Best HR Software In Kenya: Features, Benefits and How to choose the best for your business

It’s no secret you can’t successfully run your Kenya business or organization without taking advantage of the best HR software in Kenya, or at the very least, something in place.

Organizations thrive based on among other things the effectiveness of how your human labor is managed. If you want your business to grow and thrive, make your employees happy. And one way of doing that is to make your human resource management system as flawless and efficient as it can be.

Gallup reports that companies that manage their workforce efficiently and constantly keep them engaged realize up to 21% improved profitability. A functioning HRMS is one of the best ways to achieve a perfectly managed workforce.

What is the best HR software in Kenya?

Well, that’s pretty simple. Wagemaster is the best HR software in Kenya combining both payroll and HR features with an option of Time Attendance module. Besides these, other features make it really stand out from the crowd.

Before we delve into much of Wagemaster, let’s review what features make an ideal HR software.

Features of an ideal HR Software in Kenya that would transform your Kenyan business or organization and help you realize a happy workforce

To start off, if you are going to invest in HR software, the features must at the very least match your needs. If this happens and even more features are availed, this would be a great success and fit for your business or organization. Below are features that must not miss in your ideal HRMS software.

Performance evaluation

The best HR software in Kenya must be able to help in performance evaluation. It must provide a centralized place from where all issues related to employee work supervision, goal setting, progress tracking can be accessed.

Employee scheduling

A good HR software in Kenya should provide a means of scheduling employee shifts and attendance and at the same time allow you to keep track of who is doing what and how. This way, you can be sure you have complete control of assignment practices, manage bumpy schedule changes, and better the cooperation between departments.

Time tracking & Attendance management

If there’s anything within HR that makes most HR heads swell in anger and confusion is the inability of the HR system to facilitate time tracking and attendance management. A good HR software should provide a means to manage absence, monitor accrual, and usage of sick days, PTO, etc. The time tracking and attendance records should be easily integrated into the system and reports easily available.

Recruiting & Applicant tracking

This is one of the best features the best HR software in Kenya must have. The recruiting and applicant tracking module makes it easy to store and evaluate applications received as well as monitor candidates. This module also provides for accurate background checks and allows the HR manager to seamlessly onboard new employees.

Learning management

Apart from availing tools to help cultivate a happy workforce and track performance, the best HR Software in Kenya must also provide a means to identify and retain top performers by allowing management to offer learning and development opportunities. Ultimately, different teams become more competitive with the understanding top performers are faithfully rewarded.

Payroll management

As HR software regards the management of employees, the same has to be paid and therefore the need to include payroll management modules. A good HR software does not come close to being the best fit if does not incorporate payroll. To that effect, Wagemaster- which is obviously the best HR software in Kenya, definitely includes a payroll processing module that is equally regarded as the best Payroll software in Kenya.

If you want to find out how to choose the best payroll software in Kenya or are interested in the best payroll practices, read more here.

An HRMS software wouldn’t make any sense at all if it doesn’t have benefits and a payroll management module. Of course, the reasons are many but the most critical reason as to why this is unacceptable is because manual handling of payroll processing is the most error-prone, tedious, and complicated part of work duty an HR manager has to deal with every end of the month.

The best HRMS software in Kenya then has to provide a means to handle payroll and benefits efficiently, as well as other areas in payroll processing like salaries, bonuses, deductions, taxes, insurance policies on life/dental/medical, paid time off, 401k participation, etc.

Analytics & Reporting

Analytics and reporting is a critical aspect of an HR software. Usually, it’s expected that the best HR software in Kenya will be able to process the data it has been fed and provide desired reports and stats useful in decision making without involving a third-party app. This is the very basic minimum we should all expect from HR software.

Employee Database

Essentially, HR software is a database with a bunch of employee information. As an organization or business grows, this information becomes very critical, partly because of compliance reasons that you all organizations to have this information really readily available. The other reason is that then employees can access this information without having to bump into the HR manager’s office all the time.

Benefits of using the best HR software in Kenya in your organization or business

There are many benefits to using the best of everything and it’s no different with HR software. The following are some of the benefits that your business will enjoy if you implement the best HR software in Kenya in your business.

Centralized storage

Building from the last feature of HR software, centralized storage means data is created, managed, and maintained in a central database that can be accessed readily based on privileges. Depending on whether you chose to go cloud-based way or server-based like the ones installed over your network with readily available backups, the outcome can be scalable, cost-effective, and reliable. Because everything is readily available in a centralized place, HR management processes are sped up.

Streamlined processes

Any organization that relies on outdated tools and processes to manage their HR processes, chaos and confusion always reign. If areas like employee leave data and approval status, worked hours for employees on weekly contracts have no visibility, it becomes difficult for HR teams and functional managers to execute their work properly and even forecast employee availability.

