At the forefront of innovation are IT companies that have managed to find ways to improve not just their deliverables but also the processes involved, from project creation to project launch. It will be a shame if such a streamlined company cannot extend its efficiency to its HR department. It feels counterproductive to have an obsolete, mostly manual HR department that still relies on human actions for tasks that can easily be automated. Take these tasks that the HR department manages, for example:
Inquiries and Requests
Employees, vendors, and all other personnel involved in a project will request resources, budget, and file access. All of these can take a long time if they have to rely on the physical presence of someone to access the information for them. It doesn’t even make sense to lock this data for everyone’s access. An employee who may be inquiring about their leave credits can easily access it through ServiceNow’s HR service management system that automatically tracks it depending on their employment status. It shouldn’t require a complicated procedure to access this information. If you’re worried about control, any requests will still be subject for approval from an HR personnel.
Onboarding and Offboarding
Team members assigned to a certain project will need onboarding to keep them apprised of the current progress, especially if they are joining the team in the middle of project completion. Even clients who need to use a system to access their information or see how their project is going will need to know the basics of how the system works. This is not something you should leave to chance or let them discover by themselves as they might accidentally do something that could compromise the whole system. It’s safer to teach them how to use the system for basic tasks, and they can even use the onboarding functionality to learn in their own time.
For offboarding, it’s the opposite. Team members need to complete the handoff of all resources and materials they have been given about the project once their time working for it is done. Clients will also require offboarding when they are handing off the reigns to a different person on their team, who will become the new point person for the project and will need onboarding.
Transitioning
A project may start in one portfolio and continue to become part of a different portfolio, which requires some changes in how things are done. There are several risks associated with manual transitioning, especially due to human error. You may forget to handle a crucial aspect of the transition, which may result in deliverables being delayed or the whole project being compromised. An automated system will help you see which tasks have not been completed yet, and you can set up alerts to help you complete all the prerequisites of the transition within a given time frame.
The way you conduct business is just as important as the products, services, or solutions you provide. Streamline all processes and eliminate human error where applicable.
