Now switch your new directions to HR Tech, and our Top 5 picks of focus areas that will help escalate your HR evolution and journey at your workplace. We promise that the transformation will enhance efficiency, employee satisfaction, advocates learning and aptly, engages your employees towards organizational goals. You and your HR staff are happy, and your bosses will definitely agree.

5 areas to appear on your proposal:

1. Cloud-based HR System : Streamline Your HR Processes
   • If this is not already done, put this as your priority #1!
     
     We are no longer working in the stone age. Nobody uses punch cards and manually calculate the overtime hours, check attendance for absences, EPF, Socso, Income Tax deductions. And then there’s human errors (complaints on HR’s effectiveness), late in getting salary out on time (another complaint) and the list goes on like forever.
     
     Now, one may ask what’s the benefit of subscribing to a HR Management System? We can write a book just on this. Among some of the advantages include:
     • Full Automation : If you currently need 4 – 7 HR staff to handle your payroll, leave management, performance appraisals, record sick leave and what have you, you may only need 2 staff to handle all these thereafter. Payroll processing will be a breeze too. If you plan it well, your payroll journal will be out in a matter of hours.
     • Employee Data at a Click of a Button : HODs will be amazed with the speed of getting  a staff data using the Cloud-based HRMS. It enables a centralized repository for employee data, with great security, ease of accessibility and collaboration across departments.
     • Real-time HR Analytics : Come across situations where the boss needed the list of names of employees with Absenteeism, Unpaid Leave and with all medical claims made for the year? It may take you 2 full work days to compile it manually (depending how many employees you work on).
       
       Decision-making for is definitely more accurate, and fast! Whether it is for manpower plan, talent acquisition needs and performance related matters will no longer require tedious reports. Believe it, no one wants to fill up a form to apply for annual leave. A mobile app for all these purpose will leave employees in awe. Definitely will be impressive.
2. Employee Wellness is on top of CEOs’ Agenda
   • With the emergence of Covid-19 pandemic and what we have had experienced for the past 2 years or so, CEOs are making this agenda a priority that one just simply cannot ignore.
     
     HR is to seek out and implement programs that are able to improve employee engagement programs that help to ensure they are ‘always’ healthy and productive. Mental health at the work-place is also important in this aspect. Ability to implement such programs will also help alleviate employee retention.
     
     An example of such programs includes designing fun fitness challenges to improve their physical health. The benefits in return are in abundance ie. Lowered health care cost, reduced absences or sick days and increase in overall productivity. Do add some form of recognition and reward for achievers that participate religiously in these programs. It will surely go a long way.
     
     You may find so many types of cloud-based programs in the market now that suits your work place and budget.
3. Hybrid Work Model : Is it workable and why?
   • Definitely and obvious. Someone shared during an interview that the only reason she was looking out for another role nearby home was to find a job where she does not need to spend 1-2 hours just to get to the office in the morning daily. An another nightmare on the way home later in the day. That’s 3-4 hours commuting on the road, regardless if you are driving, by bus, LRT or whatever mode of travel on the road! Geez, one could do a marathon with that kind of time spent, exhausting both physically, mentally and financially too.
     
     Think about it HR.
     
     Imagine the benefits that could be attained in many folds. Flexibility to employees to achieve a balanced work life, mental health in the form of stress and physical health, staff retention and much more. Experts are saying if done right, it can boost productivity as well. On another note, emphasis on employee discipline is a must. Tie productivity with reward. It will help.
     
     Of course we understand that hybrid work cannot be applied to everyone across all jobs and industries. If WFH does not work for you, consider flexi-hours. It will go a long way.
     
     Note: We found more job seekers are seeking companies that provide hybrid work mode. Companies that do, prevail.
4. The Key to Organizational Success : Enhancing the Employee Learning Culture
   • Once there was a CEO that boasted that his business model was so great that training is never important in his company. “The way of work in our operations is so simple, why the need for training?”, he added. How wrong he was , to which he soon learned.
     
     In fast growing organizations, the rapid pace of technological advancements necessitates continuous learning. In addition, the new generation workforce works differently. They are hungry for knowledge, the more, the faster, the better.
     
     In striving to cultivate this, companies must ensure that the opportunities to learn avails and ties with business goals. Internal training and development strategies must be in place to ensure learning outcomes. This will lead to standardization of practices, consistencies in execution and for continuous improvement.
     
     Digital learning platforms are in abundance today. For example, e-learning software may be deployed as a versatile tool to design, cater and manage for the organization or even individuals. These digital learning experience empower users and may be tailored to specific target audiences. This may also be one of your attraction and retention strategy especially if the role is niche and requires continuous learning in your organization for people development.
5. Employee Engagement : Unleashing Success though Enhanced Employee Experience
   • Employee experience? What is that? How do I engage my people and at the same time, ensure they are happy, excited, involve and become an ambassador for the company? Afraid not.
     
     The key here is simple. The trick is easy, keep doing whatever you are doing but in an new exciting manner. An example is, remember how we clock in to work using a manual punch clock? Now, with the onset on digitalization, one can simply clock in via a mobile app using his personal mobile phone. One doesn’t have to queue up at the security door waiting for his turn to punch his own card. He can just do it wherever he feels good.
     
     Now, that was just an example. With digitalization, a lot of work may be automated. You do not need to do something repeatedly, like typing a letter using a fixed format all over again when all you need is to change the addressees’ name, address and the date of the letter.
     
     Enhancing employee experience may also be in the form of using cloud-based communication tool for transparency, dialogue and internal feedback purposes via internal surveys. It can also include implementation of recognition programs including announcements, promotions, reward for work done or achievements. It may also provide career or development paths or any opportunities to continuously engage employees to be motivated and excited at the work place.
     
     Some tools are also available to cater for an important HR tasks which can be boring after some time ie. The onboarding process. Use such tools to discover how you may design an appropriate onboard program set to integrate your own onboarding experience which will definitely increase employee engagement and secure higher retention. Make it fun , exciting and make your new comers feel welcomed by including a tour video. Another case may be your company’s Employee Appraisal process, a classic yearly chore you dread doing manually.
     
     As organizations are adapting to an ever-changing landscape, HR should converge its’ processes using HR technology and tools available as their primary objectives and tasks for this new year to impress everyone. Should you need any advise or assistance in achieving these, you may contact our Consultants for  further discussion.