HR software options can be overwhelming: how technology increases flexibility and security, and reduces administrative tasks

University Business, May, 2005 by Laura Gater

Today's university human resources (HR) personnel need immediate access to a variety of information. While there are probably hundreds of computer software programs that can store and access data about employees, they are not all equal. The flexibility, ease, and security that a good software program provides is critical in today's fast-paced environment. A good HR program can reduce the department's administrative tasks, leaving more time for other projects.

While many HR professionals appreciate the convenience and efficiency provided by their software programs, Anne Ciolek, payroll manager at St. Bonaventure University (N.Y.), states her appreciation clearly.

"If I didn't have my Datatel software, I probably wouldn't be able to do my job," she says.

Datatel helps Ciolek process payroll for approximately 169 faculty members in addition to the students and others who are employed there. She runs more than $20 million in salaries yearly through Datatel, and also prints W-2 forms and quarterly employment and payroll reports.

Datatel's HR module also helps personnel at St. Bonaventure keep track of employees throughout their entire employment, from hire date to retirement. Employees can also gain access to their own data online, without having to contact an HR or payroll employee. They can update records, access benefits information, check payroll records, and more. St. Bonaventure utilizes Datatel software campus-wide, so administration, HR/payroll, financial aid, and registration are all integrated. If an address is changed at one department, it is automatically updated on all records.

St. Bonaventure used to outsource its payroll services, but found that option too costly. Datatel provided a simple, yet comprehensive solution that doesn't overwhelm the university's small technical services department nor HR and payroll employees.

Kathy Page, HR director at Roanoke College (Va.), has used Datatel since 1998, when it was incorporated campus-wide.

"It enables us to store all the information we need about the employee, payroll functions, and to formulate total costs, payroll budget, and benefit and salary costs," explains Page. "Each module can stand alone, but we have an entire package, so that makes it more functional for the entire campus."

Another aspect of Datatel's usefulness is its ability to automate the job applicant tracking process. This function helps decrease the amount of time spent sorting through applications and directing applicants through the evaluation and hiring process.

"The workflow software helps us move our decision-making processing quicker. It helps eliminate paper somewhat and allows people to approve decisions online," states Peter Chung, director of HR services at Lethbridge Community College in Alberta, Canada. "For example, when discussing why we should or should not hire a certain individual, we can put all the details in a database to help us make a decision."

From a user's standpoint, Datatel is "pretty simplistic," according to Ciolek, who also appreciates the company's willingness to help with any problems or questions that she has.

The University of California at San Diego (UCSD) took a different path when it came to purchasing integrated software. The school decided to establish one central website or portal and abolish all subsites. In addition to that undertaking, it also was determined to post all information in "plain English" for easy access by anyone. The result was Blink (short for Business Link).

"The number one audience for our website is all staff, but we are more concerned about the new employee who has questions about how we operate. That's who we engineered the site for," explains Steve Relyea, vice chancellor for Business Affairs at UCSD. "We used a third-party product [Vignette] that is used by large corporations that have a huge volume of website traffic, to customize Blink for our use."

UCSD hired a writer to revise all of its website content into simple and straightforward language. Although the project was completed more than five years ago, it continues to make university HR employees' jobs easier.

"Everyone tell us that the amount of work needed is greatly reduced, for HR transactions, accounting transactions, and Blink also helps our mobile workforce be productive no matter where they are, since they have online access to all essential information," says Relyea. The Blink system also has a single entry point for authentication and access, eliminating various steps for employees and thus saving time.

Blink has helped the school reduce overhead costs and makes its own staff more productive since it provides university and employee policies, benefits and other crucial information online, for easy access by university personnel

PeopleSoft Inc., a popular enterprise software solution used heavily by colleges and universities, not to mention government and industry, was purchased by Oracle in January, leaving many of its users to wonder how their service will be affected by the sale. The new Oracle-PeopleSoft will continue providing software solutions for management, fundraising, HR, financial and administration functions in higher education as well as other industries. Services such as admission status, registration, loan application, and class scheduling, are available online to students, while university/ college employee data is also maintained online.