Aparna started with a story that depicted the sorry sight at workplaces without effective ERP systems. The HR department spent its time collating and arranging data thus having no time for up the chain value added work. Things drastically changed as HR Information Systems came to place. The information was available at the click of a button. Data collation and aligning data to needs became things of past. People had a ready reference to individual and group data which were fetched quickly through the common ERP databases.

Aparna then started from scratch as to how an Information System (such as SAP) is put in place. She talked about team players such as the SAP–HR steering committee, SAP – HR implementation partners and SAP –HR core implementation team who are involved from the concept to the commissioning of the system. Once the team is in place, the planning for the different stages is done. These can be put as Project Preparation, Business Blueprint, Realization, Final Preparation and Go live and Support. She then discussed the various objectives of SAP-HR such as reflecting the strategic role of HR in the emerging business; integrating HR related information to people related processes; use SAP as an enabler in the decision making process and share and communicate accurate common data across organization.

Nowadays, the ERP systems have blended within the organizations in such a manner that not only the individual employee but also the HR department, line mangers and the corporate management are the various stakeholders to the system. From Personal Development to Performance Appraisals, HRMS products now have a wide range of features which are aligned and customized as per the needs and best practices of the organizations. Thus through its features, HRIS has actually transformed the role of HR in the organizations. It has automated processes through workflows thereby reducing paperwork and time. It has reduced the routine work and has increased the response time. It has connected HR to business and helps HR to maintain superior quality of work in retaining talent, maintaining headcount, competency building, succession planning and enhancing performance culture.

To sum up as Aparna rightly put it, HRIS and SAP in particular is not about transfer of data from a legacy system to yet another system but it is a process of change of relooking at the way we organize HR.

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