Hiring and nurturing the right talent can improve your product, culture, and bottom line. But how do you do so in the modern dynamic business landscape? By using human resource (HR) management tools.
HR tools can help you manage your human capital effectively, improving your chances of running and maintaining the right team. With the right software, you can forget about low employee engagement, productivity, or retention.
How do you find the right tool for your business? Below, we’ll explore some of the best management systems and look at how they can improve your workflows.
The role of HR software in HR processes
Whether you’re new to the role or have years of experience in the HR department, you probably already know that HR tasks are far from walks in the park. You often have to juggle numerous responsibilities—from hiring and training talent to managing exit interviews—which can be overwhelming.
The key role of HR software solutions is to lessen the burden on HR teams. They can streamline administrative tasks, leading to improved workplace efficiency and allowing HR teams to focus on their primary business: people management.
We know what you’re thinking: Many tools sound great in theory but often become unnecessary additional costs to small businesses. While this might be true for some systems, it isn’t the case for HR solutions. They help solve a wide range of real-world problems, including:
- Inefficient hiring processes: HR software automates job postings, employee screening, and application tracking, resulting in faster recruitment.
- Poor onboarding: Some tools make it easier for HR teams to provide training materials and track new hires’ progress, promoting smooth transitions into new work environments.
- Failure to comply with laws and regulations: Some systems generate regular labor and employment reports, allowing businesses to compare current processes with internal policies and labor laws and regulations.
- Poor employee engagement: HR tools facilitate seamless data collection from employees through features like surveys, allowing HR teams to stay in touch with their people’s sentiments.
Criteria for choosing the right HR tools
There are hundreds of HR tools, all promising to improve HR processes. But that doesn’t mean they’ll be the perfect fit for your business. You need to look beyond surface-level promises and assess each tool based on your business objectives and HR strategies to ensure they align.
Key questions to ask HR software vendors before choosing their products include:
- Can you tailor your human resource information system to meet our needs and align with our policies and organizational structure? If the answer is no, look elsewhere for a customizable solution.
- Is your system scalable? This is a vital question for small businesses with robust growth goals and plans—your system needs to grow with you to remain efficient.
- How user-friendly is your HR tool? Chances are, all potential vendors will speak highly of their tools, so it’d be best to accompany this question with a demo request to see for yourself.
- Can I integrate the system with existing tools? Application programming interfaces (APIs) or pre-built integration capabilities are necessary for easy data exchange across systems.
- How secure is your system? Robust security features are a must-have for optimal employee information protection.
12 of the best HR software tools out there
Now the most crucial step in choosing your HR system: assessing your options. Here are some of the best HR software in the market:
1. Bitly
Looking for a solution to facilitate seamless employee communication and engagement? Bitly is your tool! This platform can help you view all of your recruitment, onboarding, and retention efforts.
Track every click, swipe, and tap on the Bitly Dashboard. Whether it’s a short link on a poster at a recruitment fair, a custom link sent to a referral, or a branded domain on your website, you can see how many people are clicking and where they’re coming from.
Key features
- Real-time link tracking to help monitor the performance of all HR links
- Easy URL shortening for optimal link sharing and management
- Link branding to help reinforce your brand identity across all job posting platforms
- API for easy integrations with other business tools
Ideal use cases
Bitly is built for large, small, and mid-sized businesses, making it the perfect tool for enterprises that foresee a lot of growth. The platform can serve as an asset for HR teams in various ways, including the following:
- Bitly tracking links can help monitor the performance of job postings across different platforms.
- Bitly can help HR teams measure the effectiveness of content and campaigns aimed at building a strong employer brand by monitoring how many clicks their promotional content receives.
- HR teams can use Bitly links to streamline the onboarding process by providing new hires with easy access to training materials, handbooks, and other essential documents and tracking these links.
- HR departments can use Bitly short links to share important updates, resources, or announcements with their workforce.
- HR can distribute Bitly links for feedback to ensure ease of access to survey platforms and track who has clicked on the links.
Pricing overview
Bitly offers a Free plan and packages ranging from $8 to $199 monthly. Large businesses with significant link requirements can request custom quotes for the Bitly Enterprise Plan.
