Traditional HR vs Agile HR
As human resources (HR) departments have evolved, so have the management software tools that support them. Where once a traditional HR software system was enough to manage employee data and payroll, HR departments now require tools that can handle not only these basic functions but also recruitment, employee engagement, and performance management. Enter Agile HR software, with its agile methodology and flexible approach to these HR responsibilities.
What is Traditional HR?
Traditional HR systems were built on a batch processing architecture, where data was collected and processed once a day, typically overnight. They were mainly focused on human resources' administrative aspects, such as managing employee data, tracking attendance, and managing benefits.
While traditional HR software was a vast improvement over paper-based systems, it lacked the flexibility and real-time capabilities afforded by new technologies that are available today. With most systems implemented on-premise, upgrading, and scaling the systems was challenging and required significant resources.
What is Agile HR?
Agile HR is a relatively new approach to HR software development, borrowed from the Agile Manifesto. Agile software development methodology prioritizes individuals and interactions in software development and is focused on delivering working software incrementally and iteratively.
Agile HR software prioritizes employee engagement, focusing on capabilities such as real-time data, social feedback, and instant messaging. It is cloud-based, making it more scalable and easier to deploy, upgrade and manage than traditional HR software.
Agile HR software includes capabilities such as customizable forms, applicant tracking, performance and goal management, benefits and compensation, employee onboarding, compliance management, and business intelligence.
A comparison of Traditional HR vs Agile HR
Let's take a closer look at the comparison between Traditional HR and Agile HR software solutions.
Flexibility
Traditional HR software solutions are known for their inflexibility. Typically, these systems are on-premise, and upgrading or scaling up when needed is a challenge. Updates were expensive, and the process was lengthy.
Agile HR software, on the other hand, is built for flexibility. Being cloud-based, Agile HR solutions are easy to scale, upgrade and deploy. These solutions can be customized and modular, and they integrate quickly with other HR and business systems.
Real-time data
Agile HR software solutions offer real-time data, making it easier to manage workforce trends and opportunities. This data can be used to monitor employee performance, compliance, and organizational health. In comparison, Traditional HR data tends to be outdated and challenging to analyze.
Employee engagement
Agile HR seeks to engage employees actively in company processes. It encourages transparent communication, feedback, recognition, and collaboration. Agile HR solutions prioritize employee engagement through features such as pulse surveys, sentiment analysis, and social feedback.
Traditional HR is more about top-down communication, and they offer features such as time and attendance tracking, payroll management, and benefits administration.
Cost
Traditional HR software solutions are a one-time investment, usually paid upfront, which means costly upfront capital expenditure. In comparison, Agile HR solutions are rented or subscribed to, making it easier to predict monthly or annual costs.
While it is challenging to compare Traditional HR and Agile HR software costs directly, it is generally more cost-effective in the long run to invest in Agile HR solutions. With Agile HR solutions deployment, upgrade, and maintenance costs are lower than Traditional HR.
Conclusion
In today's fast-paced business environment, companies need HR solutions that are flexible, real-time, and foster employee engagement. Agile HR solutions are the new generation of HR software solutions that provide these capabilities, and they are becoming increasingly popular.
While investment in traditional HR software solutions has been significant, it is time to embrace the new generation of HR software solutions if companies want to enhance their management of employee data and payroll, employee engagement, performance management, and other HR responsibilities.
References:
- Agile CRM. (2021). Agile vs Traditional: A Look at Software Development Methodologies. https://www.agilecrm.com/blog/agile-vs-traditional-a-look-at-software-development-methodologies
- Thato Thebe. (2019). Comparing Traditional HR vs. Agile HR. https://blog.sage.hr/comparing-traditional-hr-vs-agile-hr/