Impact Of Size Of An Organization On Hris Deployment ISSN 2348-8891 * Ms. Timsy Kapoor, **Dr. C.K. Goyal Abstract: Human resource information systems (HRIS) usage allows the Human Resource professional to become a strategic player. With both increasing functionality and affordability, HRIS are being used extensively in organizations of all sizes. Despite this, surprisingly little is known about the current usage, whether disparities exist between companies of different sizes. The study aims at investigating if there is any significant difference in the usage of HRIS between Small/Medium (SME) size and large size companies. A survey questionnaire was sent to 300 companies out of which 114 were returned representing 38.333 response rates. The target group of the questionnaire was HR managers in companies based in M.P. * Sr. Asst. Prof., Computer Science Department, M.B. Khalsa College, Indore. ** Associate Prof. & Head, Institute of Business Management and Research, IPS Academy, Indore.
Keywords: Human Resource, Human Resource Information System, Information Technology, Human Resource Management, Strategic Human Resource Management. Introduction: To compete in the challenging business environment of the new millennium, an ever-increasing reason for success lies in the function of effective human resource management. Human Resource Management (HRM) has shifted its function within organizations over the last few years. Its function has grown considerably and has shifted into a more strategic role rather than providing support for administrative paperwork. There has been a shift too, in terminology, with the term Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) becoming more common. To improve organization performance and create competitive advantage, the Human Resource team must focus on a new set of priorities. These new priorities are more business and strategy oriented and less geared towards traditional Human Resource functions such as staffing, training, appraisal and compensation. Strategic role not only adds a valuable dimension to the Human Resource function, but also changes the competencies that define Human Resource professionals and practitioners of success. In response to its new role and responsibilities, Human Resource professionals need a system that can manage as well as handle the traditional Human Resources work. This is where Human Resource Information System (HRIS) starts to come in. Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) refers to the systems and processes at the intersection between human resource management (HRM) and information technology (www.wikipedia.org). It merges Human Resource Management as a discipline and in particular its basic Human Resource activities and processes with the information technology field and has been used in Human Resource Departments for many years now. It is now expected to drive Human Resource (HR) s transition from an administrative and operational role to a strategic role. Literature Review: In the current fast-paced global competitive business environment, the efficient and effective management of human capital is an immense challenge to the human resource departments. Information systems contribute to improve the organizational performance, and enhance the competencies of human resource professionals. Managers in these organizations face growing difficulties in coping with workforces that may be spread across various countries, cultures, and political systems.hris has a very humble historical origin. Although there were some exceptions, prior to World War II HR professionals (then referred to as personnel staff) performed basic employee record keeping as a service function with limited interactions on core business missions. Initial efforts to manage information about personnel were frequently limited to employee names and addresses. Between 1945 and 1960, organizations became more aware of human capital issues and began to develop formal processes for selection and development of employees. At the same time, organizations began to recognize the importance of employees morale
on the firm s overall effectiveness. While this period of change in the profession did not result in significant changes in HRIS (although employee files did become somewhat more complex), some believe that it set the stage for an explosion of changes that began in the 1960s and 1970s (Kavanaugh, Gueutal and Tannenbaum, 1990). During the next twenty years (1960 to 1980) HR was integrated into the core business mission and, at the same time period, governmental and regulatory reporting requirements for employees also increased significantly. The advent and widespread use of mainframe computers in corporate America corresponded with this regulatory increase and provided a technological solution to the increased analytical and recordkeeping requirements imposed by growing regulation of employment and a host of new reporting requirements. The Human Resource Department became one of the most important users of the costly computing systems of the day, often edging other functional areas for computer access. Although HRIS systems were computerized and grew extensively in size and scope during this period, they remained simple record-keeping systems (Kavanaugh et al., 1990). According to Kovach and colleagues, HRIS is considered as a systematic procedure for collecting, storing, maintaining, and recovering data required by an organization about their human resources, personnel activities and organizational characteristics (Kovach, Hughes, Fagan) There are multiple typologies for the classification of computer-based systems. However earlier studies defines the most basic types of systems and then apply them to their development and use within HRIS. One of the earliest books in the field of computer based systems (Sprague & Carlson, 1982) placed HRIS under three basic categories: Electronic Data Processing (EDP), Management Information Systems (MIS), and Decision Support Systems (DSS). EDP is primarily electronic storage of information and was first applied to automate paperwork. As Sprague and Carlson (1982) note, Its basic characteristics include: A focus on data, storage, processing, and flows at the operational level, efficient transaction processing, scheduled and optimized computer runs, integrated files for related jobs, and summary reports for management. This category of HRIS was the earliest form introduced in the HR field and fits in with the transactional level of HR activities. In the MIS category, Sprague and Carlson (1982) state that the characteristics of MIS include: An information focus aimed at middle managers, structured information flows integration of EDP jobs by business function, and inquiry and report generation. This type of HRIS emerged as technology improved over time, and it fits the traditional level of HR activities, such as recruitment, selection, and compensation. Sprague and Carlson (1982) note that DSS are focused still higher in the organization, with an emphasis on the following characteristics: Decision focused aimed at top managers and executive decision makers, emphasis on flexibility, adaptability, and quick response, user initiated and controlled, and support for the personal decision-making styles of individual managers. HRIS at this level began to emerge in the cost-effectiveness era of HRM development, and it fits the transformational level of HR activities adding value to organizational processes.
