Microsoft Business Solutions strengthens HR product

with Empower V4 Launch

Empower ePeople and eManager tools provide function-rich reporting and employee survey facility

Microsoft Business Solutions today launched the latest version of its HR solution, Empower, providing increased functionality to the core products and greatly enhanced versions of its Empower ePeople and Empower eManager intranet self-service tools.

The new product range aims to increase the scope of Microsoft Business Solutionsí entire self-service offering, and includes process-driven functionality that enables the system to match HRís working practices so that human resources departments donít need to change their processes to benefit from the technology. The suite focuses on providing enhanced reporting capabilities, easier solution implementation and integration, and improved ëlook and feelí, allowing users to navigate the systems as quickly and efficiently as possible. Crystal Reports has also been incorporated into Empower to allow flexible reporting to be rolled out to line managers.

ìSelf-service HR has come on in leaps and bounds over recent years. Originally, web-based HR was simply a way of delivering an online version of an HR managersí in-tray. Today, these solutions are highly advanced and can make huge differences to the way in which an organisation is run,î said Jennifer Griffin, marketing director, Microsoft Business Solutions, HRM solutions. ìFollowing feedback from our customers, weíve added components to the product suite which we believe are well ahead of the market.î

Central to the development of the Empower suite is the enhancement of the Empower eManager and Empower ePeople tools.

Empower eManager now benefits from additional functions including:

Integration with Crystal Reports enables reports created centrally by HR to be rolled out via the web so they can be run by the relevant manager, rather than via HR departments

When HR managers log in, they are provided with an instant summary of key activities of their team, such as upcoming appraisals and holidays

Reporting templates can be designed to allow HR managers to provide instant reports on issues such as absences or pay costs, reducing administration demands on HR departments

Information updates, such as pay reviews, can be fed into the system by the relevant manager and payrolls can be updated automatically

Empower ePeople now enables companies to carry out employee surveys via a web interface. The introduction of this tool means:

Organisations will be able to gauge the opinions of their employees on key business issues almost instantly

Responses can be recorded anonymously in order to protect employeesí rights

Survey results can be easily analysed via a series of standard reports incorporated into the package