Techblog
Five Reasons why Singapore SMEs need to automate HR functions
With HR automation, SMEs not only save time and money but they also take the first steps towards improving job satisfaction among employees
On average, 50% of an HR department's time is spent processing employee information and answering queries. Given that smaller SMEs may not even have a dedicated HR resource, automating time-consuming HR processes can help alleviate the strain on productivity.
Nowadays, nearly every aspect of business is computerised and indeed a number of HR functions are largely automated in one way or another. But HR solutions has gone through cycles of enhancements that go beyond the conversion of paper forms into an electronic format.
With little upfront investment, SMEs can enjoy enterprise-grade HR solutions that can help them manage end-to-end employees’ needs.
Here are five reasons why automating HR functions is an attractive proposition:
1. Compliance to government regulations and less calculation errors
Recently, the Singapore government ruled that all SMES must start to provide full pay slips to employees. Hence, an HR software that automatically factors in mandatory benefits and deductions such as CPF, take the hassle of manual calculations out and easily minimises or eradicate errors altogether.
Singtel MecWise Payroll enables companies to easily comply with the pay slip requirement. It calculates different pay components such as bonus, advance pay, monthly variable component (MVC), etc. Moreover, the CPF Board, IRAS and Bank GIRO built-in templates are available for submissions.
2. Empowers employees to manage leave and self-update their data
With the convenience offered by the internet, today's workforce is perfectly at home downloading forms online. A survey made by the Aberdeen Group a few years ago showed that employees appreciate the control, flexibility and responsiveness they get from the automated do-it-yourself approach.
Singtel's MecWise Employee Self-Service (ESS) solution delivers this. This web-based employee and leave management solution offers the convenience for staff to file their leave requests online and to help keep track of leave dates. The ESS proactively allows employees to update their personal details, skills set and job history among others. And they can do this anytime, anywhere as long as they can log onto the system over the internet
According to a Hunter Group HR Survey[i], self-service improves employee satisfaction and builds loyalty by enabling your staff to access or modify personal information themselves.
3. Help managers to make informed decisions
Today's new breed of HR systems are packed with features that help companies collect business intelligence from data within their organisations.
MecWise Payroll, for example, makes it easy to collate records of people under a company's employ. It stores staff's profile and details, including employee's qualification, skills set and disciplinary records. It also makes it easy for managers to track an individual's career progression in relation to Confirmation, Merit Increment, Upgrading, Annual Increment and Deployment.
With its embedded search function, MecWise Payroll gives a company an accurate view of its employee skills set profile and helps identify where improvements in terms of training and other programmes are needed.
4. Saves time and money on administrative processes
It is believed that companies spend between 7% and 50% of their time handling employee-related paperwork. Automating HR functions let them process payroll and benefit information much more quickly and efficiently without the need for additional resources.
In addition, the Hunter survey found that, "Companies with successful self-service implementations reported a staff-to-employee ratio of 1:151 while companies without self-service had a ratio of 1:99." Automation provides cost savings in terms of increased productivity gains.
Solutions such as MecWise Claims offers HR staff the ability to streamline and simply employee claims processes. The solution uses a simple 3-step process for employee claims submission, supervisor approval and payment into the employee's bank account. This automated system will see less time spent on paperwork. With documents stored in the cloud, the company does not worry about loss of claim forms or supporting receipts, which good housekeeping for audit purpose.
Likewise, MecWise Time Management simplifies timesheet tracking and roster planning. The solution helps HR staff plan and track employee clock in and clock out hours; shift rosters , hours worked, and timesheets at one glance. It also has the ability to generate comprehensive reports to help optimise manpower scheduling. MecWise Time Management adopts the best practices according to the Employment Act guidelines.
5. Frees HR staff to work on programmes to enhance job satisfaction
The work of today's HR staff isn’t confined to administrative functions. HR departments are now often responsible for organising and conducting in-house programmes to nurture workplace satisfaction. This could be a company team-building exercise, guest talks by industry professionals, training programmes on communication skills etc.
Such programmes help improve staff morale, up skills staff and helps build staff retention and loyalty. Automating HR functions frees up HR staff time, allowing them room to work on crafting and executing better in-house programmes.
Automate your HR process and enjoy the ease of staying compliance.
Companies found not complying with the Employment Act will face stiff penalties. To ensure that you do not miss out any amendments, it is important that you automate your HR process that complies with any updates to the Employment Act.
MecWise solutions comprise of fully automated HR applications that manages the basic HR function in a company. Most importantly, MecWise solutions will be updated with any changes in the Employment Act or government updates, such as CPF changes.
Benefits of MecWise Solutions
- Cope with policy changes and compliance with ease
- Automated and simplified design for business users
- Access anytime, anywhere with an Internet connection
- Cost-effective with no upfront investment.
- Scalable, add employees as your company grows
Enjoy a 30-day free trial now on the MecWise suite of solutions: