HR Process Automation: Efficiency Strategies for Small Businesses
By Eddy Team — October 22, 2024
HR process automation is designed to streamline your workflows. Automating human resources isn’t meant to eliminate the role of humans—automation and other efficiency strategies are meant to help you focus on what matters most.
Even minor efficiency improvements can help small businesses thrive. Learn how to apply the popular eliminate-automate-delegate mantra to your small business.
What Is Eliminate-Automate-Delegate?
Eliminate-automate-delegate (EAD) is a business strategy that involves systematically evaluating and offloading tasks. Its goal is to eliminate redundancy, wasted time, and unproductive administrative busywork. This allows businesses to streamline operations and focus energy where it makes the most impact.
The first part of the strategy is to identify your goals. What do you hope to accomplish with your work, and what do you want your operations to look like? Your efforts should always take you closer to those goals. The second part is to remove or simplify any day-to-day tasks that do not effectively serve those goals through a three-step process:
- Eliminate any tasks that don’t serve your goals.
- Automate any tasks that can be completed with technology.
- Delegate tasks whenever possible for optimal resource allocation.
The end result is efficient work processes that allow humans to focus on high-level input—and meaningful work that drives success.
Applying the EAD Framework to Small Business HR
While the EAD framework was developed for business owners and executives, the principles of efficiency can benefit employees in any role. They can be especially powerful for administrative work-heavy roles like HR and in small businesses with fewer resources dedicated to managing workflows.
What can you eliminate, automate, or delegate in small business HR? Let’s take a look.
Eliminate Unnecessary HR Processes
The first step to simplifying your work processes is eliminating any tasks you don’t need anymore. We sometimes get stuck with outdated workflows, but why do something just because that’s how it’s always been done?
To eliminate unnecessary processes, when appropriate:
- Get rid of duplicate files and physical paperwork when digital versions suffice.
- Remove redundant workflows and data reports that result in the same outputs.
- Stop any manual processes that can be taken over by automation.
Be sure to update policies to reflect any new expectations that affect employees.
You may also want to evaluate company policies that have little return. For example, if your time is taken up by verifying sick days, consider adjustments to your PTO policy—you may not be gaining enough employee hours to justify the time spent enforcing compliance.
Automate HR Processes with Technology
Workforce automation is becoming increasingly common, which means you have excellent HR workflow automation tools available. Most businesses today use HR management software like Eddy to simplify their work because it provides a central, digital hub for all of their operations.
With HR management software, you can automate a wide variety of tasks, including:
- Payroll: Rather than relying on manual efforts, which are prone to human error, use automated payroll to calculate wages, withhold proper deductions, and help you quickly distribute paychecks. An automatic system also keeps clear records that are ready for taxes or audits at any time.
- Time and Attendance Tracking: You can easily create and manage a schedule with automation processes that track the shifts and attendance of each employee. Clock-in and clock-out times are kept in a central, safe place for easy reference, while an automated system makes the process quick and simple for employees.
- Leave Management: While standard PTO hours might be easier to track and calculate, other leave processes—like family and medical leave, parental leave, or bereavement leave—can come with more complications and paperwork. An automated time off management system helps you track it all while remaining in compliance with legal requirements in your jurisdiction.
- Recruiting Processes: With so many steps involved, hiring can take up the majority of an HR professional’s time. An automated hiring system helps you post job ads, track responses, and sort candidates to find the best potential employees. Communication features like automated emails make this even quicker.
- Onboarding Processes: Once you have an employee, onboarding processes are filled with further communication checkpoints and lots of paperwork. Using onboarding software can provide digital paperwork and an easy-to-follow checklist. Plus, streamlining your onboarding experience can directly improve employee retention.
Many automation platforms also give you data management tools to see analytics and insights from any of the processes you oversee, which allows you to further fine-tune efforts and maximize resources.
Delegate HR Tasks for Efficiency
Some HR tasks are so commonly outsourced that we don’t typically think of them as delegations anymore. For instance, when was the last time you became a private investigator and performed your own manual background check? Even the idea of an HR representative scrolling through endless legal documents and assessing fingerprints seems a little silly, right?
That’s because background checks are nearly always outsourced to a company that specializes in them. Having the resources and specialization required to perform background checks makes these companies much more efficient than an in-house HR professional could ever be. Because they’re so efficient, they’re able to charge an affordable fee to take over the task for you—so you save time and money by outsourcing.
The truth is, you can delegate anything that makes your operations more efficient—and you can leverage in-house specialization just like you would when delegating tasks to outside organizations or contractors.
You might:
- Train managers to take over parts of the recruiting or onboarding process.
- Utilize individual contributors with specialized skills that fit your needs.
- Assign routine tasks that can’t be automated to another team member with more time.
- Take advantage of services on your HR platform such as automatic tax filings.
Take a look at whatever tasks you have left after eliminating and automating to see which ones would benefit from the time or skills of others.
Eliminate, Automate, and Delegate with Eddy’s HR Software
When you’ve completed every step of the EAD process, you should be left with tasks that align with your goals, fit your skill set and passions, and focus on meaningful human contributions. You’ll be better equipped to support employees and help your small business succeed.
Eddy’s HR software helps you automate and delegate tasks for maximum efficiency, with tools tailored to the needs of small businesses. Get started today with a free demo.
