Discussion 1 HRIS Systems  In at least 200 words, define HRIS and explain how it differs from e-HRM. Describe a relational database and its importance to HRIS. Discussion 2 Planning for Implementation Read "Case Study: Vignette Revisited," and the section titled, “New Information for the Case: Part 1,” from Chapter 3, Summary and Resources. · Describe the concerns you would discuss with the SVP of HR. · You realize the project is going to impact a lot of departments and people. Identify the different customers who would be logical members of the implementation team and explain why. · Think through an HR process; describe the data you would want to collect. · Describe the pros and cons of investing in computer hardware and housing the network internally or using a cloud based architecture. Why? CASE STUDY: VIGNETTE REVISITED ________________________________ This case is revisited with some additional information that involves the understanding of the material in this chapter. The additional information will be added to the situation described in the vignette at the beginning of this chapter. A billion-dollar retailer with more than 4,000 stores finds that it cannot move fast enough to beat the competition. The organization’s senior management arrives at the conclusion that it would be easier to achieve the strategic goals enumerated by the board of directors if the various organizational functions would share information. Shared information would enable them to develop and deploy new actions and tactics more quickly. The CEO and the president have therefore ordered the major functions to immediately update their information systems so that data sharing is possible. The senior vice presidents (SVPs) of accounting and human resources immediately decide that the only solution is to decide jointly on an ERP product. ERP software applications are a set of integrated database applications, or modules, that carry out the most common business functions, including human resources, general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable, order management, inventory control, and customer relationship management. To speed the installation along, they will install it using a rapid implementation methodology that a company down the street used. The goal is to have the new systems operational in nine months. Shortly after this decision is made, the SVP of HR calls you into his office and tells you that you will be management sponsor for this project. You have to decide on everything. You sit back in your nice office and think: What’s the problem with this scenario? It shouldn’t be difficult to select a vendor and then borrow the methodology from down the street. It worked for them; it should work for us! We’ll call a few vendors in the morning and find out about cost, time frame, and implementation methods. In the meantime, I should find out a little more about how to do this and who will be using it. I remember from my information systems class in co ...

1. Discussion 1
HRIS Systems
In at least 200 words, define HRIS and explain how it differs
from e-HRM. Describe a relational database and its importance
to HRIS.
Discussion 2
Planning for Implementation
Read "Case Study: Vignette Revisited," and the section titled,
“New Information for the Case: Part 1,” from Chapter 3,
Summary and Resources.
· Describe the concerns you would discuss with the SVP of HR.
· You realize the project is going to impact a lot of departments
and people. Identify the different customers who would be
logical members of the implementation team and explain why.
· Think through an HR process; describe the data you would
want to collect.
· Describe the pros and cons of investing in computer hardware
and housing the network internally or using a cloud based
architecture. Why?
CASE STUDY: VIGNETTE REVISITED
________________________________
This case is revisited with some additional information that
involves the understanding of the material in this chapter. The
additional information will be added to the situation described
in the vignette at the beginning of this chapter.

2. A billion-dollar retailer with more than 4,000 stores finds that it
cannot move fast enough to beat the competition. The
organization’s senior management arrives at the conclusion that
it would be easier to achieve the strategic goals enumerated by
the board of directors if the various organizational functions
would share information. Shared information would enable them
to develop and deploy new actions and tactics more quickly.
The CEO and the president have therefore ordered the major
functions to immediately update their information systems so
that data sharing is possible. The senior vice presidents (SVPs)
of accounting and human resources immediately decide that the
only solution is to decide jointly on an ERP product. ERP
software applications are a set of integrated database
applications, or modules, that carry out the most common
business functions, including human resources, general ledger,
accounts payable, accounts receivable, order management,
inventory control, and customer relationship management. To
speed the installation along, they will install it using a rapid
implementation methodology that a company down the street
used. The goal is to have the new systems operational in nine
months.
Shortly after this decision is made, the SVP of HR calls you
into his office and tells you that you will be management
sponsor for this project. You have to decide on everything. You
sit back in your nice office and think:
What’s the problem with this scenario? It shouldn’t be difficult
to select a vendor and then borrow the methodology from down
the street. It worked for them; it should work for us! We’ll call
a few vendors in the morning and find out about cost, time
frame, and implementation methods. In the meantime, I should
find out a little more about how to do this and who will be using
it. I remember from my information systems class in college
that this is a reasonable first step when it comes to buying
software.
What do you think your response would be to this inquiry? Has
your response changed now that you have read this chapter? If

