Michael Moon
Director of People Insights
ADP
What area of the HR function will be most impacted by emerging technologies, and why?
Technologies such as Robotic Process Automation, machine learning, and AI will have a strong impact on both HR Shared Services/Operations and HRBPs. For example, Robotic Process Automation, can be used to automate high-volume transactional processes that are repetitive in nature. This can help improve efficiencies resulting in lower labor costs and improve the overall quality of data in HR. When RPA is used HR Shared Services can shift their focus from the transactional elements of their role and instead handle exceptions, while HRBPs can get faster access to data and insights while having more confidence in the accuracy of the data due to reduction in processing errors.
What’s the single most dramatic shift you see happening in the HR tech space today?
The single biggest shift I am seeing is in the proliferation of vendors who are building technology with the employee end-user in mind. Whether it is a new vendor building scratch or existing vendors updating their current functionality, this shift began well before the latest employee experience wave hit HR. Vendors have been focused on finding ways to simplify the products and the processes they support. Chatbots, guided tours, in product videos, and AI are examples of this. These mechanisms are being used to help employees find answers faster, provide more access to self-service and assist in better and more efficient decision-making.
Are there certain strategies that are more effective than others when it comes to getting your workforce to use new HR technologies being put in place?
There are two primary factors that drive technology adoption in the workplace. Perceived ease of use and usefulness (or effort and performance expectancy). The software must not only be easy to use and require the least amount of specialized training it also needs to support the natural flow of how work gets done and allow users to be more and not less efficient. To help facilitate both factors spend time understanding how work gets done today. What are your employee’s pain points? Take inventory on what they need and include that in your decision-making process.