2. BambooHR
BambooHR helps HR teams manage employee data, payroll processing, and benefits. It also helps business owners keep up with important employee events, such as birthdays and anniversaries—think corporate Facebook meets intranet. Each account features a news feed, a calendar of upcoming birthdays, and scheduled time off across the company.
Key features
- Built-in reporting features that help assess employee experiences and retention
- Onboarding packets that promote optimal employee training and progress assessments
- Public and personal calendars to manage employee time off
Ideal use cases
The platform is suitable for small and mid-sized businesses. It can help business owners to:
- Track team members’ performance through assessments.
- Promote work-life balance by facilitating seamless time-off calculations.
- Encourage collaboration among recruiters and HR teams by facilitating smooth communication.
Pricing overview
Quotes are available upon request.
3. Spark Hire
The average time-to-hire for many businesses is roughly four weeks or less. Potential employees expect you to interview them and communicate the way forward within this timeframe.
If you’ve ever scheduled interviews, you know the process can be incredibly time-consuming. With Spark Hire, it doesn’t have to be. This solution helps HR professionals conduct seamless online interviews, eliminating the need for in-person sessions that consume a lot of time.
Key features
- Unlimited one-way candidate interviews
- Video session recording
- Integration capabilities with Google, iCloud, Outlook.com, Exchange, and Office 365
- Bulk interview scheduling
Ideal use cases
Spark Hire is ideal for both small and large businesses thanks to its bulk interview scheduling and screening features. You can use it to:
- Get more insights into potential hires through video-based questions.
- Collaborate with hiring managers or recruiters when choosing the best candidates for open positions.
- Record candidate rejection reasons and send rejection emails.
Pricing overview
Costs range from $149 to $499 per month, depending on the number of employees. Businesses with more than 500 employees can request a custom quote.
4. Harver
Harver is the perfect solution for teams seeking efficiency throughout the hiring process. The platform automates everything from application screening to job matching and applicant selection, allowing teams to focus on more pressing HR tasks.
Key features:
- Harver CHAT (Conversational Hiring AI Tool) for seamless applicant engagement
- Automated interview scheduling
- One-way virtual interviewing
Ideal use cases
Large and small businesses can use Harver to:
- Assess candidate potential through gamified behavioral assessments.
- Help current employees re-skill and up-skill based on their potential.
- Secure top talent quickly by automating time-consuming tasks.
Pricing overview
Haver’s pricing isn’t listed on their website. However, some sources suggest that pricing starts at about $5,000 per year.
5. Lumity
You need a dictionary just to understand health insurance. There’s industry jargon such as “deductibles,” “co-pays,” and “PPOs.” And then there’s the issue of cost, insurers, and packages.
With so many different options, how do you know which one is right for you? Lumity makes it easy for employers to offer good choices at reasonable prices by helping them create optimal benefits strategies.
Key features
- Built-in employee benefits benchmarks
- Dedicated account managers to help handle issues that arise
- Centralized repository for all benefits documentation
Ideal use cases
Lumity can help businesses of all sizes to:
- Compare their rates, benefits, and health plans against other companies in their niches.
- Improve their benefits plans through data-driven guidance.
- Effectively handle compliance and claims disputes.
Pricing overview
Lumity’s pricing isn’t publicly available; interested parties need to request a quote.
6. Gusto
One of our favorite parts of using Gusto is the email the platform sends out every payday. Gusto makes the process fun for employees with the subject line, “Hooray! You got paid today.”
Gusto is a robust platform that rolls up payroll, benefits, and employee data so that you can onboard, pay, and recognize employees all from one platform.
Key features
- Automated time tracking
- Built-in tools for employee performance evaluations
- Centralized applicant tracking system
- Automated payroll processing
Ideal use cases
This HR system suits small to mid-sized businesses looking to optimize everyday HR functions. It’s ideal for:
- Keeping track of employee hours and time off for effective leave management.
- Assessing employee experiences through surveys.
- Improving job posting and applicant tracking processes.
Pricing overview
Gusto plans range from $40/month + $6/month per person to $60/month +$9/month per person for small and mid-sized teams.
7. Justworks
Justworks is an all-in-one HR platform with a great user interface. It uses a PEO model, which is especially great for startups looking for flexible, affordable healthcare solutions for employees. The PEO groups companies under one umbrella, which gives smaller companies access to lower rates that would normally only be available to larger corporations.
