Why Recruitment and Onboarding is Better on Single Software - XCD
How many different software solutions does your organisation use? Recruitment software or an Applicant Tracking System? Onboarding software? HR software? Payroll software?
If you can count the number of different tools your company uses to handle recruitment, HR, and payroll on more than one finger, we’ve got news for you:
Throwing all your separate tools out the window and using a single comprehensive software can completely transform your recruitment and onboarding process.
Here’s why single software for all your recruitment, HR, and payroll functions blows separate or integrated software out of the water every time.
But first, what is single software?
If your team is looking for software to streamline recruitment, HR, and payroll processes, there are three different options available.
Option 1: Separate software
The first and most basic solution is to buy separate solutions for the different processes you want to improve. For example, your organisation may use separate recruitment software, onboarding software, payroll software, or other types of HR software.
This is common in many organisations where software has been purchased and implemented at various points over the years when it has become necessary. The advantage of this for smaller organisations in particular is that it can keep costs lower at the start because the team only has to pay for the most necessary tools.
However, it can quickly become problematic to be using many separate recruitment, HR, and payroll systems. Firstly, it’s expensive to pay licences for multiple tools, not to mention the cost of upgrading and maintaining them.
Secondly, working across a number of different softwares can be time-consuming and frustrating. For example, using one tool such as an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) for recruitment and onboarding but a different and separate payroll software means that somebody has to manually input and update information in the different systems. In addition to being a huge waste of time, this repeated manual data entry leaves more opportunity for human error.
Thirdly, using multiple different tools can create obstructions to easily onboarding new employees. Instead of them being able to settle easily into their new role, the first day or even first week might be spent getting them set up on every system – both time-consuming and complicated!
In summary, using separate HR, payroll, recruitment, and onboarding software is likely to be wasting your time, increasing the likelihood of error, and damaging the onboarding experience from day one.
Option 2: Integrated software
The second option is integrated software. This means that while you still use technically separate HR software, payroll software, onboarding software, and recruitment software, the different systems can be integrated to work together. Think of it as the different tools being able to ‘talk’ to each other; each has its own database and functionalities but information can flow between them.
While this is often a better solution than separate software, integrated HR payroll and recruitment software still has some disadvantages. The first disadvantage is that although the softwares can communicate with one another, this doesn’t mean that the flow of information is always complete and up-to-date. For example, while every update to an employee’s information made in the HR software is automatically synced over to the payroll software, your integration may not also sync in the opposite direction. This means that you might end up with multiple databases with different information which can cause confusion, delays to HR and payroll processes, and time-consuming admin for the staff in the payroll or HR department who have to manually correct the problems.
Moreover, another disadvantage of integrated HR and payroll solutions is related to IT, security, and compliance. Because information and workflows are moving across multiple systems, it’s harder to ensure a comprehensive audit trail or total data security. With information moving between the software, your organisation may be more exposed to liability than if you used a single solution. Plus, because of the different tools, you may need to update and maintain them separately.
Finally, integrated solutions are seldom user-friendly because employees still have to learn multiple different tools and processes. They can be clunky or confusing to use at times. But luckily, to solve these issues, there’s a convenient third option:
Option 3: Single software
The idea behind a single HR and payroll software is that it has all the benefits of an integrated solution without any of the downsides. Instead of integrating multiple tools with separate databases together, a single solution encompasses all the different tasks and processes in one software with a single central database.
With single software, there’s no chance of syncing errors or data flowing only in one direction; all the information is held in one central database that acts as the single source of truth. This means no more time needs to be spent manually inputting information into various payroll and HR platforms – the single solution will handle everything for you.
Moreover, due to its all-in-one nature, single software boasts greater user-friendliness with a seamless experience and cohesive interface that makes it easier for everyone to use. HR, payroll, and recruitment teams can customise their experience with their own tailored dashboards with the important information and workflows available to them, while employees can enjoy an intuitive and easy-to-use system. It’s the best solution all-around.
Watch out: if you’re in the market for HR and payroll software, many vendors advertise their tools as a single solution when they’re actually an integration. Take care to make sure that the offering is a genuine single software.
Now that we’ve explained the key differences between separate, integrated, and single software, let’s zoom in on some of the key benefits of a single solution for recruitment and onboarding.
How does single HR and payroll software benefit recruitment and onboarding?
