HR Workflow Software Systems
Times and technology have moved on a lot and now ‘workflow’ is seen as an essential part of a new hr system.
Within the best HR Software Workflow system, there are 3 types of workflow and it’s important to describe each one.
The first, and simplest (and most common) is what some define as authorization routes. This is the ability for the software to route simple requests around the organization to the right people. An example of this is an employee requesting holiday – the hr system, via employee self-service allows the employee to access their HR record and request a holiday. (Good systems such as the Cascade HR software allow the employee to pick direct from a calendar). The holiday request is then routed to the relevant line manager for authorisation. The holiday can be approved or rejected with appropriate messages being passed back to the employee.
Similar authorization workflow processes can be defined for other tasks such as address and bank detail changes.
Some of the better Hr software systems, even allow authorization workflows to be used on ‘user defined’ screens,
Many of the hr systems now offer this first level of workflow, however only a few systems are capable of the second.
The second type of workflow is procedural workflow. This is where the software allows processes to be defined and controlled by the system. For example every employer has a new starter process, typically consisting of many tasks, some of which happen before the employee commences work, some of which happen on the day they join and some which happen in the days, weeks and even months after they start. The best hr systems allow these complex processes to be defined within the system, and then the system manages the process and check-off each task as and when it should happen. Overdue tasks are highlighted to managers and hr staff so that nothing slips and standards are met.
In the UK right now, there are few hr systems that have these types of workflow. Some of the vendors are using external 3rd party workflow tools such as those offered by Microsoft. These are not Hr specific and tend to be difficult and quite technical to set-up and use. By far the best option is to look for hr systems which have their own in-build workflow system, that is designed for use within hr and is simple and easy to use. Cascade HR is one such system.
Finally, the this type of workflow is termed ‘pro-active’ workflow and is a powerful extension to the first two, and allows the system to pro-actively start processes automatically based on certain criteria being met. For example, if an member of staff phones in sick and their absence is logged in the system, a workflow process can be initiated automatically to immediately inform colleges and other departments of the colleagues absence, the workflow then tracks the employees absence until they return to work. If the absence is short the employee may be prompted to complete an on-line return to work questionnaire; a longer absence may trigger a request for a Doctor’s note, or a face to face interview with another colleague.
Another example of pro-active workflow is to automatically carry our action-reporting activities that are currently done manually by HR staff. For example a typical HR management function is to run an absence analysis report each month, highlight any staff who’s attendance is unsatisfactory (perhaps exceeded a certain number of days or hit a Bradford Factor score limit), and then manually start a review process which those staff concerned. With pro-active workflow all of this is done automatically. It can be done, monthly, weekly, even daily or hourly. Any staff who’s attendance record is poor and automatically selected and the relevant ‘attendance review’ process is initiated, line-managers and HR professionals are informed via email and the process is controlled and monitored by the system.
This third level of workflow sophistication saves a lot of time and effort and is the reason why you should insist on this level of functionality whenever you are ready to buy a new hr system.
A comprehensive workflow system that covers these 3 levels of workflow is available from Cascade’s HR and payroll system.