3. so, how?
New Information for the Case: Part 1
After some discussions with department heads from all the
departments in the organization, you realize that there are a
large number of people (stakeholders) who will be affected by
the new systems. Furthermore, you come to realize how
important HR data really are to these stakeholders. Based on
this information, you think, “Wow, there are far more people
who could be potentially using this information system than I
expected!” The old textbook and the vendor information should
provide a lot to think about.
Using the information from the section of this chapter titled
“HRIS Customers/Users: Data Importance,” please answer the
following questions:
1. Identify some of the customers who would be logical
members of the implementation team and explain why.
2. Think through an HR process and sketch out what data are
necessary to complete your sample process well. How much
history does the organization need to convert to continue
functioning?
3. Pick one area of the HR function (e.g., recruiting), and
make a list of processes that will need to be mapped and
possibly reengineered during this implementation.

4. Weekly Lecture
Week One Lecture
Welcome to HRM400, Human Resource Technology
Management. Do not let the name of the course scare you. This
is not a highly technical course. You will be learning broad
technological concepts and vocabulary, learning enough about
different terms so you can have an intelligent conversation with
a seasoned pro. No, you will not be an expert, but you will have
enough understanding of the different terms to attend a meeting
and understand the fundamentals of the discussion. During this
lecture, I will define Human Resource Information Systems
(HRIS), discuss current HRIS trends, provide tips for success,
and provide a short list of search terms.
What is HRIS?
First thing I need to clarify is throughout this course I will be
discussing Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS).
Human resource information systems are “used to acquire, store,
manipulate, analyze, retrieve, and distribute information
regarding an organization’s human resources” (Kavanagh, Thite,
& Johnson, 2015, p. 591). Please notice that there is nothing in
the definition that indicates computers or technology. A human
resource information system can be, for example, a paper based
record keeping system that uses file cabinets. Human resources
information systems do not have to be computerized. Some
small businesses may still use paper-based systems for their
record keeping. Hey, whatever works for you and your
organization. However, for this course, assume we are talking
about the use of technological tools and software systems.
HRIS is also known as Human Resource Management System
(HRMS). You need to learn these different terms to assist you
in researching literature to complete your discussion question
responses and assignments. I will provide a list of search terms
at the end of this lecture. There is also a very nice glossary at
the back of Kavanagh’s (2015) textbook for your reference. If
you truly want to be successful in your career, take time to learn
the vocabulary.

5. Current HRIS Trends
Performance management systems are trending away from pure
hierarchal structures and including ways to evaluate teams.
Presently, holacracy, or self-managed teams are a popular fad
management practices within some organizations. So, software
designers are creating applications designed to incorporate
multiple organizational designs in their performance
management packages (Bersin, 2017). If you do not know what
holacracy is, I recommend you visit www.holacracy.org
(Links to an external site.)
or read Holacracy: The New Management System for a Rapidly
Changing World, by Brian Robertson (2015).
The article 9 HR Tech Trends for 2017
(Links to an external site.)
, by Josh Bersin (2017), discusses nine (9) different HR
technological trends. Figure 1, below shows the different trends.
These trends include:
1. The Performance Management Revolution,
2. An Explosion in Real-Time Engagement Evaluation,
3. The Rise of People Analytics,
4. Maturation of the Learning Market,
5. A New Landscape for Talent Acquisition,
6. The Growth of Contingent Workforce Management,
7. The Adoption of Team Management Tools,
8. A Wealth of Wellness Apps, and
9. Accelerated Automated HR.
Figure 1. Transformative Technology (Bersin, 2017)
1. The Performance Management Revolution
· Currently, there are more than a dozen companies that offer
cloud-based (Links to an external site.)
, performance management applications that focus on team
performance. These systems are designed to integrate with other
enterprise software systems.
1. An Explosion in Real-Time Engagement Evaluation
· Performance software now offers organizations near real-time

