8 Common HR Management Problems and How to Use Technology to Solve Them

Paperwork—whether physical or digital—is one thing that all business owners tend to hate. It leads to frustration, decreased productivity and can cause compliance-related issues. Yet many companies still rely on inefficient HR management processes.

While it might be manageable for a small team, as your business grows and you begin to increase your workforce, administration may become increasingly cumbersome. If not properly handled, these tasks can overtake your day, challenge your wellbeing and impede success. Luckily, advancements in technology have made solutions available to small and medium-size businesses (SMBs). With the right platform, you can now simplify your HR administration and maximize company-wide productivity.

Following are eight common HR problems that SMBs face and how technology can solve them.

1. Organization

Every business, regardless of size, must collect and secure employee information for HR purposes. From onboarding and benefits enrollment to performance reports, employee experience surveys and payroll, documents can add up. While many businesses have migrated towards digitalization, having a system for storage and organization is essential to time management. Luckily, a little organization and adoption of a new platform can help you keep your employee information easily accessible and secure.

One way to achieve this is to utilize a platform with a streamlined, user-friendly interface. This helps reduce document clutter and creates an easy process for finding information when it’s needed. This includes payroll, benefits, onboarding, time off requests and more. TriNet’s HR platform lets you easily access and visualize your TriNet data, with the option to cross-connect with external business applications for other documents. With customizable platforms, you’ll be more efficient and effective in finding the information you need, when you need it.

2. Productivity

Employee productivity correlates with overall profits. The same applies to HR teams and management roles. However, it can be difficult to stay focused on growing your business when you’re spending too much time working on complicated HR tasks. Many SMBs use different technology platforms to help them with different tasks, but that can cause an even higher loss of productivity. Having to toggle between technology platforms for different tasks or sets of data may lead to a lot of wasted time and can complicate even the simplest of tasks.

Instead, adopting an intuitive technology solution that offers self-service models can lead to streamlined, efficient actions that allow for future scalability and success. A platform reduces the time you spend on administrative tasks by allowing your employees to take charge of their HR data. It also allows managers to build personalized reports and make administrative changes as needed, without having to constantly switch back and forth between applications. These integrated features can drastically increase productivity and reduce wasted resources.

3. Time management

Running a business can make you feel like there are never enough hours in the day. Between managing employees, overseeing HR requirements and trying to find ways to meet your business goals, time management can seem unachievable. Rather than wasting your days combing through paperwork, search for difficult-to-find information or deal with unreliable technology, switch to an HR platform that includes mobile capabilities.

Comprehensive HR technology platforms with mobile access allow you to get the information you need anytime, anywhere. With an easy-to-use interface and simple organizational flow, you can access critical information in real-time, at your fingertips. This gives you, and your employees, the opportunity to update information as it changes, reducing complications involved in submitting reports or managing payroll.

4. Lack of resources

Budgeting is often a concern for SMBs, especially when they’re just starting out. While many business owners assume that utilizing high-quality HR technology will be expensive, the return on investment is often worth the upfront cost. HR technology is designed to help you to save you money by reducing costly mistakes and wasted time. It also brings time efficiencies to your hard-working team. However, finding a different platform for each of your business needs is not recommended, as this will increase costs and likely lead to an overall decrease in efficiency.

Instead, work with a bundled HR solution that includes a comprehensive technology platform. The option for external application integration can also help to unify your data and avoid wasted resources.

5. Compliance

There are hundreds of local, state and federal employment laws and regulations that SMBs need to follow. Even if you study them all, they are subject to change and violations may lead to costly fines and claims. Staying up to date with compliance requirements is a full-time job, but when you get access to HR experts, you can stay ahead of complex and everchanging requirements and help reduce the risk of fines or claims. Just make sure that when you’re choosing your HR technology platform, you find an option that provides access to HR consultants to help answer your questions and provide best practice guidance.

6. Talent acquisition

The hiring process can also be complicated and time consuming, but it’s an important part of growing your business. Rather than trying to keep a stack of resumes organized on your desk or on your computer, utilize an HR platform that has integrated applicant tracking. TriNet’s HR technology can assist you in creating a job post, pushing it out to popular boards and giving you access to candidate-submitted information on the cloud-based applicant tracking system. This gives you a better opportunity to stay organized, review candidate experience and portfolio submission and see detailed feedback from interviewers and hiring managers. It even gives you access to run FCRA-compliant background, credit checks or drug testing on candidates.

7. Scalability

Many SMBs are using technology that restricts their long-term growth. While the programs may be providing you with immediate benefits, they can hinder your success if they’re not set up for scalable expansion. To help support your company’s future endeavors, it’s important to utilize an HR platform that grows with your company. Otherwise, you’ll find yourself using several different platforms that can’t be integrated or having to switch and transfer over during crucial periods of momentum. An efficient HR management system can be leveraged by businesses with 15 employees and scales with them to accommodate up to 150 employees or more. This helps reduce the risk of productivity problems well into the future.

8. Security

Information security is one of the most important parts of running a business, especially if you store documents online. Rather than scanning and uploading your employee paperwork to your company network, rely on an HR technology platform that uses cloud-native security and compliance capabilities. Document management on quality HR platforms can help you transform your approach to administrative management while keeping sensitive information secure. TriNet’s platform uses powerful cloud-native security and compliance capabilities from Box. This includes enterprise-grade infrastructure with encryption at rest and in transit alongside user controls to keep your sensitive employee HR documents and certifications safe.

When you’re ready to boost efficiency and save time , TriNet can help. Our HR platform helps maximize productivity for both managers and employees. The powerful, comprehensive technology is easily accessible from your devices, so you can access the information whenever you need it. With customizable analytics, app integration and intuitive navigation, help with staying compliant and productive has never been so easy. To learn more about TriNet’s and services, reach out to us today.

This communication is for informational purposes only; it is not legal, tax or accounting advice; and is not an offer to sell, buy or procure insurance.