5 Benefits of Integrating HR Software and Business Applications

HR doesn’t work in isolation, so why should its systems? Rob Oehlers, head of customer experience at CIPHR, explains five benefits of integrating HR technology with other business software

The days of HR teams ensconced in ‘ivory towers,’ remote from what’s happening on the proverbial shop floor, are long gone. HR technology far from following the lead of HR teams themselves, in many organizations remains isolated from other business applications.

We recently commissioned YouGov to find out more about HR professionals’ attitudes towards systems integration, which form the basis of a new report: Better together: the future for HR systems integrationOpens a new window . More than half (51%) of the 500 senior UK professionals surveyed agreed that there is ‘no single piece of HR software that will be able to satisfy all of the HR requirements for my business’ – contradicting a finding in the CIPD HR Outlook winter 2016/2017Opens a new window , where 60% of respondents said that having a single system for all HR needs was an important aspect of HR technology.

There’s certainly an appetite for joined-up HR, L&D, and business technology, but HR professionals aren’t clear on how to go about achieving it. Fortunately, the growth in usefulness, popularity, and openness of APIsOpens a new window means it is quicker and simpler than ever to achieve useful, fully automated integrations and data syncs between core HR software and other applications.  

Here are five key benefits HR professionals and their organizations can expect to enjoy if they integrate one or more business applications with their core HR system.

1. Reduced administration

Saving time on repetitive, dull and low-value tasks such as data entry, updating spreadsheets, or sending emails to ask for systems’ information to be changed is a significant boon for HR teams – and the employees they support.

More than a third (36%) of HR professionals we surveyed said that integrating their core HR system with other people management or business solutions would help them to spend less time on administration, with this proportion rising to 47% of respondents who worked at large organizations (of 250 or more employees).

And the amount of staff time that organizations could save – and redeploy elsewhere could be significant. One percent of people we surveyed who said their business would benefit from integrating HR and other business systems spend more than 100 hours a month on updating and transferring data between different people management solutions. That’s a minimum of 1,200 hours – or 150 working days – each year; a staggering amount of time that undoubtedly could be better spent adding strategic value.

1. Smarter reporting and data analysis

Better reporting and data analytics have been high on the agenda for many HR teams over recent years, but progress in many organizations towards evidence-based decision-making has been slow. One of the key reasons why HR teams struggle to make sense of the valuable people data they hold is because it is disconnected: disparate, unrelated business systems each hold a share of the overall people data picture, and the results never quite make it into a joined-up report.

Connecting a core HR system with other business applications – such as time and attendance solutions, learning management systems (LMS), and customer relationship management solutions – gives organizations a holistic view of people and performance data, enabling them to directly measure and assess the impact of initiatives on their bottom line.

1. A better user experience – for HR, managers, and staff

As consumers, we’re used to one-click access to our favorite apps and websites, whether that’s using a Facebook account to log into Instagram, or using a Google account to access a third-party app’s services, for example.

Workers are increasingly expecting – and demanding – the same experience from their employers. They don’t want to remember multiple logins and passwords to access 10 different business systems – and if that is what you are asking them to do, can you reasonably expect that their usage of your expensive LMS will be as frequent as you might have hoped?

**Integrating other business applications with a core HR system means that employees can navigate seamlessly from the HR platform they already know and use, directly into those other systems.** This leads to improved engagement, a higher cadence of usage, and, ultimately, greater satisfaction among your staff.

1. Improved data accuracy and security

Following the introduction of the GDPR in the European Union, data accuracy and security should be high on every HR professionals’ agenda. Storing employee data in unconnected systems means that, should an employee leave or join your organization, or key information about them changes during their employment with you, then you need to update each system individually, every time. That’s a lot of effort – and the potential for making an error, or forgetting to update something, is multiplied for each disconnected system.

Concerns around data security will be even greater if some of that sensitive personal information is kept in insecure formats such as email (think candidate CVs) and spreadsheets (pay and payroll information). Bringing these functions into your secure network of HR and business systems will ensure that data is better protected from hacks and breaches, and is only accessed by staff with the appropriate permissions.

Keeping employee data in a single location will also make it easier for your organization to provide copies of personal data to current and former employees in response to subject access requests (SARs), which are now free under the GDPR.

1. Greater flexibility in choosing the right HR applications

Finally, one of the greatest benefits in choosing to integrate HR, L&D and other business applications with core HR software is the choice this opens up to you when it comes to selecting the right technology. Gone are the days of having to take a bolt-on payroll module, LMS or talent management system that isn’t 100% fit for purpose, because it ‘comes with’ your HR software. System providers’ increasing willingness to work together in partnership means you can choose to implement the right application for your organization, developed by an expert provider when it suits you.