6. individual performance feedback called pulse-based feedback
systems. These systems are always on, allowing for rapid
feedback.
1. The Rise of People Analytics
· These systems offer advanced analytical solutions involving
reporting dashboards (Links to an external site.)
, predicative analytics (Links to an external site.)
, and the ability to identify possible retention issues and
promotions that would fit specific individuals, as well as who
not to promote to those positions.
1. Maturation of the Learning Market
· Existing legacy software (Links to an external site.)
systems (i.e., older HR programs) are being redesigned and
updated with revolutionary new releases. New learning
management systems (Links to an external site.)
are being designed to allow organizational users to enter the
system and look for classes that interest them and not just
register for assigned courses. The course offerings are data
driven per the individual’s needs to encourage participation and
enhance individual career development.
1. A New Landscape for Talent Acquisition
· Recruiting software has truly matured over the years. At one
point in the early years of recruiting software, they performed
as a repository of job applications that were word searchable.
Now systems allow users to interact with social media, conduct
pre-hire skills assessment, perform background checks, and
even psychological testing. Interviewing candidates can also be
conducted through the latest software.
1. The Growth of Contingent Workforce Management
· According to Bersin (2017), approximately 40% of today’s
workers are employed as contingent workers (Links to an
external site.)
. Most universities have a large contingent instructor base.
Many writers for magazines and websites are freelance
(contingent). We live in a gig-based society. Uber uses a
contingent workforce. The drivers are paid on a per job basis.

7. Software is available to help manage the large numbers of
contingent workers. The new software can assign jobs and
monitor performance. Again, think of Uber, you can rate your
driver, and your driver can rate the customer.
1. The Adoption of Team Management Tools
· Team management tools help groups collaborate and track
their work. These tools have real-time messaging and allow for
document sharing and editing. These tools are not strictly HR
related. But do help HR professionals do their daily job.
· You have powerful team tools available to you right now. For
instance, your student email portal is an advanced online
Microsoft cloud-based system. Using your account, you can
share and edit files in emails, or directly from OneDrive (Links
to an external site.)
, a cloud-based storage system. You can create a shared folder
in One Drive. Your Microsoft Office 2016 (Links to an external
site.)
team based tools can also perform other extremely advanced
functions. I do hope you are storing all your documents in
OneDrive. If your computer crashes, or you lose your phone, all
your files are safely stored online. You can retrieve your work
at any time, with any internet capable device.
1. A Wealth of Wellness Apps
· Health and wellness apps are expected to become highly
integrated into the HR process. Through different inputs and
analytical packages, HR will be able to monitor activity, how
happy employees are, and even how well they take care of
themselves. The outputs will allow HR to make improvements
on working conditions, improve productivity, and provide
nudges to employees to take better care of themselves, all while
helping advance their careers.
1. Accelerated Automated HR
· HR is expected to integrate Artificial Intelligence (Links to an
external site.)
(AI) into more and more systems as time passes. AI systems
such as Amazon’s Echo (Alexa) (Links to an external site.)

