What’s the difference between people, talent, and workforce management software? 

There is now a vast range of different payroll and HR software available, but the terminology can get confusing, making it difficult to understand how individual systems can best satisfy your requirements. 

To help set the record straight, we explain three common types of payroll and HR software and how they can help. 

People management software 

What is it? 

People management software combines your payroll and HR data into a single, integrated system, providing you with transparent, accurate information and a single source of truth.  

The software offers a single view of all your employee information, which includes their skills, qualifications, entitlements, and where they fit into team and organisational structures. At the same time, it also enables you to streamline leave and expense approvals, log absences, and manage attendance with ease. 

Why is people management software useful? 

Ensuring a single source of truth for your data reduces the risk of duplication and error, which in turn helps to minimise payment errors and increases employee satisfaction. 

Automating payroll and HR processes frees busy teams from undertaking manual, time-consuming tasks so they can focus on more strategic activities that support key business objectives. 

You can check employee status against regulations and requirements, such as working time rules, work permits, and pension auto-enrolment. This enhances both compliance levels and record-keeping. 

Talent management software 

What is it? 

Talent management software enables you to effectively manage the employee lifecycle, from hire to retire, in order to optimise the employee experience.  

Why is talent management software helpful? 

Automating and integrating key recruitment processes, such as background checking services, makes it possible to streamline and simplify hiring activities. This saves time and enhances the candidate experience. It is also possible to run pertinent reports on every aspect of talent acquisition. 

Offering new hires access to a customisable onboarding portal enables them to do everything from reading company policies to booking colleague introductions before they join. This speeds up the process by an average of 10%, which enables them to settle in and integrate with their team more quickly. 

It provides a single, centralised platform that can identify and monitor an individual’s learning and development needs and activities. This motivates employees and encourages them to be more engaged with their performance and progress. 

You can analyse live data to obtain a snapshot view of each job in the company and store it in one place. This makes it easier to spot gaps in the hierarchy, match possible candidates to roles and identify future leaders (plus any developments they may require) in order to ensure effective succession planning. 

Workforce management software 

What is it? 

Workforce management software enables you to manage staff rosters and schedules with ease, while also accurately recording working hours to prevent over- or underpayment.

Why is workforce management software beneficial? 

With the ability to create a range of schedules, rotas and timesheets, it becomes possible to manage teams more productively. Understanding the availability and skill sets of individual employees also means you can allocate tasks more efficiently, thereby saving time and improving quality. 

Empowering employees to manage their own time and attendance activities makes them feel trusted, which in turn increases engagement. But managers can also amend and approve entries to mitigate fraudulent activity. 

Automating processes, such as recording timesheets and updating payroll information, frees up time for payroll and HR teams to focus on strategic activities. It also reduces errors and ensures that employees are paid accurately and on time. The ability to then create reports and dashboards using real-time data helps you identify possible areas of concern, such as absence patterns. 

To find out more about any of these software categories, contact Zellis here.