HRIS, identified by Kavanagh et al. (1990), which should be used in organizations to maximize the effect of computer-generated knowledge on managerial decision making. There are numerous reports generated on a regular basis from both the EDP and the MIS types of HRIS for example, overtime and benefits usage. The critical question is how many of these reports are used by either line managers or HR professionals in their daily work, particularly in their decision-making capacity? All HRIS software are designed to generate a standard set of reports, but surveys and reports from both managers and HR professionals indicate that many of these reports are typically discarded. Thus, it is apparent that another type of HRIS exists the human resources management decision system (HRMDS). This type has the following characteristics: Report formation and generation based on identified managerial needs for decision Making, Categorization of reports by management level, Timing of report generation based on frequency of managerial use: daily, weekly, monthly, Historical information retained and reported in a timely manner so that managers and HR professionals can see the results of their use of the information in their previous decisions. This type of system could be described as the ideal system since it provides critical information for decisions involving the human resources of the company, and thus, should be used as a standard for the development and application of any HRIS. Snell, Stuber and Lepak (2002) observe that Human Resource can meet the challenge of simultaneously becoming more strategic, flexible, cost-efficient and customer-oriented by leveraging information technology. They point out that information Technology has the potential to lower administrative costs, increase productivity, speed response times, improve decision-making, and enhance customer service all at the same time. The need for cost reduction, higher quality services, and cultural change are the three main forces that have driven firms to seek Information Technology-driven Human Resource solutions (Yeung & Brockbank, 1995). The rapid development of the Information and Communication Technology during the last two decades has boosted the implementation and application of electronic Human Resource Management (e-hrm) (Strohmeier, 2007). Surveys of Human Resource consultants suggest that both the number of organizations adopting Human Resource Information System and the depth of applications within the organizations are continually increasing (Cedar Crestone, 2005). Many experts forecast that the Personal Computer would become the central tool for all Human Resource professionals (Kovach & Cathcart, 1999). These predictions find today empirical confirmation in several surveys carried on by academic research and consulting companies (Cedar, 2009). Objectives: ISSN 2348-8891 To explore the role of Human Resource manager and their use of Information System (IS) in fulfilling their roles. To study role of Human Resource Information System in developing Human Resource manager into a strategic player. To study the impact of Human Resource Information System on Human Resource Professionals role in small, medium and large size organizations.
Hypothesis: 1. Human Resource Information System plays a major role in strategic Human Resource task. 2. There is a significant difference between the role of Human Resource Information System in small/ medium and large companies in support Human Resource task. Research Methodology: Research Design The present study is based on an exploratory study of bivariate factorial design of 2 2. In this we study the impact of Human Resource Information System on Human Resource professional and also identify whether Human Resource Information System impact varies with size of organization. Size of Organization Small/Medium: Small/Medium organization is one which employs 100 or less employees. Large: Large organization is one which employs more than 100 employees. Sample Design: The sample was collected as per convenience sampling from various Human Resource executive working in various organizations. Questionnaire was sent to 300 respondent out of which 114 respondent were found to be valid or complete. The distribution of sample shall be as per 2 2 factorial design given as under Data Collection Tools: Large SME M 35 39 F 24 16 The tool used to collect data is through Questionnaire. Structured Questionnaire was distributed to the Human Resource executives who are working in Human Resource department. 300 questionnaires were mailed and distributed to Human Resource managers and Human Resource executives. Out of which 114 questionnaires found to be valid and complete. The data were collected on five point scale ranging from Not at all to very much which is known as Likert scale. The study investigated the impact of Human Resource Information System on Human Resource task and Job roles in different organizations. It also tries to find out any significant difference in the usage of Human Resource Information System between small/medium size and large size companies.
