Different software packages from different vendors can be tied together to create an ERP
Firms looking for an enterprise-wide system to handle a wide variety of tasks used to have two basic options: take the enterprise resource portal (ERP) approach or try to clumsily glue together a patchwork of systems that may, or may not, speak to each other.
That meant most organizations that wanted an encompassing solution had to take the ERP route. After all, ERPs were designed to manage all areas of an organization from financials to HR to manufacturing and keep all of the data in one central repository. But most ERP solutions fall short of this objective and simply deliver multiple applications from a single vendor.
Technology has given organizations the chance to branch away from the concept of an ERP, allowing companies to acquire software that meet the needs of each department without sacrificing integration of applications or data. The advent of XML (extensible markup language) has made this possible.
XML provides a set of rules for designing text formats that let organizations structure data, and it is now a standard used through the HR software industry. (For more information on HR-XML, click on the related articles link below.) With XML the software packages can talk to each other and send messages back-and-forth in real time.
Bringing vendors together
This means organizations can manage HR functions by using a collection of HR technology vendors that offer specific solutions together to make up a larger solution.
For example, a training department may have an e-learning solution that it prefers to use. Similarly, the recruiting department may have an outsourced solution that it uses to manage all of its recruiting tasks. And the HR department may have software that it prefers because it matches its business processes. These software systems have traditionally been standalone applications that did not communicate with each other and were unable to transfer information between databases.
With the emergence of XML, linking these standalone applications together it not as onerous as it once. XML provides the first real opportunity for true open communication.
A recruiting solution can respond to an HR solution that publishes a job opening. This recruiting software can send resumes that match the requirements of the job opening and update the organization’s applicant tracking system. Once the candidate has been hired in the HR solution, a message can be sent to the e-learning solution to indicate what kind of training is required for the new employee and the software can go ahead and schedule the employee for that training. Once training has been completed, a message can then be sent back to the HR department’s software to update the employee’s skills and competencies.
The backbone of the system
The backbone of an organization’s HR strategy is the depth and accuracy of its human resource database. All of the collaborating software solutions need to share centrally maintained HR information.
Starting with strong HR software as the backbone of an organization’s overall HR strategy is essential. This software should have a robust database and open connectivity to allow organizations to gather and manage employee and organizational information easily.
In addition, an HR solution should also provide the ability to share information with collaborative partners through XML messaging technology.
Another important attribute of an ideal HR technology strategy is to ensure users do not have to sign on to multiple solutions. Single sign-on capabilities leverage central security information. Often central security repositories are found within an organization’s Intranet and therefore can be leveraged across solutions. But it is common to have solutions deployed through hosted services, meaning that security needs to be shared over the Internet. This can also be accomplished using various strategies for Internet-based security. This is a critical area for deploying HR strategies made up of solutions from multiple vendors.
Effective reporting through data warehousing
Shared information is important to ensure accurate and efficient data management, but the ability to report on information in these different systems is also necessary. Data warehousing, a collection of data that relates to a general subject specifically structured for querying and reporting, offers one central location for all data generated and maintained within individual software packages.
This technology has provided organizations with the ability to report on information that may relate to other information but was not previously contained in the same location. Data warehousing gives organizations the ability to compare HR data to financial data for initiatives such as budget planning or to conduct career planning by connecting information about employees’ skills to training information offered in an e-learning solution.
The framework for the next generation of enterprise technology solutions has now been laid, with the ability for best-of-breed solutions to communicate and share information as well as the ability to report on all of the information gathered between the solutions with ease. Organizations no longer have to be tied to a single vendor in an effort to keep all of the important information together.
Technology allows firms to pick the solutions that meet specific departmental needs and report on the data collected as if it were a single solution.
Jeff Koven leads product strategy for Hewitt Associates’ eCyborg HRMS solution. For more information contact [email protected] or visit www.cyborg.com.
That meant most organizations that wanted an encompassing solution had to take the ERP route. After all, ERPs were designed to manage all areas of an organization from financials to HR to manufacturing and keep all of the data in one central repository. But most ERP solutions fall short of this objective and simply deliver multiple applications from a single vendor.
Technology has given organizations the chance to branch away from the concept of an ERP, allowing companies to acquire software that meet the needs of each department without sacrificing integration of applications or data. The advent of XML (extensible markup language) has made this possible.
XML provides a set of rules for designing text formats that let organizations structure data, and it is now a standard used through the HR software industry. (For more information on HR-XML, click on the related articles link below.) With XML the software packages can talk to each other and send messages back-and-forth in real time.
Bringing vendors together
This means organizations can manage HR functions by using a collection of HR technology vendors that offer specific solutions together to make up a larger solution.
For example, a training department may have an e-learning solution that it prefers to use. Similarly, the recruiting department may have an outsourced solution that it uses to manage all of its recruiting tasks. And the HR department may have software that it prefers because it matches its business processes. These software systems have traditionally been standalone applications that did not communicate with each other and were unable to transfer information between databases.
With the emergence of XML, linking these standalone applications together it not as onerous as it once. XML provides the first real opportunity for true open communication.
A recruiting solution can respond to an HR solution that publishes a job opening. This recruiting software can send resumes that match the requirements of the job opening and update the organization’s applicant tracking system. Once the candidate has been hired in the HR solution, a message can be sent to the e-learning solution to indicate what kind of training is required for the new employee and the software can go ahead and schedule the employee for that training. Once training has been completed, a message can then be sent back to the HR department’s software to update the employee’s skills and competencies.
The backbone of the system
The backbone of an organization’s HR strategy is the depth and accuracy of its human resource database. All of the collaborating software solutions need to share centrally maintained HR information.
Starting with strong HR software as the backbone of an organization’s overall HR strategy is essential. This software should have a robust database and open connectivity to allow organizations to gather and manage employee and organizational information easily.
In addition, an HR solution should also provide the ability to share information with collaborative partners through XML messaging technology.
Another important attribute of an ideal HR technology strategy is to ensure users do not have to sign on to multiple solutions. Single sign-on capabilities leverage central security information. Often central security repositories are found within an organization’s Intranet and therefore can be leveraged across solutions. But it is common to have solutions deployed through hosted services, meaning that security needs to be shared over the Internet. This can also be accomplished using various strategies for Internet-based security. This is a critical area for deploying HR strategies made up of solutions from multiple vendors.
Effective reporting through data warehousing
Shared information is important to ensure accurate and efficient data management, but the ability to report on information in these different systems is also necessary. Data warehousing, a collection of data that relates to a general subject specifically structured for querying and reporting, offers one central location for all data generated and maintained within individual software packages.
This technology has provided organizations with the ability to report on information that may relate to other information but was not previously contained in the same location. Data warehousing gives organizations the ability to compare HR data to financial data for initiatives such as budget planning or to conduct career planning by connecting information about employees’ skills to training information offered in an e-learning solution.
The framework for the next generation of enterprise technology solutions has now been laid, with the ability for best-of-breed solutions to communicate and share information as well as the ability to report on all of the information gathered between the solutions with ease. Organizations no longer have to be tied to a single vendor in an effort to keep all of the important information together.
Technology allows firms to pick the solutions that meet specific departmental needs and report on the data collected as if it were a single solution.
Jeff Koven leads product strategy for Hewitt Associates’ eCyborg HRMS solution. For more information contact [email protected] or visit www.cyborg.com.
