By Ashley O’Malley, HR Director, CloudSphere
You’ve heard it before—the COVID-19 pandemic has forever changed the landscape of most workforces. As a result, it has also majorly disrupted how many industries and departments used to traditionally run their organizations. Human Resources (HR) teams are no exception.
Regardless of the industry, many HR professionals have had to make drastic changes to how they run their departments. From providing remote access to shared drives and servers, to maintaining a sense of company culture from around the world, there have been many hurdles for those in human resources roles to overcome.
One of the most straightforward ways to improve your HR department’s processes in the new world of remote and hybrid work environments is to consider moving your legacy HR systems to the cloud.
In this article, we share ten reasons why HR professionals should make this move.
10 Reasons HR Departments Should Move to the Cloud
1. Enhanced Accessibility
Cloud-based HR systems revolutionize accessibility by allowing employees and HR professionals to access data and perform tasks from anywhere in the world with an internet connection.
Whether you’re working from home, traveling, or attending conferences, the cloud empowers you with increased flexibility and convenience. No more being tied to a specific physical location or device—the HR system is just a few clicks away, enabling seamless productivity on the go.
2. Scalability
One of the remarkable advantages of cloud platforms is their inherent scalability. As organizations grow, shrink, or experience fluctuations in their workforce, cloud HR systems effortlessly accommodate these changes. Instead of requiring significant investments in additional hardware or infrastructure, organizations can easily scale resources up or down based on their current needs.
Whether it’s expanding into new markets, launching new departments, or downsizing due to business shifts, the cloud provides the agility needed to adapt without cumbersome operational disruptions.
3. Cost Savings
Migrating legacy HR systems to the cloud brings substantial cost savings. For example, consider the savings of the U.S. Federal Government, which saved $5.5 billion around 2012 by switching to the cloud, according to WIRED. Since that was over a decade ago, imagine what would be possible today.
By eliminating the need for on-premises servers and infrastructure, organizations significantly reduce expenses related to hardware maintenance, software upgrades, and data storage. Moreover, the cloud minimizes the reliance on in-house IT teams, resulting in cost reductions in IT personnel requirements.
These cost savings can be reallocated towards strategic initiatives, employee development, or other critical areas of the business.
4. Security and Data Protection
Cloud service providers place a strong emphasis on security and data protection. They employ advanced security measures, such as encryption, access controls, and regular system updates, to safeguard HR data from potential cybersecurity threats.
Additionally, cloud HR systems often incorporate data backups and disaster recovery plans as part of their service. This helps ensure the safety and integrity of HR data even in the face of unexpected incidents.
5. Streamlined Processes
Cloud-based HR systems bring automation and streamlining to various HR processes. From employee onboarding to performance reviews, time tracking, leave management, and benefits administration, these systems automate repetitive tasks, reduce manual effort, and minimize errors.
This enhanced efficiency allows HR professionals to focus on strategic initiatives, employee engagement, and talent development rather than getting bogged down by administrative burdens.
6. Improved Collaboration
The cloud also fosters a collaborative environment by enabling real-time communication and information sharing among employees, managers, and HR professionals.
Cloud HR systems provide a centralized platform where team members can collaborate seamlessly, share documents, and exchange feedback on HR-related tasks. This promotes a culture of transparency, teamwork, and collective ownership, enhancing overall productivity and employee satisfaction.
7. Integration Capabilities
Cloud HR systems often offer seamless integration with other business applications and services such as payroll, recruitment, and learning management systems. This integration eliminates the need for manual data entry and synchronization across multiple systems, streamlining workflows and ensuring data consistency.
HR professionals can access holistic insights and leverage data-driven decision making by effortlessly connecting the HR system with various tools across the organization. This becomes particularly important when considering that a PwC Pulse Survey reported that 51% of Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs) identified employee burnout and anxiety as one of the biggest challenges since the onset of the pandemic.
8. Analytics and Insights
Cloud-based HR systems come equipped with advanced reporting and analytics capabilities, providing HR professionals with valuable insights, such as:
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- Workforce trends
- Performance metrics
- Employee engagement levels
By leveraging these analytics tools, organizations gain actionable intelligence for strategic planning, talent development, succession planning, and creating a positive employee experience.
Data-driven decision making becomes a reality, enabling companies to proactively address challenges and optimize HR practices.
9. Compliance and Regulatory Support
Staying compliant with ever-evolving labor laws and regulations is a paramount concern for organizations. Cloud HR systems excel in this area by keeping pace with changing regulations and ensuring data protection and privacy compliance.
With robust data security measures, built-in access controls, and adherence to industry standards, organizations can minimize the risk of non-compliance and potential legal issues. This can help foster trust among employees and stakeholders.
10. Continuous System Updates
Cloud-based HR systems offer the advantage of continuous updates, which are offered by the service provider. These updates bring the latest features, functionalities, and security enhancements to organizations without the need for manual intervention or disruptions.
Companies can benefit from ongoing system improvements, stay at the forefront of HR technology, and focus their efforts on strategic initiatives rather than maintaining and updating their HR infrastructure.
How CloudSphere Can Help You on Your Journey
CloudSphere makes digital transformations easy by offering automation and clarity of IT estates. Throughout the cloud journey, we empower our partners and customers to Discover, Plan, Migrate, Optimize, Modernize, and Secure entire cloud environments with automated features that save businesses time, money and disruptions.
By embracing the cloud for HR systems, organizations can unlock a plethora of benefits that enhance accessibility, scalability, cost-efficiency, security, collaboration, analytics, compliance, and continuous improvement. It’s a transformative leap towards modernizing HR practices, driving efficiency, and empowering HR professionals to deliver strategic value to their organizations.
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About Ashley O’Malley
As a seasoned employee success professional with over a decade of experience, Ashley derives her energy and passion from making employees successful.
Her role at CloudSphere provides comprehensive, high-quality, customer-focused HR support across a broad range of human resources’ activities, delivering on the HR and Business Strategy of CloudSphere. The role is highly commercial and operational and Ashley is responsible for the team member base across US, UK, Ireland, France, and India.
You can connect with Ashley on LinkedIn.
