Survey Shows e-HR Is Catching On

HR Magazine, Oct, 2001 by Bill Leonard

The number of companies offering employees online access to routine HR functions such as benefits enrollment, family status changes and changes to 401(k) contributions is definitely on the rise. More than 60 percent of the employers responding to the Towers Perrin 2001 HR Service Center Survey reported that they now allow employees to complete their benefits enrollment online, which is more than double the number reported last year. Similar increases were seen for personal HR data changes (43 percent in 2001 vs. 21 percent in 2000) and 401(k) allocation changes (80 percent in 2001 vs. 58 percent in 2000).

"These numbers reflect a continuing trend among the nation's leading companies to give employees more direct control over their benefit decisions," says Joe Bender, a consultant on HR delivery systems for Towers Perrin. "A look at future plans also shows that the majority of companies not currently offering self-service solutions for benefits enrollment, personal and 401(k) changes, and 401(k) loan modeling plan to offer them in the near future."

The survey found the primary reason that more companies are now offering HR access online is a perceived increase in timeliness and accuracy of data, plus a reduction in workload. More than three-quarters of the survey respondents reported that benefit enrollments online are more accurate, and comparable numbers of respondents also felt that online access has improved the accuracy for family status changes (73 percent) and personal information changes (80 percent).

"The reality of HR self-service on the web is finally catching up with the hype and promises that we've been hearing over the past few years," says Tom Keebler, a principal with Towers Perrin and co-author of the survey. "As the data suggest, companies are willing to invest in technology that delivers measurable improvements in the accuracy, timeliness and quality of HR services."

More information on the study is available online at www.towersperrin.com.

Bill Leonard is senior writer for HR Magazine.