The best HR software in Kenya must be able to facilitate and resolve process bottlenecks through role-based accessibility and accountability. Consequently, confidential HR data remains safe with other relevant stakeholders allowed only visibility onto what they need to keep their functions moving forward smoothly.

Efficiency and productivity

Organizations and their people don’t invest in the best HR Software in Kenya for the sake of it. Efficiency and productivity is the name of the game. With an efficient system in place, organizations can free up their HR staff to engage in other value-adding projects as well as take care of unpleasant audit findings.

Employee experience/morale

An astounding, historic report published by Gallup after a poll survey showed that only 36% of the global workforce were kept engaged by their employers. A larger percentage of the decline in employee engagement was reported in those in leadership or managerial positions. Furthermore, most of these were those who work from home.

The best HR software in Kenya today must provide a means to enhance employee engagement and experience.

Other benefits realized by implementing the best HRMS software in Kenya include the following:

• Cost savings
• Reduced errors
• Regulatory compliance
• Attendance monitoring
• Simplified benefits administration
• Data security
• Metrics
• Improved decision-making
• Dynamic reports
• Interoperability
• Automated calculations

These benefits can only be realized after a careful, thoughtful, and fact-backed consideration and deliberation on what HR software to choose. This, therefore, requires knowledge of what to consider when choosing the best HR software in Kenya.

How to choose the best HR software in Kenya

The following steps will help guide the process of deciding which HR software to invest in.

Have a plan and a strategy to follow

Failing to plan is planning to fail, we all know this.

This, therefore, means that if no human capital strategy is already in place, then an organization is already on its way down the gutter. There’s likely to be too much time wastages on voluminous text documents being sent to top management regarding a strategy.

In other spheres, a collaborative software would have saved the day so documents don’t have to be sent via emails. If this is the case, there’s a huge likelihood that failing to plan and strategize on the HR software to be acquired will lead to acquisition on a bullshit system. All concerned departments need to plan and lay down strategies for the new HR software and its usage.

Have the correct resources.

Assemble a team consisting of key stakeholders to validate the chosen system. It doesn’t have to be only people in the HR department as more and more people are likely to access the system. You need to consider what features and access privileges these people will have and if the software will support this kind of arrangement.

If need be, consult with a consultant in this area for more professional advice. A consultant will not only give correct advice but will also save the HR team a considerable amount of time spent on research.

Have good requirements.

Write down the requirements of the HR software way before a decision is made. Having the right requirements will help save time and eliminate useless systems on the way. Keep the priorities simple and discuss widely for a consensus to be reached on time.

Think of the future as the organization is definitely growing. If you limit to your current needs only, then you’ll soon be forced to go back to the market again.

Focus on leading-edge technology.

Technology is everything in this day and age. New systems may encompass new technology that may be thought to be difficult to use by your employees. However, it’s best to invest in what’s current old technologies are soon being ridden redundant. Unless the new technology incorporated will conflict with the majority of other systems that need integration with the HR software, new is better. Check on cross-compatibility as well.

Use decision drivers.

Just like any other major investment decision in the organization, the choice of the best HR software in Kenya is influenced by some decision drivers. Beyond the demo you just witnessed, think of the following decision drivers and make them key in making the final choice.

For vendor viability, the following are the key decision drivers:

• Functionality
• Usability
• Return on investment
• Ease of integration
• Operational effectiveness

For technology, decision drivers include:

• Configurability
• Scalability
• Service and support
• Business segmentation
• Global capabilities

Other factors to consider before making the final decision on which HR software in Kenya to invest in include:

• Understand how vendors fit your requirements
• Keep control of the demo and selection
• Evaluate price range, user-friendliness
• Make sure it can be accessed wherever you are either through a backup or cloud approach
• Have a strong belief in the system and work your best to make the system work for you.

 What is the Difference Between HRMS and HRIS software? 

People use the two terms almost interchangeably but are they the same?

Well for starters, HRMS software means Human Resource Management System in full. This software is used to manage every aspect of your human capital from payroll to time attendance to onboarding.

HRIS software means Human Resource Information System in full and is a software that basically manages employee information and the very basic elements of HR functions every organization needs. In an actual sense, HRIS is just a small bundle of HRMS.

Looking for the best HR software in Kenya for your organization or business? Consider Wagemaster payroll and HR software

It’s simple. Wagemaster is both a Payroll software and an HR software that will all the features you need to successfully run and scale your business’ human capital. It’s user-friendly, automated, and has all the features you need. Talk to us today to get started already.