Leading Human Resources and payroll software specialist Cascade HR is set to launch a mobile app at this year’s CIPD HR Software Show (HRSS).
Dedicated to making day-to-day HR processes ever quicker and more efficient, this latest technology release from Cascade is designed to offer utmost ease of use when it comes to self-service functionality.
The app – which has been successfully piloted and will now be available for clients from June onwards – will be unveiled on Cascade’s all new exhibition stand.  The Cascade team will be on hand to guide delegates through the new technology using smart devices and via large plasma screens.
Cascade’s software development director Dan Edwards explains: “Having successfully promoted version 4.0 of our award-winning .NET HR and HMRC-accredited payroll software at the 2010 HRSS, it made perfect sense to use the 2011 event as a platform to launch this current innovation.
“We’ve been discussing the idea of a mobile app for many years but our in-house development team began to turn the concept into a reality in Autumn 2010. The technology has been developed in alignment with the Windows Communication Foundation – a recognised Microsoft programming model for service-orientated applications – and the software’s architecture has been adapted to suit a mobile app.”
Traditionally the Cascade solution would have been sold to desk-based clients, but in today’s world of evermore flexible working the standard office format rarely applies. With many Cascade clients, numerous employees work outside of the office environment, whilst some are even located off-shore. In the past clients have set up internet cafes or staffroom kiosks to promote employee access but now the new mobile app should encourage an even greater level of employee engagement.
But by its very nature the Cascade technology lends itself to being used in a mobile fashion. Now users can book holidays, check their payslips or monitor outstanding HR tasks wherever they may be, therefore making the most efficient use of their time.
Keen to ‘futureproof’ clients from technological advances, this new release represents the first of a stream of developments in mobile technology for Cascade, not just for smart phones but for ipads, tablets and laptops with ever-varying screen sizes.
Dan concludes: “I read recently that talent management firm SHL found only 7% of HR professionals in EMEA (surveyed as part of their Global Assessment Trends Report) can access their HR information systems via a mobile device. Our development team is dedicated to providing clients with the best possible innovations, so we’ve many more ideas in the pipeline that will enable customers to utilise their HR technology in ways they perhaps never thought possible.”
When we launched the mobile app at the HRSS in June, the response from the industry was phenomenal.
Many prospective clients have been looking for something like this in the marketplace. Other companies hadn’t even considered the value of a mobile app for HR, but with some technological foresight and industry understanding, we spotted the opportunity for them.
An Ofcom report highlighted last month that nearly one in three adults now uses a smartphone. The rocketing popularity of this mobile technology means that more and more people want to – and can – access information and the internet on the go. Whilst it’s not realistic to suggest that employees are going to spend every hour of the day completing HR tasks with a mobile app, it is important that employers engage with staff via the most relevant routes available.
The mobile app is being showcased at Softworld’s HR & Payroll Solutions event at ExCel London next month. If anyone wishes to come and discuss its functionality we will be happy to discuss.