8. , Apple’s Siri (Links to an external site.)
, and Google’s Google Now (Links to an external site.)
voice recognition services could serve as the foundation for HR
customer service systems. The Artificial Intelligence systems
will streamline HR customer self-service features (Bersin,
2017).
For more information on trends in HRIS, I recommend you read
Josh Bersin’s article titled, Transformative Tech, A Disruptive
Year Ahead
(Links to an external site.)
(2017). The article can be found in the school’s library. The full
reference is in the reference section at the bottom of this page.
Use the advanced setting for the library’s search engine.
Author: Bersin, Title: Transformative Tech, A Disruptive Year
Ahead.
Tips for Course Success
During the course, you will not be learning how to use different
kinds of available software or even learning their trade names.
Rather, you will explore concepts in rather broad terms.
Because of the rapidly changing technological environment, you
may need to use contemporary sources, such as trade magazines
(e.g., Forbes or HR Today), instead of pure scholarly sources or
textbooks. Yes, you can even use Google to find the latest
trends in HR related technology. I encourage you to let the class
know what cool things you learn during your research.
By the time you read this, any technology I recommend may be
out of date when you take the course. Such is the rapid nature of
change in the HRIS field. Currently, technology is trending
away from HR customers having to login to the HR account on
their corporate computer, to using a mobile device, such as a
smartphone or tablet (Bersin, 2017). By the time this course
will come up for rewrite, there will be other new technologies
available that are presently unknown.
Search Terms
Below is a list of terms you may find useful in locating research
articles for the different discussions and assignments. The HRIS

9. field is in constant flux. There are many different terms that
may lead you to concepts you want to further explore for this
course. Do not let the wide array of vocabulary discourage you;
just embrace and celebrate our constant changing English
language as it tries desperately to catch up with emerging
technological trends. You are learning about a relatively new
field of study, so the terms have not completely settled yet. I
highly recommend you create a personal glossary.
· HCM: Human Capital Management, also known as, Talent
Management, or Human Resource Management
· HRIS: Human Resource Information Systems, also known as
HRMS
· HRM: Human Resource Management
· HRMS: Human Resource Management System, also known as
HRIS
· Talent Management, also known as Human Capital
Management
Conclusion
During this lecture, I defined HRIS, discussed current trends,
provided tips for success, and provided a short list of search
terms. As you can see, HRIS is a rapidly evolving discipline.
The industry changes too quickly for any single class to keep
up. So, I focused on providing you a broad set of concepts and
terms. Your job during this course is to read the textbook
carefully, then conduct research into contemporary trends, and
educate yourself on the topic using the most current information
possible. I truly hope you enjoy the course.
End Note
The provided Wikipedia links are for general information
overview and not for use as a scholarly reference.
References
Bersin, J. (2017). Transformative tech: A disruptive year ahead.
HR Magazine, 62(1), 29-36.
Kavanagh, M. J., Thite, M., & Johnson, R. D. (Eds.). (2015).
Human resource information systems: Basics, applications, and

10. future directions (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Robertson, B. J. (2015). Holacracy: The new management
system for a rapidly changing world. New York: Henry Holt and
Company.
ACCO1084
A few ideas for your essay
Due date: November 21, 2018, 3pm
You have to read!
Module handbook pp.16-18
It is your responsibility to read these diligently and comply with
the requirements stated there!
Use the information given to you!
Essay topic
“Does management accounting need to be ethical?”
–
Based on findings from academic and practitioner literature,
discuss whether management accounting should be open to the
possibility that decisions based on accounting numbers may be
at odds with ethical behaviour.
Set article
Set article: Francis, J. (1990), “After virtue? Accounting as a
moral and discursive practice”, Accounting, Auditing and
Accountability Journal, Vol.3, Iss.3, pp.5-17.
This is available via Moodle (linked to electronic database)
You HAVE TO USE this article (in-text and list of references –

