Resource Center

Without the necessary people power, a perfectly profitable company can easily flounder. In an era where benefits programs such as 401Ks are a priority for soliciting good employees, virtually every office requires knowledgeable management of benefits programs and the myriad of regulations accompanying them. Also, with more employees preferring to go wireless and work from home, companies must possess the ability to track employee performance remotely, and with ease. As a result, traditionally forms-driven human resources (HR) departments are turning to automation. A 2005 HR.com paper entitled “Talent Management Metrics: A Survey of Current Practices,” however, reported 75 percent of employers are opting for manual processes when it comes to recruitment, rather than conducting the business of hiring online.

So, perhaps the HR industry has split between paper-based forms and electronic organization. Despite HR.com’s findings, the proliferation of automated HR services and software indicates a shift toward automation. The following human resources management software products and services are replacing the flood of traditional employee management forms, ensuring streamlined workflow and organization for corporate human resources departments.

Set Sail

Headquartered in Reading, UK, with U.S. offices in Campbell, Calif., Fairsail provides on-demand, integrated HR software compatible with Salesforce.com’s hosting platform. The software itself compiles employee performance tracking with tasks such as goal-setting, historical analysis, job description maintenance and strategizing for promotions.

“I’ve delivered customized HR web applications for the past 10 years,” said Colin Cooper, Fairsail founder and CEO, “and previously, client/server applications to blue chip companies worldwide. With the Force.com platform, Salesforce.com has changed the landscape, offering a completely new way to deliver applications. Companies no longer need to worry about the infrastructure and maintenance efforts associated with on-premise software resulting in more efficient and effective implementations.”

For more information, visit www.fairsail.com.

Ascending Automation

Ascentis, located in Bellevue, Wash., offers the HROffice software application, focusing on the benefits and payroll aspects of HR. Automation is key to the appeal of HROffice, which handles office management concerns, such as various types of benefits management—including policies and eligibility—as well as payroll.