Metric Snapshot: Self-Service Modules for Managing Employee Information

METRIC SNAPSHOT: SELF-SERVICE MODULES FOR MANAGING EMPLOYEE INFORMATION

Metric:  Productivity of top performers leveraging self-service
Observation:  Employee- and manager-self-service capabilities enhance the productivity of HR professionals responsible for managing employee information

(Houston, TX - November 12, 2007) - APQC, an internationally recognized resource for process and performance improvement, has released a metric snapshot comparing the productivity of top-performing organizations that manage employee information via self-service models (including employee self-service, or ESS, and manager self-service, or MSS) to the productivity of top-performing organizations that do not have self-service models in place. The snapshot is based on APQC's Open Standards Benchmarking Collaborative^SM (OSBC) research, which indicates that organizations leveraging self-service to manage employee information are approximately one-third more productive than are organizations without self-service models. On average, top performers that rely on self-service options are able to support 1,803 employees per "manage employee information" full-time equivalent (FTE), whereas top performers lacking self-service systems are able to support only 1,351 employees per "manage employee information" FTE. ¹

Typically, in productivity benchmark metrics such as this, a higher number is interpreted as more "favorable," indicating that FTEs are able to handle a greater volume of workload and/or to service more employees.

This data indicates that self-service (ESS and MSS) tools significantly increase the workload manageability of HR professionals responsible for managing employee information through automation, thus allowing fewer individuals to effectively serve larger employee populations, and enabling employees to manage and maintain their own employee data and "serve themselves" in the HR and employee communication realm where appropriate. For example, ESS systems may allow employees to enroll in benefits, update their dependent and demographic information, input attendance/vacation time, enroll in training classes, and view payroll data. Managers may leverage MSS systems to view key performance data on their employees, such as comparisons of employee competencies against training plans; access to such information can improve managerial decision support and help managers avoid needless administrative contacts to HR.

If your organization is interested in finding out how its processes for managing employee data, information, and communications compare in terms of cost, efficiency, and productivity, and cycle time metrics, we invite you to participate in APQC's Managing Employee Information research module, which captures data on such key issues as:

• the management and maintenance of employee data,
• the cost of maintaining and supporting human resources information systems (HRIS),
• specific systems/technologies used by companies to manage employee information,
• employee self-service functionality,
• the management of employee time and attendance data, and
• HR cycle time to respond to employee inquiries.

In return for participation, your organization will receive a complimentary detailed, personalized report comparing your organization's performance against the OSBC database. Of course, APQC keeps all data confidential according to the rules laid out in our Benchmarking Code of Conduct (www.apqc.org/bmkcode).

To learn how you can benchmark your organization's human capital processes across the human capital management life cycle at no cost, visit www.apqc.org/hcm. Available research modules include HR Organization (new), which addresses the "big picture" of overall HCM health, as well as the following HR-process-specific research modules: Create and Manage HR Planning, Policy, and Strategies ; Recruit, Source, and Select ; Develop and Counsel (Includes Training) ; Reward and Retain Employees ; Payroll; and Redeploy and Retire Employees.

OSBC HCM Research Contact

LeAnna Price
713.685.4677
lprice@apqc.org

Media Contact

Liz Greene
214.350.7236
liz@mpdventures.com

Note: Additional metrics, high resolution charts, case studies, and interviews are also available to support specific editorial needs.

^{1 Source: APQC OSBC human capital management (HCM) database, retrieved November 2007. For the purposes of this research, "top performer" is defined as the 80th percentile level, which is the performance level below which 80 percent of the responses fall. "Median" is defined as the value in the middle of the distribution; typically, half the sites for that measure have a value greater than the median, and half have a value lower than the median.}