What is HRIS?
HRIS is a Human Resource Information System. It is the software used by the Human Resources department in every company to manage their employees. Every HRIS program has different features and tools.
This software is very beneficial as it helps to keep all the essential files and information about the employees in an organized manner. It also helps to prevent the misplacing of the data because the data is saved in the virtual world instead of the physical world.
HRIS software is beneficial in today’s world when more companies prefer having employees work remotely.
As mentioned above, different HRIS software has different capabilities and features. Therefore, it is important to choose a software that fulfils your needs. Some of the features you will find in most software is:
- PTO Tracking
- Mobile App
- Applicant Tracking System
- Org Chart
- HR Compliance
- Onboarding and Offboarding
- Benefits Management
Relationship between Benefit Management and EDI Feeds
A good benefits management system helps the employees in comparing their insurance plans. Hence every HRIS needs to have an employee benefits management feature.
Once the employee chooses the plan, the system will automatically fill out the correct forms for each insurance carrier.
EDI is known as Electronic Data Interchange. EDI Feed is an electronic link between your HRIS and the insurance carrier you work with. Your enrollment, changes and termination are allowed by Electronic Data Interchange to flow from the HRIS into the insurance companies processing system.
It eliminates the need for printing of forms and most of the errors which might occur when you manually enter the data on the insurance carrier’s online portal. But not all insurance carriers allow an EDI feed even if the HRIS can generate one.
If your company has less than 50 employees and you have a health insurance plan for them, then your health insurance carrier will not allow you to have an EDI feed.
HRIS and Payroll Integration
The main aim of HRIS is to eliminate double work and make your life easier. The easiest way to knock out the double work is by integrating your HRIS with your payroll provider.
When you integrate payroll, it removes the need for calculating the employee benefit deductions on your own and manually enters them into payroll. The HRIS automatically updates the payroll if any changes occur in the future.
Some HRIS ‘s have their own payroll built into the HRIS. For obtaining the payroll portion of the software, you will have to pay an additional fee. It approximately costs about $10 a month per employee per month for payroll.
Management of HRIS System
The HR department of your company manages and keeps up to date documents and HR software for your company. Every year when the benefits renew, the benefits management piece of your HRIS should be updated.
The medical insurance policy changes to some extent each year and new plans and documents should be updated. Your employee benefits broker will manage all these arrangements every year.