The impact of cannabis in the workplace

Cannabis can affect an employee’s occupational capacity in various ways – Read more.

Embracing workforce transformation in a digital world

Workforce transformation affects all aspects of business and companies must plan for the impact it is having and will continue to have on operations.

Flexi-hours deliver efficiency improvements

With a flexible schedule allowing employees to work hours that differ from the conventional company start and stop time, Nicol Myburgh, Head of the HR Business Unit at CRS Technologies, says this approach has had a significant positive impact in the South African market.

The role of the stokvel in the organisation

South Africans are well-known for their participation in stokvel saving schemes where members contribute a fixed monthly amount that is paid out to a specific member on a specified date.

The importance of enterprise solutions in a digital world

The rapidly evolving digital landscape in South Africa is seeing larger organisations focus more on optimising their business processes and improving cost efficiencies to remain competitive.

Dealing with mental issues in the workplace

The use of anti-depressants in South Africa has increased by more than 50% over the last five years.

Onboarding a vital element for employee retention

Simply having an onboarding process for new employees is no longer good enough.

Why choose enterprise solutions?

Even though solutions designed for small to medium businesses (SMBs) are cost-effective and relatively easy to implement, they do not meet the scalability and capacity requirements needed for the enterprise. Ian McAlister, General Manager at CRS Technologies, argues that large organisations should steer clear of going the SMB route and instead opt for solutions that best fit their needs.

“An advanced business environment necessitates a more strategic approach. This requires enterprise-class solutions that empower decision-makers to harness the growth potential that exists for the business. The limited scope and functionality of an SMB offering can cause more challenges that could end up costing the business considerably more in the long run,” he says.

Take payroll, for example.

The payroll and human resources requirements of an enterprise are considerably more advanced than that of an SMB with fewer than ten staff members. The latter can be easily managed by the owner or an accountant with a cursory knowledge of how payroll works. Additionally, the cloud environment might only extend to having online access to data, backups of important files, and basic analysis of work performance.

On the other end of the spectrum, an enterprise with hundreds and even thousands of employees requires solutions capable of time management, leave policies, salaries and wage analysis on departmental performance and so on. Even at a glance, this level of sophistication means a true enterprise cloud-based payroll environment would be worlds apart from what an SMB requires for its success.

“Decision-makers at an enterprise level must ask themselves how advanced their business environment is when compared to that of an SMB. The latter requires only a basic technology experience while the former relies on sophisticated technologies that include artificial intelligence, machine-learning, and real-time data analytics. Also, from a support perspective, an enterprise must have access to round-the-clock assistance in the event of a crisis, whereas an SMB can get away with a service provider who only delivers assistance during office hours,” McAlister continues.

Additionally, enterprises must deal with complex issues around corporate governance especially when it comes to data management. Most SMB offerings take a very simplistic approach to backup and storage and are not robust enough to deliver compliance for the enterprise. This also applies to data protection policies. Smaller organisations rely on the public cloud for their needs, but an enterprise requires either a private or hybrid cloud environment with the integrated security needed to safeguard its data.

“When it comes to scalability and integration with existing solutions, the enterprise must be able to leverage local and international expansion support that extends to multiple currencies and tax tables, things SMB offerings simply cannot do. Furthermore, an enterprise offering is bespoke and features the employee self-service capabilities required that are not possible with an off-the-shelf SMB solution.”

McAlister says organisations must focus on putting enterprise solutions in place that suit their specific internal needs, irrespective of industry sector.

“Building a successful organisation revolves around more than business acumen and strategic drivers. A fundamental technology platform built on enterprise-class scalability and support is a crucial component if a large company is to be competitive in this rapidly evolving digital market,” he concludes.

To read more about this topic, click here to download our free White Paper ‘Choosing the right software for your enterprise or small business.’

Unlimited leave can transform local business

Even though unlimited leave is not a new concept internationally, the news that a local specialist banking group has embraced it has raised a few eyebrows.

Understanding what makes software enterprise-ready

Irrespective of whether it is enterprise application software (EAS) or software-as-a-service (SaaS), an enterprise-focused approach is fundamental to business success in the digital world.