An Hris is an integrated operational system that ties HR software functions together and provides a consolidated backbone for interacting with other human resources and payroll applications. The most common type of Hris is ADP’s payroll application, which functions as an integrated HR solution by combining the functions of other HR software products.
Hris is a software system which is used in companies to manage the payroll of employees. These days there are numerous numbers of hris, which are designed in different shapes that serve different functions. The Hris is needed to maintain the details of all types of employees properly.
Put simply, an HRIS system is the integration of HR activities and information technology. It enables data entry, and tracking and management for human resources, payroll and accounting. Since most HR teams use an HRIS to help them improve their processes and stay organized, it’s good for everyone who works with HR to be familiar with a few HRIS basics like the variations and definition of HRIS, what an HRIS does, which organizations need HRIS, and how to best use an HRIS. Whether you’re new to HR, a leader looking to get a better idea of your HR team’s world, or anyone in between, we hope you’ll find this HRIS overview useful!
What does HRIS stand for?
While most seem to agree that HRIS stands for Human Resource Information System, some insist that the “S” actually stands for software.
HRIS vs. HRIS System vs. HRIS Software
It might not be as controversial as how to pronounce crayon or caramel, but the terminology for the software HR professionals use is far from universal. We see it all three ways—HRIS, HRIS system, and HRIS software— along with a fourth, less common option, Human Resource Management System (HRMS). But plain old HRIS is the most common. This is likely because many people feel HRIS system and HRIS software are redundant. However, since it’s not unanimous what the “S” stands for, it isn’t necessarily wrong to add “system” or “software.”
What does HRIS software do?
An HRIS helps companies organize and manage people-related data including:
- Employee demographic information like birth date, gender, contact information, and more
- Employee job information like manager, department, pay rates, and more
- Benefits selections
- Time-off balances and requests
Because all this information is tracked in one location, it serves as a single source of accurate data and often allows users to create reports that can be used to identify trends and make business decisions.
What are the benefits of an HRIS?
There are plenty of reasons to use an HRIS:
Organization: With an HRIS, you’ll never have to comb through filing cabinets or search through different versions of spreadsheets ever again. Every piece of information you need can be easily collected, tracked, updated, and searched in seconds.
Compliance: A good HRIS vendor will stay on top of regulations impacting HR and adapt their software to make it easy for organizations to meet compliance requirements. For instance, BambooHR recently announced that we are compliant with all General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements.
Time Savings: Many tedious HR processes are made quick and simple with an HRIS. For instance, time off takes mere seconds to request and approve. Accruals and balances are tracked automatically. And after setting up these policies, human resource professionals don’t have to spend any time maintaining them.
HR Strategy: When HR has fewer operational tasks to manage, they can spend their valuable skills and time on strategic HR initiatives that improve business outcomes. Improving retention, increasing productivity, and monitoring the company culture are just a few ways HR can spend their time when they have an HRIS.
Employee Experience: Top-notch employees like top-notch employers. A good HRIS can help improve employees’ perceptions of their organizations. Whether it’s a smooth and quick onboarding process, an app that allows them to look up a coworker’s contact information, or the ability to update and request time off, a good HRIS can help employees have a better experience.
Convenience: Many of our clients say their HRIS helps them look like HR rockstars because of its convenience and ease of use. Executives are impressed with their ability to do things like pull together a report in a matter of seconds and HR professionals appreciate that it only takes a few clicks.
Overall, the benefits of an HRIS often outweigh the purchase price. Of course, you should evaluate the value provided by each HRIS you’re considering to ensure you’re getting the best fit for your organization.
When should I get an HRIS system for my business?
At a certain point, it becomes impractical (and maybe even a compliance issue) to track all your employees’ information in spreadsheets. Most often, we recommend that organizations with 25 employees or more get an HRIS. At this size, it becomes difficult to gather, update, and track multiple pieces of information for each employee.
It also becomes difficult for every employee to have a meaningful relationship with each other. As such, it’s crucial for HR to carefully consider culture and the employee experience. Having an HRIS frees HR to focus on these higher elements.
Of course, this 25 employee recommendation can vary based on how advanced the HR goals of your organization are. We have some clients with fewer than 25 employees, but their leaders are incredibly invested in providing HR with the resources they need and creating an excellent employee experience. For these smaller businesses, using an HRIS allows their HR manager to focus on more strategic tasks or to handle HR as one of multiple roles.
How many employees can an HRIS handle?
This really depends on the system you choose. Not all systems are created equal because not all organizations are created equal. A company with 25 employees has very different needs than an organization of 3,000.
Some HRIS vendors peddle a one-size-fits-all approach that, more often than not, doesn’t really fit anyone very well. These vendors say that their maximum number of users is virtually unlimited. Instead, we recommend that organizations look for an HRIS that’s focused on organizations within a specific size range.
While we do support some very large organizations up to 1000 employees, we know that our HR software works best for organizations with 25-500 employees. We focus on this group and build our HR software to meet their needs.
