Whether you like it or not, technology is progressing at a rapid pace. This is especially true for information technology or IT. From the home to the workplace, technology such as mobile devices, the internet and wireless networks have changed every aspect of life. Considering this, it should come as no surprise that technology has changed the hiring process and human resource management. Human Resources must have technology at its core if it wants to continue playing a key role in assisting businesses predict and control organizational change.
Generally, a whole host of activities fall under the domain of the human resources department. By helping reduce administrative tasks, HR technology allows human resources departments to focus on things that require more hands-on attention. Today, interest in HR tech is higher than ever before. In fact, more than 50% of the U.S businesses today use HR technology to manage human resources processes such as recruitment, payroll generation, appraisal and so on. By automating and streaming manual HR processes, HR technology is making HR cost-effective, more efficient and high-performing.
Today, Millennials make up about half of the active workforce and this number is expected to grow to 75% by 2020. This is another reason for business to invest in HR technology and automate HR processes. Not so long ago, human resources departments had to constantly struggle to ensure HR compliance, effective recruitment and just appraisal. Moreover, they had to work through piles of paperwork to get a job done. HR tech has significantly improved accuracy, efficiency and even employee morale by simplifying tasks such as payroll generation, record keeping and recruitment. In short, HR technology has changed the human resources landscape. How? Following are 4 ways technology has changed/is changing HR.
Better Screening and Recruiting
Statistics reveal that more than 70% of the resumes received for a job are screened out. This means that significant time and money is wasted screening candidates. To help recruiters manage their time more effectively, there is a dire need for automating the screening process. Today, one of the hottest topics in HR is the use of AI or artificial intelligence for recruiting.
To better its learning, artificial intelligence or AI requires significant data and this is something companies can provide in the shape of job applications. This makes recruiting and artificial intelligence a natural fit. To automate and simplify the screening process, AI learns the qualifications, skills and experience required for a job and then shortlists, grades and ranks the candidates matching the requirements.
In addition to the above, AI software can be used to source candidates from online job sites. According to the experts, AI recruiting software can help a business to lower its screening and recruiting costs by almost 75%.
Improved Hiring Process
Before the birth of HR technology, the only place where one could browse jobs were classified ads. This resulted in the human resources department receiving loads of paper applications to go through. After going through the pile of paper applications, HR reps had to screen and test candidates before shortlisting them for an interview. Often, after shortlisting hundreds of applications to a few for an interview, some recruiters would find that the carefully shortlisted candidates fell short of the required standards. This was a wastage of both time and money.
A complex and time-consuming process, the manual hiring process was never going to stand the test of time. The biggest problem with this process was that a lot of suitable candidates got lost in the long process and looked for work elsewhere. Thanks to HR technology, recruiting is a lot easier today. Though it still requires time and money, the recruitment process has been made easy by the HR tech. By streaming and automating the HR process, HR technology has made it easier for the human resources department to find skilled people who are a great fit for the company.
Today, the screening process is automated and job applications are submitted over the internet. Due to this, the hiring process has become more efficient and a lot quicker. While humans are still involved in the process, HR tech makes recruitment faster by automating the initial steps. Moreover, there is HR software that can track the online activities of candidates and perform background checks. So, by performing the screening process in double-quick time, HR tech saves the human resources department and the business valuable time.
HR Compliance
For human resources departments, staying compliant has often been a big problem. Laws change constantly and significant paperwork and
dissemination of information is involved in the compliance process. Human resources compliance is a problem that technology looks to solve.
Not so long ago, businesses required dedicated IT storage to stay compliant. However, by allowing businesses to securely store data in the cloud, technology has changed that. As it is present in the form of electronic files, searching and organizing personnel data today is easier than ever before. Only a few clicks are required to access this information. Cloud technology has reduced, if not eliminated, the need for any sort of storage. You no longer need to stockpile forms and print their duplicates. Everything can now be accessed online. All of the aforementioned- things make HR compliance easy.
More Accurate Performance Management
An important function of the HR department is performance management. To ensure performance management, HR reps needs to perform regular employee reviews, collect feedback from supervisors and monitor performance. Before the introduction of HR technology, this was a complex and time-consuming process. However, by eliminating many unnecessary steps and streamlining the process, HR tech has made performance management easy and accurate.
HR technology is fast changing human resources management and the aforementioned-information reveals exactly how.
by Bobby J Davidson
As the President of Percento Technologies, I provide day-to-day leadership to the company’s senior management and I am personally involved in the strategy, business development and sales activities of the company.
The company was founded in 1999 with the purpose of providing a Business Technology | Anytime | Anywhere for organizations in need of Managed IT Services, Professional IT Consulting, and Infrastructure Projects. We have a fantastic suite of boutique-managed Cloud Servers to choose, along with Network Cabling and high end professional website services.
We personalize the IT experience with a team approach, working with clients from diverse sectors of industry, including banking, legal, health-care, energy and corporate business.