Advanced has today announced the launch of Cloud HR Software, a people management tool that will increase productivity in the HR department as well as empower employees to manage their own HR requests and activity with self-service processes and chatbots for enquiries. The new tool addresses a changing workforce which now includes Generation Z – digital natives who expect innovative technology to be pushed to them.
Jon Wrennall, CTO at Advanced, explains: “These employees – born between 1995 and 2010 – are now entering the workplace and have higher expectations for technology use in their day-to-day roles. They have been familiar with the internet and technology since a young age, so want to use transformational tools that the Cloud can provide – this gives them greater flexibility, control and drives productivity. As such, they are well placed to encourage and support older colleagues who are resistant to change or lacking the confidence to try new tools.”
According to Advanced’s recent Digital Business Report, one in ten businesses identify Generation Z as influential – paving the way for reverse mentoring in which young people mentor their older colleagues. Cloud HR enables businesses to maximise the benefits of this multi-generational workforce while accelerate their journey to digital transformation.
Cloud HR has been designed to stop manual tasks and paperwork, enable employees to self-serve and drive the employee engagement and experience meaning HR departments can make a valuable strategic impact on their organisations. It addresses the issue of productivity within the HR department by introducing automation to disrupt the way the HR function works, freeing up valuable time to invest in the acceleration of HR and people strategies.
Jon continues: “We recognise there are still a lot of HR teams working on spreadsheets who see an increasing need to equip themselves with technology that supports the workforce of the future. This means delivering self-serving applications for flexible, tech savvy employees looking to work remotely while automating processes such as online expenses, booking leave and training and development support.
“HR teams face challenging environments. They are under pressure to meet demands of a growing multigenerational workforce, offer flexible working, attract and manage the best talent as well as ensure a positive work/life balance for employees. This calls for a change in the way HR teams operate. Increasingly, organisations are looking for a Cloud-first approach which gives employees the right tools to be able to self-serve within their system. Cloud HR transforms the traditional HR function by putting HR directors and managers back in control, delivering the insight and sophistication to manage a changing workforce.”
Cloud HR has been built to deliver Cloud-first organisations with a HR solution that addresses the main organisational challenges:
- Increased productivity – enabling HR teams to focus on strategy which will benefit every person
- Engaging people – get the best from people ensuring they are engaged and contributing value back into the business
- Recruiting and retaining top talent – planning for tomorrow’s workforce, ensuring the future success of the organisation
Advanced’s own HR team is one of the first companies to beta test Cloud HR prior to launch.
Alex Arundale, Group HR Director at Advanced, comments: “Driving governance around our data and processes is critical, because we want our staff to feel safe in the knowledge we hold their data security as paramount. Cloud HR will help us create automated workflows, which takes data and decisions through driven auditable and efficient approval chains where nothing is left to chance, instead enabled by the click of a button. Removing manual touch is our goal!”
“We want to ensure employees and managers understand these processes intuitively and recognise the benefits these deliver. This goes beyond the removal of manual entry, duplication of data and accuracy issues that are barriers to engagement with most HR departments, to build trust and confidence in our HR function – I see this leading to greater employee engagement.”
