The impact of electronic human resource management on the role of human resource managers

Abstract

This study examined the impact of the adoption of electronic Human Resource Management (e-HRM) on the Human Resource Management function and how much it has affected to change the role of Human Resource Managers. In addition to that, it was intended to study the level and types of technologies that are used in HR in Sri Lanka and the drivers of adoption of technology in the Sri Lankan context. The study was initially supported through relevant literature in relation to e-HRM. This research was conducted on a sample of 30 large companies randomly selected across various industries and the primary technique of data collection was through a descriptive questionnaire distributed through e-mail or personal visits to companies. Out of the sample, 70 % of the companies have a moderate knowledge and usage of e-HR and a 30 % have a very high knowledge .The role played by HR professionals also changed from “Administrative Expert” to “Strategic Agent”. There were several reasons for driving organizations towards the adoption of e- -HRM in Sri Lanka and the most common of which was the desire to be the leading edge. The critical success factors behind the successful implementation were employee attitudes, organizational culture,characteristics and the way of collaborating those with HR and IT. This adoption should not be done in an ad hoc way and it should be planned and implemented in a proper manner. Organization should identify the suitability of the selected software through proper evaluation, because it critically affects the post-performance of the whole system.