Key features
- Access to HR consulting services from certified professionals
- Automated payroll and benefits processing
- Compliance support
Ideal use cases
Small and mid-sized businesses can use the platform to:
- Access some of the best insurance plans from leading carriers.
- Stay compliant with labor laws and regulations.
- Track employee hours and streamline reimbursement and payroll services.
Pricing overview
Justworks offers a Basic Plan for $59/month per employee and $49/month after 50+ employees and a Plus Plan for $99/month per employee and $89/month after 50+ employees.
8. Greenhouse
Greenhouse is an all-in-one tool that helps teams track the recruitment process from start to end. The platform helps streamline the interview process for both hiring managers and interviewers.
Key features
- 500 pre-built integrations
- Interview scorecards that help interviewers share feedback and recommendations
- Automated interview invitation notifications and reminders
Ideal use cases
The platform can be useful to large and growing businesses in various ways, including:
- Filling high-volume job posts.
- Streamlining communication among hiring managers, recruiters, and other team members.
- Promoting positive candidate experiences during hiring processes.
Pricing overview
Greenhouse offers three pricing plans—Essential, Advanced, and Expert—all of which have quote-based pricing.
9. Workday
Workday is a global human capital management system that does more than just help you manage your workforce; it also provides insights into the changes modern workplaces are facing, allowing you to better prepare for the future.
Key features
- Organizational insights to promote data-driven change
- Efficient recruitment and talent management
- Payroll and benefits administration
- Employee time-tracking and management
Ideal use cases
Workday is the perfect solution for large businesses. It can help with:
- Analytics-driven decision making.
- Global workforce management.
- Finance workflow automation.
Pricing overview
Workday offers two pricing plans—Workday Adaptive Planning and Workday Adaptive Planning & Consolidation. Both plans are quote-based, however, Workday does offer a 30-day free trial.
10. Zenefits
Zenefits is a cloud-based all-in-one platform that streamlines a wide range of HR tasks, including hiring, onboarding, benefits, and payroll.
Key features
- Time-off tracking
- Employee performance management and engagement assessment tools
- Streamlined hiring and onboarding capabilities
Ideal use cases
The platform is perfect for small and mid-sized businesses looking to:
- Efficiently onboard new employees.
- Manage employee benefits effectively.
- Improve payroll processes.
- Stay compliant with regulations.
Pricing overview
The platform charges between $8 and $21 per employee monthly.
11. Lattice
Lattice is an HR management platform that helps organizations develop high-performing employees through performance reviews and insights.
Key features
- Employee pulse surveys
- Strategic goal setting at company, team, and individual levels
- Performance reviews
Ideal use cases
Enterprises and growing businesses can use the platform to:
- Gain actionable insights into employee engagement levels.
- Facilitate seamless employee performance management.
- Promote employee development through goal setting and career path planning.
Pricing overview
Costs range between $6 and $11 per person monthly.
12. Lever
Looking for a solution to optimize recruitment efforts? Lever is just the right software for you. It’s a talent acquisition system that lets you source the right employees, grow your human capital pipeline, and build healthy relationships with your team.
Key features
- Automated candidate searches
- Efficient potential employee management
- Built-in candidate nurturing templates
- Recent and historical recruiting performance reports
Ideal use cases
Lever is an all-rounded recruitment solution perfect for all business sizes. It can help with:
- High-volume employee recruitment.
- Collaboration among multiple stakeholders, including HR teams, managers, and business owners.
- Data-driven hiring decisions.
Pricing overview
Both of Lever’s plans, LeverTRM and LeverTRM for Enterprise, are quote-based.
Try using tools like Bitly for HR success
HR tools can promote effective people management by handling administrative tasks such as job posting, time tracking, and payroll processing. This lets you concentrate on core HR operations like managing your people pipeline. When choosing HR software solutions, focus on your core needs and the platform’s security, user-friendliness, and scalability.
If you’re looking for a solution that helps you share online resources and monitor the performance of job URLs or employee engagement links, Bitly is precisely what you need. Through the Bitly Connections Platform, you can shorten long URLs to make sharing easier and track the number of clicks they receive to assess engagement levels.
Create a Bitly account to streamline employee engagement and create stronger employer brands with short, branded, trackable links!