New research finds e-HR is top priority for a third of UK businesses

Research announced recently by Microsoft Great Plains Business Solutions, has found that nearly a third of companies, 30%, now rank e-HR as their number one e-business initiative. The survey of 500 UK companies explores the growing interest in the use of new technology to enhance HR practices and the gap between the demand for such technology and its current usage in British firms.

The survey also found that only 13% of companies have implemented e-HR technologies although 40% felt that e-HR would provide organisational benefits such as accurate up-to-date information on employee records, training enrolment and recruitment activity.

Despite e-HR being viewed as a top priority with clear organisational benefits, 32% of firms cited the impact on line managersí time as the top consideration or barrier in implementing e-HR technologies. The second most common factor mentioned by 27% was that line managers were correctly trained and skilled to take on some of their new HR responsibilities, enabled by e-HR.

Adrian Hobbs, UK managing director at Microsoft Great Plains, explains, ìThis research clearly shows that e-HR is moving up the UK corporate agenda and firms are starting to understand that e-HR can deliver a competitive edge. The findings point to the UK being on the brink of an e-HR explosion, but that business change is still critical.î

Hobbs continues, ìUK firms need to act now to ensure that their e-HR strategy is in line with the overall corporate objectives - for today and for the coming years. With this understood, e-HR can clearly benefit HR directors, line managers and employees by saving precious time and positively affecting the financial bottom line.î

With the pressure on British firms to improve lagging productivity in comparison to other countries, e-HR offers important advances to improve management accountability. It can dramatically improve the ability of directors and managers to track areas such as: performance appraisals, skills development, absenteeism and training so that issues can be foreseen and resolved quickly.

David McCammon, head of human resources at KLM UK, and with an HR career spanning 30 years, comments, ìe-HR has arrived and companies need to seize the opportunity now to compete. Real benefits are being seen by an increasing number of UK companies as HR takes advantage of the Internet and is seen no longer as a ìsoft, nice to haveî company add on, but increasingly as the corporate backbone.î

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