Top 5 HR Challenges in the Manufacturing Industry
Does Industry Revolution 4.o (IR 4.0) have anything to do with talent management? IR 4.0 is now in full swing across the manufacturing industry. We are familiar with Smart Factories that are powered by Big Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), Cloud Computing, 3D Printing etc. Can similar technologies allow for digital transformation of HR operations?
HR is all about talent management. Every employee plays an important role in a business. Business can only attain its full potential when every staff contributes his best. Therefore, forming a conducive culture where the talent at every position is willing to give his best, have now become the keys to sustainable business development.
Well, this is easier said than done. Employees are looking beyond merely a pay cheque. Instead, they are seeking employee satisfaction, which largely boils down to whether they are appreciated. To address the pain points and offer the top-notch employee experience, it is important to collect sufficient data and analyse the employees’ behaviour.
Top 5 HR Pain Points
1. Poor Employee Experience
Employers have realised that talents are the biggest asset for any organisation to succeed. To be sure, poor employee experience does not bode well for productivity and staff retention. However, as employee experience is affected by a wide range of aspects, including the management, company policies, career advancement, the working processes and more, issues in many fields need to be rectified.
For a start, the company can try to digitalise and automate mundane, repetitive processes, such as payroll, claim requests and leave management. Furthermore, the software is also capable of capturing plenty of data, such as outlying cases that took longer than usual to complete. This data analytics will lead HR personnel to improve the procedures. Once the HR team speeds up the handling of such processes, the employee experience will surely improve in tandem.
2. Managing Remote Staff
As the businesses grow, companies tend to have more facilities across different geographical regions. Think of factories, construction sites, hotels or even retail outlets. As such, communicating with the employees and sustaining their productivity might be a challenge. For instance, without knowing the exact time they report for work and accomplish their tasks for the day, it will be difficult to determine the total time they spend at work. This will create a headache for large manufacturing or construction firms.
At challenging times like this, HRX comes in handy. Among the various components of this versatile HR solution is the Time Attendance module, which can capture the clock-in and clock-off times of every employee via either facial recognition or QR code scanning. This will ensure that employees, including those based remotely, always remain productive.
3. Handling Employee Issues is too Time-Consuming
While dealing with employee grievances is part of the job for HR personnel, it should not consume too much of their time, else the HR personnel will be unable to focus on their talent management and strategic planning duties. By digitalising processes that can be digitalised, HR personnel will be freed from such repetitive administrative jobs.
A major headache for those processing HR operations manually is payroll. The problem is augmented if staff are based across a number of plants or facilities, therefore their exact working hours are hard to establish for the calculation of overtime.
Just like the sensors in Smart Factories that can detect defects automatically, the Payroll module of HRX is also capable of detecting the exact clock-in and clock-out time of staff captured in the database of the Time Attendance module mentioned earlier. This way, the amount of overtime can be calculated automatically according to the established rates, and the payroll generated for staff without human intervention.
Similarly, for Leave Management and Claim Requests, the HRX software is capable of cascading the applications to the right supervisor based on the ranks of the applicant. Applications can be submitted anytime, anywhere, so is the approval by supervisors. This will significantly improve the HR operations, reducing employee grievances as a result.
4. Resignation and Employee Retention
Whenever expectations are not met, employees might choose to move on. The team is thus burdened with recruitment and training all over again. Hence it is important to find out the reasons for talents to stay or leave, and start improving . Cherishing contributions is fundamental in creating a stronger sense of belonging. Touching base with employees through town hall meetings and well-devised appraisals will help too.
Recruitment and Appraisal are part of the HRX solution. Thanks to Big Data Analytics, the Talent Management module is capable of generating insights into the workforce, which will help the management in their strategic planning to build a dynamic and energetic workforce.
5. Lack of Diversity and Inclusion
The idea that Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) in the workforce is beneficial to the company is now gaining traction around the world. Having employees from both genders and a diverse cultural background will often enrich the company, in terms of product insights, marketing planning or implementation of policies. Hence, it is crucial for the HR team to secure the right talents from a diverse background.
Closing the Gap with Technology
Big Data analytics can identify the barriers that stand in the way of building a strong workforce. With a comprehensive database, the management can match skills to positions more successfully. This will surely forge a more robust talent management landscape in the long run. After all, British physicist and mathematician William Thomson Kelvin once said, “What is not measured cannot be improved, and what is not improved will always degrade.”
Talent management is the major goal as we enter the phase of HR 5.0, it is time for the HR teams to harness all the advantages of IR 4.0. Only with a formidable workforce, enterprises can stay competitive and sustainable. To check out how the Manufacturing Industry can overcome HR pain points with HRX, feel free to contact us today!