Empirical Result and Analysis: This section presents the result from empirical studies. Human Resource Management proposes that Human Resource Information System can contribute to the creation of a long-term competitive advantage through the integration of Human Resource Management functions with Human Resource technology (Gerardine DeSanctis, 1986: 15; Tannenbaum, 1990; Hendrickson, 2003). A number of strategic Human Resource Management tasks have been identified. These are Communications, Human Resource Development, Workplace Learning, Career Management and Human Capital accumulation (Sparrow and Hiltrop, 1994: 25 cited in Morley et al., 2006; Beer et al., 1984; Keep 1989). Dixon (1992) and Kochan and Dyer (1995) consider greater Worker Autonomy, High Commitment Management, Leadership, and Business Processes Reengineering as Strategic Human Resource Management tasks. Gunnigle (1998) includes managing organization s Trade Unions relations. Hence the Hypothesis: H 01 : Human Resource Information System does not play major role in strategic Human Resource task. H 11 : Human Resource Information System plays major role in strategic Human Resource task In order to test this hypothesis a question in which respondents were asked to rate the extent to which Human Resource Information System plays a role in strategic Human Resource task. The summary of the responses have been shown in following table: Summary of ratings to the extent to which Human Resource Information System plays a role in strategic Human Resource tasks Extent to which Human Resource Information System play role in strategic Human Resource tasks N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean 114 3.96 0.419 0.039 Table I In order to test the hypothesis that Human Resource Information System does not play a major role in strategic Human Resource tasks, independent sample z test is used. Results of z test are shown in the table below. The test resulted in significant value of z (P value < 0.05). This result indicates that Human Resource Information System plays a major role in strategic Human Resource tasks. Thus it helps the HR executive to become strategic players.
Test of significance of extent to which Human Resource Information System plays a Role in strategic Human Resource tasks Extent to which Human Resource Information System plays a role in strategic Human Resource tasks. Z df 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper 24.575 113 0 0.965 0.89 1.04 Table II Test Value = 3 Sig. (2- tailed) Mean Differenc e In order to test this hypothesis another question also consider in which respondents were asked to rate the extent to which they use Human Resource Information System in support of various strategic Human Resource tasks. The response has been summarized in following table: Summary of responses given by Human Resource Executives to the extent of Human Resource Information System is deployed in different strategic Human Resource tasks Strategic Tasks N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean Human resource development and work place 114 4.04 0.657 0.062 Learning 114 4.07 0.606 0.057 Communication 114 4.11 0.709 0.066 Career Management 114 4.15 0.681 0.064 Leadership Management 114 4.21 0.685 0.064 Business Process Reengineering 114 4.08 0.706 0.066 Managing Relation with the Organization s trade union 114 4.08 0.777 0.073 Decision Making 114 4.38 0.67 0.063 Table III In order to test the hypothesis that there is no major role of Human Resource Information System in various strategic Human Resource tasks, independent sample z test is used. Results of z test are shown in the table below. The test resulted in significant value of z (P value < 0.05) for all the strategic Human Resource tasks. Thus null hypothesis (H 01 ) is rejected. This result indicates that Human Resource Information System plays a major role in performing strategic Human Resource tasks. Hence (H 11 ) is validated.
Test of significance of extent of role of Human Resource Information System in performing different strategic Human Resource tasks. Strategic Tasks Human resource development and work place z df Test Value = 3 Sig. (2- tailed) Mean Differenc e 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper 16.963 113 0 1.044 0.92 1.17 Learning 18.869 113 0 1.07 0.96 1.18 Communication 16.654 113 0 1.105 0.97 1.24 Career Management 18.006 113 0 1.149 1.02 1.28 Leadership Management 18.882 113 0 1.211 1.08 1.34 Business Process Reengineering 16.322 113 0 1.079 0.95 1.21 Managing Relation with the Organization s trade union 14.819 113 0 1.079 0.93 1.22 Decision Making 21.935 113 0 1.377 1.25 1.5 Table: IV H 02 : There is no significant difference in the role of Human Resource Information System in small/ medium and large companies in support of strategic Human Resource tasks. H 22 : There is significant difference between in the role of Human Resource Information System in small/ medium and large companies in support of strategic Human Resource tasks. In order to test this hypothesis we had taken the test hypothesis that there is no significant difference between the role of Human Resource Information System in small, medium and large companies in support of strategic Human Resource task. The hypothesis was tested using independent sample z test. Respondents of Small/ Medium and Large organizations were asked to rate the extent to which they use Human Resource Information System in support of various strategic tasks