11. not forced!)
Key features & advice
Word count 1,000 words (+/-10%)
Not descriptive – you need to discuss!
Harvard Referencing
Minimum four academic journal articles used (set article
included)
Practitioners literature use encouraged (does not count against
four academic journal articles!)
Wikipedia and similar are NOT allowed!
Be careful! – Avoid penalties!Penalties if criteria set out above
are not metMarks deductedSet article only listed in
bibliography, but not used in-text (this includes use that looks
"forced")- 10%Set article not used at all (neither in
bibliography, nor in-text)- 15%No referencing at all- 70% (i.e.
straight fail)Not used a minimum of four academic articles-
10%Forgot to add word count- 5%Not formatted as required
(see above)- 5%Using the first or second person (“I, we, you”)-
5%Not used Harvard Referencing style- 25%
Support available to you
Library support as detailed in the lecture on September 27
(slides available on Moodle as PDF)
Essay pro-forma (optional) available on Moodle for advice from
your seminar tutor (deadline Oct 15, 5pm – by email to your
tutor)
Essay surgery seminar Nov 8 (short 1-2-1 appointments)
Essay lecture Nov 8 (last minute advice)

12. Some advice on planning and writing your essay
Answering the question
A lot of information – but is the question answered?
Don’t rush into researching straight away – make sure you know
what to research!
Is the question closed or open-ended?
Make sure to be selective – what are you looking at, and what
are you excluding?
Set the question in context – how does it fit?
Answering the question
Identify key words and key phrases
Re-read the question to make sure to stay on track
Your essay should be a coherent discussion, not a string of
unrelated information
Break it down into sub-questions
Generating ideas
Note down initial thoughts, themes
What do you know already?
What do you still need to research (gaps)?
Predict the conclusion – where are you headed?
Mind-map your themes
What are you arguments/points? How do they relate to one
another?
Is your preliminary conclusion changing? Why?
Plan your essay
Structure your essay – bring it into a coherent line of arguments

13. Always ask: Will the reader understand what I am saying?
Don’t hold yourself up finding the right expressions at this
stage – this is for writing
Stick to the point – don’t stray
Link your material to the points you are trying to make
Structure
Introduction: Address the question, show why it’s interesting,
how will you answer it
Main body: Build your arguments, put your groups of ideas in a
sequence to make a persuasive argument, one main point in each
paragraph
Conclusion: Summarise your arguments and evidence, and
ANSWER THE QUESTION!
Planning methods
Spider diagrams/Mind map/visual plans
Bullet points/linear plans
If you know it’ll be too many words (or suspect as much), here
is the point to cut down on points you want to make. Ask
yourself: Are they all adding value?
No plan is perfect – prepare to be flexible
Writing your essay
At this stage, you have a plan, a structure, the main reading
done, your arguments laid out, and an idea where you are
headed
But be prepared to change bits and pieces, return to reading,
find new literature, as you go along
Introduction and conclusion

14. Provide the conceptual framework the reader will need to
understand your arguments
Sets the scene and summarises the findings
What do they need to know in the beginning so they become
interested in your essay?
What is the main message you want to leave the reader with?
Writing your introduction
It gives your reader a way in, like consulting a map before a
journey
What is the question about? What is your interpretation?
Why is it important?
How are you going to answer it?
If you want/need to narrow it down, this is where you do this
Main body
Develop ideas and arguments
Use transitional words, link points to one another
Integrate your ideas with the evidence, support your arguments
Don’t waste your time (and word count) on definitions
Write one main point per paragraph (like a mini-essay)
Keep your eyes on the question – how do your points relate to
the topic/question?
Get started
Start with preliminary introduction – but good authors write the
final introduction last!
In the main body, start with the paragraph you feel most
confident about. It does not have to be the first one!
Is it a coherent line of arguments leading from A to Z?
Conclusion

15. Captures the essence of your discussion
Summarises the main points and relates these back to the
question
Do not bring in new arguments here!
Outline your reasoned judgement based on the evidence and
discussion before – what is your answer to the question?
The reader should not be left with confusion or questions, but a
clear view on the topic
What do to last
Proof-reading (grammar)
Spell-checking
No first person, second person, “newspaper” expressions, lingo,
etc.
Checking if you would be able to explain your points if asked
Hardly if any direct quotes, secondary references, rhetorical
questions