HR Intranets offer the greatest innovation to HR departments since the advent of the desktop computer. HR Intranets allow the HR department to be open virtually 24 hours per day to efficiently perform many of the routine tasks required of Human Resources organizations. These include:
Rapid dissemination of valuable information on a wide variety of topics
Collection of information from employees, and Enabling employees to perform HR related tasks with minimal HR time requirement.
The following is a discussion of issues involved in the implementation of an HR Intranet, followed by a description of Auxillium West's HR Intranet product.
Training
Training includes two aspects: the training needed to use the Intranet, and using the Intranet as a training tool.
The training needed to use the Intranet is minimal. Information can be accessed quickly and the Web Browser is very easy to use; simply point and click. Typically, emailing one or more announcements to employees that include some basic instructions (and have the Intranet web address embedded), is sufficient.
The HR Intranet can serve as an excellent training tool. At the simplest level, processes and instructions can be easily accessed (downloaded). New technology allows training videos to be viewed over the Intranet, again, by simply clicking on the training course icon or title. This eliminates the need to check-out and track training videos. Plus, the videos can be viewed at any time and without requiring pre-scheduling. Some training packages include periodic quizzes, which helps the trainee to evaluate how they are retaining the information or whether re-review of the material is necessary.
Maintenance
Forms, information, processes, and policies must be kept up-to-date with or without an Intranet. However, with the Intranet maintenance is simpler because all the materials are kept in one place. One simply needs to replace an old document with a new/revised document.
Migration to the HRIS
Connecting the HR Intranet to the HR Information System (data base) can offer significant benefits:
Allowing employee access to personal information such as benefit enrollment
Enabling employees to update their personal data in the database, such as:
o Address information,
o Office phone number and location,
o Training information.
Allowing Managers to view compensation data for salary review purposes or for generating offers to new applicants.
Allowing managers to view leave information on their employees.
With the development of new low-cost technologies, small and mid-sized companies can now experience the administrative benefits of allowing employee access to the data base via the Intranet.
Publicity
Publicizing the HR Intranet is key to its success. The benefits of the system are only realized if employees use the system. The HR Intranet should be publicized using all the traditional employee communications media, such as bulletin boards, the company newsletter, announcing it at company meetings, etc. Other suggestions include:
When employees ask for a form or any other type of information that happens to be on the Intranet, encourage them to access it themselves via the Intranet.
Send an e-mail message to all employees that briefly describes how they can receive better service through the Intranet. Don't forget to include a hyperlink to the Intranet. This allows employees to click on the hyperlink in the e-mail message and jump to the home page of the HR Intranet (the easier you can make it for employees, the more quickly they will use the HR Intranet).
The traditional communication channels should continue to be available to employees. It will take time for some employees to acclimate to a new way of doing business, and some employees may not have access to the HR Intranet (e.g. they may not have a desktop computer nor have access to a computer at a kiosk or break area).
Starting Slowly
One of the outstanding features of Internet/Intranet technology is its scalability. A vast array of enhancements can simply (and with minimal interruption) be added to a basic Intranet system. Plus, once started, the Intranet will generate new ideas. As reported in the January 27 issue of Communications Week magazine, when the Intranet is started, the sponsors start "thinking about who is going to click on a page [and] they start getting customer-focused. Inside the company, that's a powerful force for improvement."
Auxillium West's "HR Intranet Solution"
Auxillium West has created an Intranet product called "The HR Intranet Solution." "The HR Intranet Solution" is a pre-packaged HR Intranet. This affordable package of software and services is targeted for small to medium-sized companies. It uses the familiar Internet technology, minimizing the need for additional training and minimizing maintenance requirements.
"The HR Intranet Solution" comes loaded with an employee handbook, a safety manual, a compensation manual, model benefits summary, and much more. It is easily customizable to fit a company's needs, and includes ten hours of customization support from Auxillium West. See the features and benefits page for a more detailed description of "The HR Intranet Solution."
Auxillium West also offers HRnetSource, which contains "HRSource", "The HR Intranet Solution", and "SelfSource" in an integrated and seamless package.