HR Process Automation: Efficiency Strategies for Small Businesses
By Eddy Team — October 22, 2024
HR process automation is designed to streamline your workflows. Automating human resources isn’t meant to eliminate the role of humans—automation and other efficiency strategies are meant to help you focus on what matters most.
Even minor efficiency improvements can help small businesses thrive. Learn how to apply the popular eliminate-automate-delegate mantra to your small business.
What Is Eliminate-Automate-Delegate?
Eliminate-automate-delegate (EAD) is a business strategy that involves systematically evaluating and offloading tasks. Its goal is to eliminate redundancy, wasted time, and unproductive administrative busywork. This allows businesses to streamline operations and focus energy where it makes the most impact.
The first part of the strategy is to identify your goals. What do you hope to accomplish with your work, and what do you want your operations to look like? Your efforts should always take you closer to those goals. The second part is to remove or simplify any day-to-day tasks that do not effectively serve those goals through a three-step process:
- Eliminate any tasks that don’t serve your goals.
- Automate any tasks that can be completed with technology.
- Delegate tasks whenever possible for optimal resource allocation.
The end result is efficient work processes that allow humans to focus on high-level input—and meaningful work that drives success.
Applying the EAD Framework to Small Business HR
While the EAD framework was developed for business owners and executives, the principles of efficiency can benefit employees in any role. They can be especially powerful for administrative work-heavy roles like HR and in small businesses with fewer resources dedicated to managing workflows.
What can you eliminate, automate, or delegate in small business HR? Let’s take a look.
Eliminate Unnecessary HR Processes
The first step to simplifying your work processes is eliminating any tasks you don’t need anymore. We sometimes get stuck with outdated workflows, but why do something just because that’s how it’s always been done?
To eliminate unnecessary processes, when appropriate:
- Get rid of duplicate files and physical paperwork when digital versions suffice.
- Remove redundant workflows and data reports that result in the same outputs.
- Stop any manual processes that can be taken over by automation.
Be sure to update policies to reflect any new expectations that affect employees.
You may also want to evaluate company policies that have little return. For example, if your time is taken up by verifying sick days, consider adjustments to your PTO policy—you may not be gaining enough employee hours to justify the time spent enforcing compliance.
Automate HR Processes with Technology
Workforce automation is becoming increasingly common, which means you have excellent HR workflow automation tools available. Most businesses today use HR management software like Eddy to simplify their work because it provides a central, digital hub for all of their operations.
With HR management software, you can automate a wide variety of tasks, including:
- Payroll: Rather than relying on manual efforts, which are prone to human error, use automated payroll to calculate wages, withhold proper deductions, and help you quickly distribute paychecks. An automatic system also keeps clear records that are ready for taxes or audits at any time.
- Time and Attendance Tracking: You can easily create and manage a schedule with automation processes that track the shifts and attendance of each employee. Clock-in and clock-out times are kept in a central, safe place for easy reference, while an automated system makes the process quick and simple for employees.
- Leave Management: While standard PTO hours might be easier to track and calculate, other leave processes—like family and medical leave, parental leave, or bereavement leave—can come with more complications and paperwork. An automated time off management system helps you track it all while remaining in compliance with legal requirements in your jurisdiction.
- Recruiting Processes: With so many steps involved, hiring can take up the majority of an HR professional’s time. An automated hiring system helps you post job ads, track responses, and sort candidates to find the best potential employees. Communication features like automated emails make this even quicker.
- Onboarding Processes: Once you have an employee, onboarding processes are filled with further communication checkpoints and lots of paperwork. Using onboarding software can provide digital paperwork and an easy-to-follow checklist. Plus, streamlining your onboarding experience can directly improve employee retention.
Many automation platforms also give you data management tools to see analytics and insights from any of the processes you oversee, which allows you to further fine-tune efforts and maximize resources.
Delegate HR Tasks for Efficiency
Some HR tasks are so commonly outsourced that we don’t typically think of them as delegations anymore. For instance, when was the last time you became a private investigator and performed your own manual background check? Even the idea of an HR representative scrolling through endless legal documents and assessing fingerprints seems a little silly, right?
That’s because background checks are nearly always outsourced to a company that specializes in them. Having the resources and specialization required to perform background checks makes these companies much more efficient than an in-house HR professional could ever be. Because they’re so efficient, they’re able to charge an affordable fee to take over the task for you—so you save time and money by outsourcing.
The truth is, you can delegate anything that makes your operations more efficient—and you can leverage in-house specialization just like you would when delegating tasks to outside organizations or contractors.
You might:
- Train managers to take over parts of the recruiting or onboarding process.
- Utilize individual contributors with specialized skills that fit your needs.
- Assign routine tasks that can’t be automated to another team member with more time.
- Take advantage of services on your HR platform such as automatic tax filings.
Take a look at whatever tasks you have left after eliminating and automating to see which ones would benefit from the time or skills of others.
Eliminate, Automate, and Delegate with Eddy’s HR Software
When you’ve completed every step of the EAD process, you should be left with tasks that align with your goals, fit your skill set and passions, and focus on meaningful human contributions. You’ll be better equipped to support employees and help your small business succeed.
Eddy’s HR software helps you automate and delegate tasks for maximum efficiency, with tools tailored to the needs of small businesses. Get started today with a free demo.
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