaves are related to payroll. Are employees paid by the hour or day? Are they eligible for a paid vacation leave? How many leave credits do certain employees have left for the year?

This is where technology comes in hand. Workstem also offers an attendance module that makes it easier for HR managers to track the attendance and anomalies like unscheduled absences and late arrivals of employees in real-time right through a web portal. Workstem also offers an app where employees can clock in/clock out any time. The app is equipped with GPS, QR Code from the supervisor version of the app, and bluetooth to fasten the attendance process and prevent false clock-in data.

On another hand, Workstem’s leave management module makes it easier for HR managers to manage the leave balances and requests of employees. The system is also beneficial to employees as they no longer have to fill in leave request slips and personally submit them to HR; they can simply send a leave request via Workstem’s app. Supervisors and HR managers, in turn, can check and approve leaves through the app.

Talent recruitment

HR managers talk to hundreds, sometimes even thousands, of job applicants every year as part of their talent recruitment efforts. Not only do they conduct interviews, but HR managers also verify the background and references of applicants, which often takes a long time to accomplish. It has become such a laborious process that some companies spend more money just to hire a recruitment officer.

With the rise in demand for efficient recruitment processes, many HR software providers now offer specialized recruitment software for agencies and independent recruiters. These platforms streamline the entire hiring process, from sourcing candidates to managing client relationships. By leveraging technology, recruitment agencies can optimize their workflow and focus on delivering high-quality talent to their clients.

Document management

Gone are the days where HR managers have to store employee records in a filing cabinet. Many companies are now going paperless in an effort to save costs and seamlessly keep everything in one place. However, some traditional companies continue to secure records in folders, which may sometimes get misplaced, torn, or damaged beyond repair.

This is where cloud-based human resource information systems or HRIS come into play. By saving documents in the cloud, HR managers can organize and manage employee records in one place. They can also easily find certain records through an HRIS instead of going to hundreds of paperwork, reducing the additional time and effort that they need to exert just to double-check some data. As an HR management system provider, Workstem also offers functionalities present in HRIS through a user-oriented platform. In this way, the company is able to fully support HR professionals and help businesses work efficiently.

Evidently, digital technologies can help HR professionals solve any HR problem that comes their way. In this age where work becomes more intense by the day, it’s imperative for HR leaders to step up and improve their workflows, not just for their own benefit but their company’s as well.

Read More: Do You Really Save That Much With HR Systems?

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