Does HR Technology Cost Jobs?

From the wheel to the robot arm, new workplace technology has always come with some amount of skepticism. While innovation can undoubtedly save time and money (and in some cases, greatly improve the condition of humanity), there’s always the concern that technology will cost some people their jobs. This anxiety is understandable, and unfortunately workforce reduction in some cases is inevitable.

However, given modern tech advances that fear can be overstated—we are well beyond the industrial paradigm shift where “a computer took your job” is a valid or accurate complaint. Today’s workforce technology largely looks to increase efficiency by better assisting employees in their roles—supporting workers not replacing them.

Here are some benefits to implementing modern workforce solutions for your employees:

Shift to Higher-Value Tasks for HR Workers

HR professionals tell us that more than half of their days are spent dealing with administrative tasks and employee information requests, such as Why is my paycheck for this amount? When will I get paid? How much is my overtime pay? and How can I request a sick day? Modern HR technology can reduce the number of administrative tasks that HR professionals handle daily. It can also answer tedious employee information requests in real-time via mobile devices and consumer-grade apps. The result is more time to focus on implementing changes necessary to engage employees, meet their evolving needs and partner with business leaders to support organisational priorities.

Enabled and Independent Employees

The goal of modern workforce management is to place many workplace functions directly in the hands of workers, literally, through handheld devices. Many employee processes—such as swapping shifts, requesting time off, or viewing rosters—are unnecessarily cumbersome and take too long because HR is tasked as the “middleman” for data that could be more efficiently accessed with modern technology. And when personal communication is necessary, it’s more convenient for workers to access an internal business messaging system directly through their workforce management smartphone app as a central hub of information and discussion.

Prescriptive and Proactive Mindsets

Many wrongly believe that “taking away work” necessarily leads to positions being eliminated. Effective automation takes away low-skill and repetitive task work, freeing up employees to make higher-value contributions for improved operations.

Updating workplace technology can be intimidating to employees of all types. Some will prefer older methods they’ve become accustomed to, others will be anxious about learning to navigate a new system and some will fear that automation may lead to their positions becoming expendable.

But as we’ve shown, not only does new HR technology enable employees to act more independently and focus on bigger functions, it also seeks to support and empower employees, not replace them. With the added benefits of improved work/life balance, ease of communication and digital convenience, workers and organisations alike can better achieve their primary goals without wasting valuable time on smaller, simpler tasks that can be easily automated.

There’s a unique opportunity for different functions of an organisation to come together to put people front and centre. This includes not just HR, but IT, operations, finance, and others. See how modern workforce management can be your greatest enabler to tap into the power of your people.