Why Cloud-Based HR Is Only Half the Answer

As Michelyn noted in a recent blog post on our Stratus.hr name change, the role of HR today has really changed. I’ll take that a step further and note that technology’s role has changed, too. We expect our work to go with us wherever we go – on mobile devices, laptops, wherever and whenever.

So, the real question isn’t IF you need the cloud for HR - it’s how you get there. To get your HR in the cloud, you have two options: you can either use a software-based cloud approach and put together the a la carte elements you need, or you can partner with an HR company that offers a fully functioning HR solution with all the pertinent cloud-based HR tools your company needs.

Doing it yourself with HR software that lives in the cloud can be very appealing – but getting everything you need may not be very convenient. Some software only tracks time and attendance. Others provide recruitment and application management, but don’t take on benefits, so you get another solution to patch on top of it.

An article I read recently in Forbes noted that only about 13 percent of organizations have a single HR system – most companies have three or four different ones that they use for things like applicant and performance tracking or payroll and timekeeping. When you add all of those great, easy systems together, you get a collection of disparate parts that don’t talk to each other. They can be difficult to use and manage – and a hassle.

The better option is solution 2: partnering with a professional HR team with cloud-based services. That way you can do and access everything in the cloud, all from one provider so the systems you need talk to one another and you’re not manually transferring data from one source to another.

But that’s still only half the solution. Because even if you have the coolest piece of software, it still only does the things that you know how to do with it. If you have people to back up the software, THEY can help you unlock its potential – give you access to what you didn’t know was possible. So the other half of your HR solution comes from human expertise and experience. You get these by partnering with an organization that provides cloud-based HR and professionals that can help with everything else.

So, yes, you need to have your HR in the cloud – but that’s not the only place your HR solution needs to be. It also needs to be grounded in reality by experts who back you up, who are tuned into the latest compliance issues and regulations and who have experience and advice. You can’t get that from a do-it-yourself solution, no matter how well built. For that, you need a real partner.

“Key business functions and collaborative activities are shifting to the cloud at an accelerated rate. The question for most organizations is no longer whether they will move to the cloud, but when and how.” Stephanie Reyes in TribeHR referencing an eye-opening video from Constellation Research

“The race to the cloud presents an opportunity for HR transformation. A new cloud-based platform allows companies to consolidate legacy systems and dramatically improve decision making. These systems also help redefine the role of HR, set up a more scalable service delivery model, and improve the effective of HR business partners….these platforms enable dramatic improvements in productivity, capability development, collaboration, and data-driven decision making.” Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends 2014

image credits: https://www.lbisoftware.com/blog/hr-trends/