Features of HRIS Software
HRIS features vary widely, but the most common ones include:
- Employee database and directory
- 401k tracking
- Applicant tracking
- Benefits administration
- Payroll
- Scheduling
- Time and attendance
- Time-off tracking
- Electronic signatures
- Customizable and standard reports
- Employee self-service
More advanced systems go beyond basic tracking and provide features that allow HR professionals to improve employee experience and culture with features like:
When browsing for an HRIS, try not to think of features like a shopping list of items to check off. Just because one system claims to do it all doesn’t mean that it does any of it well. Figure out your organization’s biggest challenges and evaluate your options based on how well the HRIS solves those problems. Also, be sure to consider usability. If your software is overly complicated, no one will use it—and if no one uses it, it doesn’t do anyone much good.
What are some examples of HRIS systems?
So you understand the features offered, but how exactly do they work? There are several different examples of HRIS systems that help you streamline important HR tasks:
- Payroll and benefits administration: Probably the most time-consuming part of HR is payroll and benefits. HRIS databases help mitigate the headaches surrounding these processes. For example, an HRIS can collect and store payroll and benefits data for each employee. It can keep track of your full-time versus part-time employees and provide them full access to their benefits information. This may also help your team decide what types of additional benefits might be good to incorporate into your company.
- Job applicant tracking: Most HRIS systems provide applicant tracking where it can collect and store all resumes in one place by name and location. In addition, with features like automatic rankings and keyword searches, you can filter resumes and help find the right candidate for the job.
- Onboarding checklist: HRIS can provide employee self-service, which allows HR professionals to send new hires onboarding tasks (paperwork, training, etc.) to complete at their own pace prior to day one. You can generate electronic signatures that make filling out paperwork easy and introduction emails to help garner connections with new employees’ future colleagues.
It’s important to remember that because companies aren’t alike, not all HRIS systems are alike. Therefore, some businesses might incorporate different types of HRIS systems than others.
Managing Payrolls
The many facets of HRIS software are called modules. The payroll module calculates your employees’ work hours, along with their attendance information. The system automatically works out the applicable taxes and other deductions, and then generates the necessary pay checks. HRIS software typically has a time and labor module. At a glance, you can get a view of how well your employees perform. Thus, it helps you make assessments so you can cut labor costs wherever possible.
Employee Data and Benefits
You can use HRIS software to collect employee information, such as their contact information, qualifications, and skills they’ve developed. You can also use it to store W-4 forms and employee compensation information. If you have a benefits program for your employees, you can make use of the benefits module, which helps you monitor the programs in which your employees enrolled, their participation levels and performance. Your employees also might have the option to track their progress and certification through this software.
Employee Advantages
The employee self-service module allows employees to log in and update their information. This saves you the bother of having to do it yourself. Employees also can monitor their own attendance records, put in requests for time off, and check cumulative wage information via the self-service module. Employees interested in other jobs in the company can check for job openings, prepare their skills accordingly, and apply directly from the system.
Business Owner Benefits
When you hire new employees, you can use HRIS software to process resumes and applications. These systems often have options that allow you to easily select candidates that match your criteria. You can use the system to track job requirements, certification levels and employee training needs, and you can use the information to help you with performance reviews. This might be helpful in pinpointing the employees you can groom for more responsibilities. You also can use the system to track compliance with government and industry regulations. For example, if you need to track employee accident reports, you can do so from the system.
Other Advantages
HRIS systems often are customizable to suit your needs. You can use the modules that are useful to you and select additional modules as your business grows. You can set up the system in your office or you can set up a cloud-based system and access it from anywhere using an Internet connection. Third parties operate cloud-based systems, which are useful if you don’t have the resources or manpower to manage the system yourself.
Solutions Offered by HRIS Systems
There are a number of solutions offered to a company that adopts a HRIS. Some of these include solutions in training, payroll, HR, compliance, and recruiting. The majority of quality HRIS systems include flexible designs that feature databases that are integrated with a wide range of features available. Ideally, they will also include the ability to create reports and analyze information quickly and accurately, in order to make the workforce easier to manage.
Through the efficiency advantages conferred by HRIS systems, a HR administrator can obtain many hours of his or her day back instead of spending these hours dealing with non-strategic, mundane tasks required to run the administrative side of HR.
Similarly, a HRIS allows employees to exchange information with greater ease and without the need for paper through the provision of a single location for announcements, external web links, and company policies. This location is designed to be centralized and accessed easily from anywhere within the company, which also serves to reduce redundancy within the organization.
For example, when employees wish to complete frequently recurring activities such as requests for time off or electronic pay stubs and changes in W-4 forms—such procedures can be taken care of in an automated fashion without the need for human supervision or intervention. As a result, less paperwork occurs and approvals, when deigned, may be appropriated more efficiently and in less time.
Conclusion
Hris is shortform of “Human Resource Information System”, which is used to collect information and documents relating to the employees data, such as salary information, attendance & leave records Hence it is a very important tool for implementation Human Resource Management (HRM ) in any organization. It helps in maintaining employee data updated at one place. Whatever be the size of any organization, its requirement of Hris remains same