Seamless user experience for a great first impression
Your recruitment software or your employee onboarding software is often a new hire’s first impression of your organisation, and let’s be honest: first impressions count. The recruitment process and the first days and weeks of a new hire’s time at your organisation set the tone for their entire career with you. With early turnover (also called first-year turnover) becoming an increasingly important HR metric to track, ensuring a smooth and successful experience of recruitment and onboarding for new hires is a must. To retain the top talent your in-house recruiters just spent all that time and money hiring, it’s important to get the recruitment and onboarding process right.
Using a true single solution recruitment and onboarding software is a great way to build a consistent and welcoming candidate experience from the very start of a new employee’s journey. New hires joining your company will be familiar with the HR and onboarding software you use from day one because they’ve already encountered it during recruitment, easing their transition into the new roles.
Moreover, with a single software, training new employees how to use it is a breeze because of the intuitive interface and the custom dashboards that provide all the self-service tasks they require in one easy-to-access place.
You may also be interested in: Tips for effective employee onboarding
Eliminate admin with self-service
With a single solution for all human resources, payroll, recruitment, and onboarding processes, employee self-service becomes easier than ever. From the moment a candidate applies to a job all the way through to their job acceptance, first day, and beyond, a single solution makes it easy for them to complete all the processes and tasks they need to do in one place.
This can have a transformative impact on the team members who would usually be saddled with the weighty pile of admin involved in recruiting and onboarding a new employee. With automated workflows, alerts, and reminders, the administrative tasks can be slashed to free up large amounts of time for HR and payroll teams. Think of how much more strategic work you could complete when you no longer have to walk new hires through every HR process and handle their admin for them!
You may also be interested in: 5 HR and payroll processes made easier with single software
Complete all the paperwork before the new employee’s first day
With a single system for recruitment, onboarding, HR, and payroll, it’s easy to get the new hire set up on the software before they even show up for their first day. With an easy transition from the applicant tracking system’s candidate portal to the new hire’s employee portal, it’s possible to get them to fill out all the necessary forms and details using the cloud-based system before they even start their first day. Then, the new hire can step into the office on day one already knowing that all their details are in the database, their payroll and tax will be processed effectively on time, and all other similar processes have been taken care of.
Moreover, the employee onboarding experience can be faster, more efficient, and more engaging because all the paperwork has already been completed. Instead of waiting around while the new hire fills out paperwork, hiring managers and HR staff can focus on helping the new hire get up to speed and settle in effectively for an efficient start in the company.
Embed learning and development from day one
Another benefit of using a single solution for recruitment processes, onboarding, human resources, and payroll is that learning and development can be embedded in the employee’s career from day one. In addition to providing all the onboarding checklists and tasks as well as paperwork and processes, the single solution also will allow new employees to access training and enrol in courses. For any organisation that wants to upskill employees and place an emphasis on learning and development, it just makes sense that the employee onboarding software will be the same software they use to sign up to training courses. This is a great way to encourage career-long learning and development for all employees, new and old alike.
Take advantage of advanced and holistic analytics
When you use a single solution for recruitment, onboarding, HR, and payroll, you gain access to a vast array of useful data analytics and insights. Instead of different data sets being held in various tools, a single solution allows for the holistic tracking of workforce data throughout the entire employee lifecycle, from recruitment trends and onboarding data through to retention, performance, and compensation. This empowers HR reporting to achieve a more advanced level of descriptive and predictive analytics, helping the department rise to a more strategic and data-driven role.
You may also be interested in: Six people analytics metrics you should be tracking
Ready to transform your recruitment and onboarding process?
With single software you can streamline recruitment and onboarding to ensure every new employee gets the best start possible in your organisation. Here at XCD, we’ve created our powerful HR and payroll software to handle every stage of the employee lifecycle within one full-featured system. From the moment a candidate applies to a role to the day they leave your office for the last time, the XCD HR and payroll solution can handle everything seamlessly and effectively.
For human resources and payroll departments, XCD payroll and HR software is a real revolution in the way you work. With key tools like powerful predictive analytics powered by Salesforce’s Einstein AI and advanced automated workflows and custom dashboards for every occasion, our platform is essential for cross-departmental success. Its recruitment and onboarding capabilities make it the perfect choice for any organisation looking to save money, boost efficiency, and improve employee experience throughout recruiting, onboarding, and beyond.
Want to see how XCD’s HR and payroll system can enhance your capabilities for recruitment and onboarding? Schedule a demo today or chat to our expert team to find out more.
