Is HRMS Self-Service Now an Essential Feature?

Do you remember the first time that you saw self-service functionality in an HRMS? I remember being amazed and delighted at self service, because employees and managers would be able to access information on demand. In recent years self-service options have increased and it is now a commonly offered feature in many HRMS applications. Not everyone chooses to implement it, but is this realistic in today’s world? Can an HRMS system function without the input of employees and managers?

Here are some reasons why self service HRMS capabilities should be an essential feature.

HRMS Self-Service can Reduce and Refocus HR Tasks

As there are companies who exist without HRMS self-service, it is an option to live without it. However it places a heavy burden on your HR staff to be available for all administrative tasks; employee address changes, managers who want to view the compensation of their teams, registering for a course, etc. By keeping HR as a transactional data entry drone it further reinforces the idea that HR exists to do admin, rather than being a true partner to the business.

HRMS Self-Service Functions Are Familiar to the User

Employees and managers are familiar with a self-service world: banking, filing taxes, signing up for classes at the gym, all of these tasks are easily done by a person online at home. So if you are not offering HRMS self-service, you risk your HR team being seen as a technology dinosaur, or worse; the belief that there is an ulterior motive for restricting access to an employee’s own data. When a new hire starts who worked at a company previously where HRMS self-service was utilized, it can be a bit of a culture shock to be ‘going backwards’ and not the best image to portray of your organization.

HRMS Self-Service can Lessen the ‘Big Data Problem’

Another way that self-service lends itself to being ‘essential’ rather than a ‘nice to have’ is on the data integrity front. I’ve been fortunate to see some companies launch self-service for the first time, by opening visibility to the data you’ll quickly see where you have data inaccuracies or inconsistencies. In the longer term your data will stay cleaner because employees and managers will bring any data issues straight to HR.

Recommended Reading: HRMS Self Service - Steps to Success

Self-service also allows you to directly reach employees and managers to collect data in an easy way, especially for more of the ‘optional’ or ‘nice to have’ data such as languages and certifications. We’ve found that employees will often enter data into the HRMS when given the option; it not only allows for more career development opportunities for the employee but can also be a goldmine for a company. This will not only lead you to a more robust data set but it can provide a basis to reap the benefits of big data too.

The benefits of selecting an HRMS with self service functionality should now be very apparent. Of course there are always challenges, and you should be prepared to quiz vendors on how their HRMS self-service can help your business.