Summary of the role of Human Resource Information System in small/ medium and large companies in support of strategic Human Resource tasks Strategic task Size of Organization N Mean Std. Std. Error Deviation Mean Human resource development and work place Learning Communication Career Management Leadership Management Business Process Reengineering Managing Relation with the Organization s trade union Decision Making Small/Medium 55 4 0.638 0.086 Large 59 4.08 0.677 0.088 Small/Medium 55 4.05 0.705 0.095 Large 59 4.08 0.501 0.065 Small/Medium 55 4.05 0.678 0.091 Large 59 4.15 0.738 0.096 Small/Medium 55 4.18 0.696 0.094 Large 59 4.12 0.672 0.087 Small/Medium 55 4.22 0.738 0.099 Large 59 4.2 0.637 0.083 Small/Medium 55 4.07 0.663 0.089 Large 59 4.08 0.749 0.098 Small/Medium 55 4.24 0.666 0.09 Large 59 3.93 0.848 0.11 Small/Medium 55 4.42 0.658 0.089 Large 59 4.34 0.685 0.089 Table: V In order to test the significant difference in the extent to which Human Resource Information System is used in small medium and large organization, for various strategic tasks, independent sample z test is used. Results of z test are shown in the table below. Test of significance of difference in the role of Human Resource Information System in small/ medium and large companies in support of strategic Human Resource tasks Human resource development and work place -0.687 112 0.494-0.085 0.123-0.329 0.16 Learning -0.265 112 0.792-0.03 0.114-0.256 0.196 Communication -0.736 112 0.463-0.098 0.133-0.362 0.166 Career Management 0.493 112 0.623 0.063 0.128-0.191 0.317 Leadership Management 0.115 112 0.909 0.015 0.129-0.241 0.27 Business Process -0.09 112 0.928-0.012 0.133-0.275 0.251 Reengineering Managing Relation with 2.119 112 0.036 0.304 0.144 0.02 0.589 the Organization s trade union Decision Making 0.629 112 0.531 0.079 0.126-0.17 0.329 Table: VI
The results of z test revealed that there is no significant difference in the extent to which Human Resource Information System is used in Small/Medium and Large organization, for all the strategic tasks (P value >0.05) except for task of Managing Relation with the Organization s trade union for which there is significant difference in the extent to which Human Resource Information System is used in small/ medium and large organization (P value <0.05). Discussion: The study attempted to examine how Human Resource executive in different organizations see the effects of Human Resource Information System on strategic Human Resource tasks, and job roles. It also tried to find out if there is a significant difference in Human Resource Information System usage between small/ medium and large sized companies in respect of strategic Human Resource tasks performance. Various studies on Human Resource Management propose that Human Resource Information System can contribute to the creation of a long-term competitive advantage through integration of Human Resource Management functions with Human Resource technology (Gerardine DeSanctis, 1986: 15; Tannenbaum, 1990; Hendrickson, 2003). A number of strategic Human Resource Management tasks have been identified. These include Communications, Human Resource Development, Workplace Learning, Career Management and Human Capital accumulation (Sparrow and Hiltrop, 1994: 25 cited in Morley et al., 2006; Beer et al., 1984; Keep 1989). Dixon (1992) and Kochan and Dyer (1995) consider greater Worker Autonomy, high Commitment Management, Leadership, and Business Processes Reengineering as Strategic Human Resource Management tasks. Another one includes managing organization s Trade Unions relations (Gunnigle, 1998: 17). Human Resource professionals might also consider Human Resource Information System usage in support of strategic Human Resource tasks given the unrelenting
Human Resource Information System support for the Human Resource professionals job (Buckley et al., 2004; Gardner et al., 2003; Ulrich, 1997; Brockbank; 1999). The empirical results of the study revealed that there is strong support for the statement that Human Resource Information System plays a major role in strategic Human Resource tasks. Human Resource Information System plays a key role in strategic Human Resource tasks. This is an indication that Human Resource Information System capabilities in shaping the int egration bet ween Human Reso urce Management and Information Technology (Hendrickson, 2003) are also applicable to Strategic Human Resources Management. There is evidence of Human Resource Information System support for communication, human resource development, workplace learning, business process reengineering, and decisionmaking, career management, commitment management, trade union and leadership management as a strategic Human Resource tasks; There is evidence that Human Resource Information System plays a major role in strategic Human Resource task. Thus it fulfills our first objective to explore the role of Human Resource manager and the use of Information System in fulfilling role and second objective i.e. Human Resource Information System enhance the role of Human Resource manager into a strategic player. However, in the case of specific strategic Human Resource tasks, the degree of the support does not depended on the type of organization. The result reveals no significant difference in usage of HRIS small/ medium and large companies except in case of Managing Trade Union. This may be because union issues are less in small scale companies compare to large scale companies which leads to grater usage of Human Resource Information System It implies that users of Human Resource Information System need to identify their strategic Human Resource tasks before embarking on any Human Resource Information System implementation in order to enjoy the full benefit of using Human Resource Information System both to Human Resource professionals and to the organization as a whole. Conclusion: ISSN 2348-8891 Information Technology enhances Human Resources role. Now more people are involved with strategic jobs. The findings are consistent with the organizations increased reliance on the use of Human Resource Information System in support of strategic Human Resource tasks. Thus it enables HR managers to become strategic. As there is no significant variation in the usage of HRIS between small/medium and large organisations, the study suggest that all organizations can reap great benefits from HRIS in strategic tasks and thereby help HR managers to become strategic players.
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