Research Report - The State of HR Technology in NZ

At a time when we are leading our people through a period of massive modernisation and digitisation in the workplace, it is important to understand what role technology is playing to support the HR functions in our roles.

HRNZ therefore sought to understand in more detail what the state of HR technology is in New Zealand today. HRNZ worked with Victoria University and Probity Consulting to conduct this research. Included in this research was the subject of how the HR community is currently using artificial intelligence (AI).

• Download full report (member only content)
• Vendor briefing - implications for technology vendors.

Executive Summary:

There are many HR related technology solutions available in the market and HRNZ wanted to understand the challenges that members were facing and identify how best to support members on their technology choices going forwards. 

The results show that most organisations who participated in the research have a core human resource information system (HRIS). Yet the market for these systems appears to be highly fragmented in New Zealand, with no dominant vendors.

Key Findings:

• Most organisations use a core HRIS, but there is no dominant system.

• Standalone systems are popular for payroll, occupational health & safety, remuneration.

• Satisfaction is higher with Standalone systems than core HRIS.

• Many organisations reported to be planning to add or enhance systems, but there is limited detailed consideration of AI.

Dissatisfaction with core HRIS systems is relatively common: 34% of survey respondents said their organisations were dissatisfied overall, with 24% expressing dissatisfaction with the features of their core HRIS and 25% expressing dissatisfaction with customer service.

Standalone systems were used by more than half of participants’ organisations to manage payroll, OH&S incident and accident reporting, and remuneration. Among standalone systems, satisfaction was greatest for wellness applications.

The top HR technology challenges identified by participants were integration/alignment across systems and the affordability of systems.

The top opportunities identified were fully integrated systems, greater use of data/analytics/business intelligence, and automation of self-service for routine processes and workflows.

Areas where respondents are planning to introduce new or enhanced technology in the next three years included their core HRIS or standalone systems for performance management, learning and development, and payroll.

Next Steps:

HRNZ plans to engage with the HR technology vendor community and share these results with them and explore the opportunities for offerings that better match the needs of the NZ market. HRNZ also aims to create an online space where members can share their experiences of working with HRIS products. 

HRNZ also wants to support HR professionals to identify ways in which AI can be best used to enhance HR processes and to share their success stories about successful technology initiatives within their respective organisations.