Digital world for HR

 

Sunaina Rana
EMIRATES BUSINESS

The digital world has become the front runner in all the sectors worldwide. We notice that no longer can anyone be ignorant or unwilling to accept the advancement of technology. It has been witnessed that every department of an organisation requires digitalisation for their day-to-day operations.
Though Human Resource plays a significant role in managing the inter-personal relation among the employees and the organisation, digitalisation catalyses the functioning of the department in a more efficient way.
Elios Chahla, Regional Solutions Sales Expert (Cloud/Digital Computing) in the Middle East & North Africa, specialises in HR Transformation and Digital HR. Chahla talks to Emirates Business, about the evolution of the HR industry and further elaborate on the pros and cons of the digital transformation.

What has been the
influence of digitalisation in the HR field?
Human resources (HR) interactions are becoming a little less human every day. There is a lot less personal interaction, and a lot more digital involvement. That is happening in many areas of our lives now.
The adoption of digital technology is already having an impact on Human Resources. According to a recent report by SuccessFactors — an SAP company, there are substantial differences between traditional HR organisations and businesses that use human capital management solutions.
The more technologically advanced HR departments are we witnessed 2 percent decrease in turnover, 7 percent increase in internal job fill rate and up to 5.4 percent increase in productivity.

In your opinion what is the advantage of digitalisation and how would it affect the workforce of the future?
Technologies play a vital role towards the success of HR in the future, that involves these essential components — Mobile HR, Analytics, Social Media and Integrated Consolidated Platform.
According to the report, digital technology will transform nearly every aspect of how HR teams operate and serve the business. As more companies adopt digital technology practices, more HR departments will become ‘Digital HR Organisations’ that are less centralised, more agile, more transparent, and fundamentally different from today’s HR organisations.

Does it have any disadvantage?
Every advantage comes with a disadvantage but on the personal level, I do not see any disadvantages. Technology advancement has however simplified the functioning of the organisations.

What effect does it have on the work efficiency?
It is suggested concentrating on three things when selecting HR
solutions —
Simple to Use: Meeting the digital expectations of today’s demanding end-users whose frames of reference are formed from constant use of consumer applications.
Simple to Run: After all, technology ‘does’ matter in the cloud. We believe it has to be ‘secure, open and
extensible.’
Simple to Succeed: We consider a comprehensive suite of talent and core HR
applications superior to individual point solutions. Beyond this, global and local expertise ensures your success in any
country across the world. Last, a strong user community of peers delivers value and supports adoption.

As the cloud solutions have become very popular in each and every sector, what benefits do you see in this technology?
I have 10 reasons to share with you why consider SuccessFactors the #1 HCM solutions offered as SaaS —most comprehensive HCM suite, unlimited extensibility, engaging user experience, delivering the service in SaaS, powering leading brands around the world, proven scalability, insights that impact business results, unmatched global expertise, unparallel track record and recognised market leader.
Can digitalisation
enhance the performance of the workforce?
Compelling and modern user experience: Every employee in the organisation – full time, part time, contingent, contractor, manager, executive, all are potential users of HR systems and expectations of all those end users have changed. The employees demand that business systems behave like the consumer systems they use every day. The system must know who the user is, anticipate what they need, and provide the content, data, and processes to get the job done.

What are the most significant aspects of HR in modern time?
The employees are the heartbeat of an organisation. Engaged employees will do what it takes to win, and typically there’s a small number of parameters that drive such employee engagement
Feeling supported: This notion of backing from peers and managers, or, to put it in simple terms, “having what I need to win” is essential for people to be willing to step out of their personal comfort zones and to strive for higher goals.
Training: In today’s fast-paced environment it is essential to instill a culture of continuous learning in your organization, ensuring fresh and relevant skills so your people can keep up with constant change.
Rewards: A winning reward system addresses two types of employee activity: performance and behavior, and spans across compensation, benefits, recognition and appreciation.
Motivation: Probably the least tangible parameter, motivation can best be described as an employee’s intrinsic enthusiasm about their work and drive to get things done.

As cyber security has become one of the greatest concerns in the highly digitalise world, what are the small initiative we can take that can help us fight the evil?
As companies use software delivered through a SaaS model, their overarching concerns focus on vulnerabilities related to identity management, data storage and location strategy, and data transmission. The SaaS-based offerings from SAP include built-in security features to resolve these concerns.