Payroll and HR Internet Portal Technologies

Presenter, Mike Smith, Talx

The concept of self-service applications began in the mid-to-late 80’s with limited touch- tone services such as accessing bank accounts via the telephone, according to Mike Smith of Talx, a company that supports human resource departments and payroll services with electronically accessible information. Smith presented tips and guidelines on how to make your employee portal a success at the American Payroll Association’s 21st Annual Congress.

Self-Service Programs

Personal information is always a sure way to get employees to use the HR Internet, Smith said. Employees like to check their pay-stubs, leave time, and direct deposits on a regular basis. Other topics of interest include HR calendars, health benefits, investment planning, dental benefits, vision benefits, and other policies and programs, he added.

Major national services report growth in the sales of online services, Smith stated. Banks and CPAs are now offering Internet–based payroll services. With the advent of firewalls and better security, the information on the employee portals remains secure. The annual survey of industry trends shows that HR and payroll services specialists are increasingly in demand, he said.

Companies should implement self-service programs to reduce administrative costs, improve services to employees, increase information, and eliminate process steps, according to Smith. First survey your audience to see what types of information they would like to see on the Internet. Then make it easy for employees to get the information they need to do their jobs. Pull important productivity applications together into one place and provide compelling offerings that make employees want to log on. Allow employees to personalize the information and applications they use, he added.

It is important to have a help desk (that is available to all employee shifts), passwords, and the ability to access portals from home, Smith said. Also, you must market the employee portals in a big way--brown bag sessions, booths in cafeterias, demos--by empowering employees to seek guidance on their own.

Smith ended his discussion of employee portals with these guidelines for success:
Look at what is already available. Streamline tasks first. Aim for early success. Make sure the portal is easy to use and secure. Evaluate training needs.

Finally, an employee-friendly site should provide a well-trained employee service center to assist employees and have FAQs ready. Make sure the employee service center hours give good coverage, Smith said. You should have a single log on and make it easy to navigate--wizards are best to use. The site should provide a confirmation at each step and for each transaction, information should be easy to change, links to other sites and graphics should be provided, and employees should be able to personalize the site. When setting up a site use the least common denominator, use consistent fonts, check validity, have a backup system, and provide user-friendly/value added help boxes. Be sure to include the IT department in the site’s development. Don’t mainly focus on technology, and always test the usability of the employee portals. Remember that employee pay information is a BIG draw, Smith added.

By Brigitta Robinson