New Face of Human Capital

Shopping around for a solution to your people management problems? Maybe it is time to cash in on a HR software program. When Supermarket chain CitySuper went shopping for new human capital software the to-do list was lengthy.

"We have a unique working environment," says Connie Cheung, the company HR Admin Manager.

"Most of our 700 staff work on the frontline of customer service, such as the checkout or in the warehouse.

"And most do not have access to email or a personal phone.

"So developing a corporate culture and spreading a corporate message is quite difficult." For Mrs Cheung, bridging the "huge gulf" between workers and office headquarters stands as her greatest challenge.

"The majority of employees who work at shops and supermarkets are referred as junior employees with minimum education requirement," she said.

"And they form their own cultures and norms which are very different from that prevailing at the office.

"In order to break the ice with the majority of employees, we need to speak their language, know their preferences and be passive to get into their ways of behaviour.

" While this may all sound like HR mumbo jumbo it is a very real factor for major organizations.

The answer for CitySuper was to streamline operations, open a clear line of communication between line-managers and the head office and establish a software bridge to make it all happen.

But there was more.

"We also have the paperwork of payrolls, MPF, taxation, attendance and commission calculation system," said Mrs Cheung.

"And on top of that we have to make sure staff are being updated on all the training programs."

Arcotect e-Solutions manager Philip Yu had worked with CitySuper on a series of projects and knew the landscape.

"When knew we had to look at things like applying for leave, planning the roster, as well as streamlining the system," Mr Yu said.

Working with Arcotect, Mrs Cheung said she detailed her needs to tailor-make the software package. "As a HR Manager, the key issues I deal with are ad-hoc projects and on-going programs which aim to facilitate both employees & company performance so as to retain competitiveness in the industry.

"In order to motivate employees to provide above average service to customers, we provide different level of internal/external trainings to different employees.

"In addition, we introduce a newly implemented allowance scheme to drive employees to perform towards company's target.

"As a whole, there is attendance allowance to appreciate their disciplinary, training to enhance their service skills and knowledge and monetary scheme to motivate them to follow the direction that the company thinks most ideal to all parties.

" She said the Arcotect tailor-made HR software solution was designed in a manner that fit into their structure & hierarchy.

"Actually, I think powerful HR software could replace our existing manual personnel file in the near future.

"The HR department does not need to keep hard copy of all documents; instead we convert all information into data and save it under the HR software.

"Not to mention, we can generate management report from efficient HR software for top management to plan for business development more accurately."

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