Introduction

HR professionals are often asked to consider software platforms that provide an effective approach to support different aspects of the employee life cycle. In this assignment, you are being asked to evaluate a platform you search for, identify, and recommend for purchase by CapraTek. The platform should have some or most of the following capabilities: capable of performing recruiting, onboarding, tracking training and education requirements, and identifying internal career pathways.

In this assignment, you select criteria from one of the two articles provided to determine the effectiveness of an HR platform. The intent is for the platform is to be able to meet as many of the demands for managing the employee life cycle as possible. Keep in mind that the thrust of this assignment is not about the actual tool but the content, or better said – can the software you recommend help an organization effectively manage Gallup’s employee life cycle in the organization? Also keep in mind that you may have to recommend more than one platform for all the functions that are included, and it is also possible some capabilities may simply not be available.

Scenario

Dr. Thompson has asked your HR team at CapraTek an essential question, “how do we attract and keep scientists instead of losing good people to our competitors?” The organization has been losing junior and senior scientists at a steady rate, and no one really understands why this is happening. The HR team has been engaged in learning the employee life cycle and collecting information about employee needs via engagement research. Now it is time to select a technology platform that will meet those needs from onboarding to helpful recognition processes that continue to make employees feel successful in their work throughout their tenure at the company.

Purchasing the Gallup suite of tools is not on the table due to the huge cost of implementation for a medium-sized regional company like CapraTek.

Your Challenge

As an HR team member, you have been assigned this task that has come at Dr. Thompson’s request. Research HR platforms so that you can help to select the best tool to adopt for the employees’ needs at CapraTek.

Instructions

1. Read the following articles and select the 4–6 appropriate criteria to evaluate the HR platforms you will research.

• Florentine, S. (2019). What is an HRIS? A key tool for all your human resources needs. CIO.
  • This is an essential article to describe the kind of platforms that are used and some of the companies that produce them. This resource should be the first thing you read about HR systems because it gives important definitions and background, plus it will steer you in the right direction to start your research for the assessment.
• Makkar, U., & Sanjeev, R. (2014). Determining employees perception through effective HRIS: An empirical study. Journal of Strategic Human Resource Management, 3(3).
  • This short study is also essential to provide the kind of background information about the kind of functionality that an HRIS provides to an organization. This resource helps you to understand the components or criteria that should be part of an HR platform solution so that you can research platforms to find one that suits the needs of CapraTek.

2. Select and research as many HR platforms/tools that are capable of performing recruiting, onboarding, tracking training and education requirements, and identifying internal career pathways as you can.

• Options for HR platforms of this type are available in industry literature and the marketplace.

3. Write a 3–4-page internal memo about your recommended platform and evaluate it against the criteria from the provided articles. Does it meet the needs of employees at each stage of the employee life cycle and meet the organization’s needs for all of the capabilities? Include the following in your internal memo:

• To, From, Internal Memo: Select HR Platform, Date.
  • Follow a format similar to a normal paper, including an introduction, conclusion, and the following elements:
  • Explain the 4–6 criteria you selected to evaluate the tools from one or both articles listed in this assignment.
  • Evaluate platforms for their capability to meet each employee at their respective stage of the life cycle and level of expertise.
  • Evaluate platforms for their capability to meet the organization’s needs for recruiting, onboarding, tracking training and education requirements, and identifying internal career pathways.
  • Select the most appropriate tool(s) to recommend for adoption by leadership.
  • Explain your rationale for HR platform selection based on the criteria you selected and how the selected tool meets all of the needs of the individual employees and the organization at CapraTek, especially the scientists.

Submission Requirements

The deliverable for this assessment applies professional skills in Human Resources Management (HRM) to workplace situations which you will likely encounter in your day-to-day work in HRM. As part of your learning, we focus on the development of effective professional communication skills for the workplace.

• Length of paper: Your memorandum should be 3–4 double-spaced pages, including the resources page.
• Organization: Make sure that your assignment writing is well-organized, using headings and subheadings to organize content for the reader.
• Font and font-size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
• Number of resources: A minimum of 4 resources, not including course readings.
• Evidence: Support your assertions with data and/or in-text citations. Use current APA format for in-text citations and create a reference list at the end of your documents.
• APA formatting: Resources and in-text citations are formatted according to current APA style and formatting.
• Written communication:
  • Convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards.
  • Write for a specific audience, using the vernacular of the profession.
  • Use spell-check and other tools to ensure correct spelling and grammar.

Resource

Employee Motivation

• Arnold, J. (2018). Creating an optimal employee experience. HRMagazine, 63(5), 76–81.
  • This article illustrates a different kind of thinking about the employee experience, beyond free food and new programs.
• Baumgartner, N. (2014). One engagement strategy does not fit all. Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 2–4.
  • This article points to the fact all employees are not motivated in the same way. This resource will help you with a strategy to motivate employees to be more engaged.
• Berdzik, C. J., & Ferrara, M. M. (2015). Best practices for avoiding claims in the employee life cycle, from hiring through termination: Part 2: Documentation: If it’s not in writing, it didn’t happen. Inside Counsel.Breaking News.
  • Sometimes performance reviews should document when an employee is underperforming and this article explains why. This resource will give an important perspective to your work as an HR professional.
• Smith, L. (2016). Employee retention woes subsided. Talent Development, 70(12), 24–25.
  • DISYS company instituted a new program called the Employee Life Cycle Protocol and this article discusses the early positive results.

The Importance of Onboarding

• Carucci, R. (2018). To retain new hires, spend more time onboarding them. Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 1–5.
  • One important part of the employee life cycle is onboarding. This article outlines some best practices for organizational, technical, and social onboarding new employees.
• Nawaz, S. (2019). How to make sure a new hire feels included from day one. Harvard Business Review Digital Articles, 2–5.
  • This article gives some specific instructions for onboarding new executives and integrating new members into a team. This resource gives valuable advice to HR professionals.
• Sheridan, K. (2019). 8 tips for awesome onboarding of millennials. Talent Acquisition Excellence Essentials.
  • These tips are good for onboarding, but more importantly for keeping millennials engaged throughout their tenure with your organization.
• Shufutinsky, A., & Cox, R. (2019). Losing talent on day one: Onboarding millennial employees in health care organizations. Organization Development Journal, 37(4), 33–51.
  • This is a very interesting study that includes employee quotes about their onboarding experiences in health care organizations. This resource connects the value of onboarding to employee motivation.
• Zielinski, D. (2019). How to optimize onboarding. HRMagazine, 64(2), 1.
  • This article evaluates automated onboarding programs and discusses the positive aspects of “employee-owned” onboarding. This resource directly evaluates the capability of an HR platform to accomplish tasks for a stage of the employee life cycle.