An assessment of human resource information systems on service delivery in Kenyan Universities: a comparative study of public and private Universities

Abstract

Service Delivery is one of the key functions of any organization that is involved in Human Resource Management activities. This is clearly illustrated by the numerous strategies that organisations are putting in place in order to satisfy demands of their customers. One such strategy that has gained popularity in many organisations is the entry of Human Resource Information Systems. Even though most of these strategies have propelled organisations in fulfilling their objectives, little information exists on HRIS in Kenya. This study therefore examined the effects of HRIS on Service Delivery in Kenyan Public and Private Universities. The study objectives were to: examine the HRIS used in the Universities; assess the effects of HRIS on Service Delivery; establish the challenges associated with the usage of HRIS and explore appropriate strategies for sustained usage of HRIS on Service Delivery. The study used sequential explanatory Research Design. The targeted population was drawn from Departments of Human Resource, ICT and Finance from the two Universities totaling to 88 employees. These three departments were purposively selected since they are involved with HR matters. Since the target population was small the entire population selected using census technique. Questionnaires and interview schedule developed by the researcher were used as data collection instruments and techniques respectively. Collected data was subjected to SPSS computer package and then analyzed descriptively and presented in terms of tables, charts and graphs. Arising from research findings from the two institutions, HRIS was found to be commonly used for payroll and record management. The findings revealed that there were a number of benefits associated with adoption of HRIS which included easy access of staff information, improved data management, and improved data input process among others. It was also noted that application of HRIS was hampered by numerous challenges although with appropriate strategies these could be mitigated upon. Despite the investment of HRIS in the surveyed universities, there is tremendous amount of unrealized HRIS potential in services delivery. Therefore, there is need to diversify the use of HRIS in the universities. This will enable the Universities to efficiently and effectively run Human Resource Management matters.