Following the introduction of new technology within your department and subsequent changes to traditional structures and patterns of working a number of staff have approached you on separate occasions complaining of work-related stress. Further investigation has uncovered low morale within the department and higher than average absenteeism. You have been asked by your line manager to review the factors which may have contributed to this situation (drawing on the literature regarding organisational design and the workforce) and develop proposals to address the existing situation.

One year review of implementation of Human Resource and Payroll System Status Strictly Confidential 1. Introduction This report assesses the impact of the implementation of a Human Resource Information and Payroll Management System (CHRIPS) on the Human Resources Directorate from an organisational development perspective. The system was introduced into the Trust a year ago. This report was commissioned following concerns raised within the HR Directorate regarding stress and poor morale caused by the introduction of the CHRIPS.

2. Background to CHRIPS implementation The new CHRIPS went live in the trust 12 months ago, following a full procurement process and a significant development phase, which included training for all HR and payroll staff. During the test phase a comprehensive risk assessment and contingency plan was developed. As part of this process it was agreed to “double-run” the new processes, whereby HR staff input data onto the computer system, whilst maintaining the paper forms which were sent to payroll for checking and re-entry if necessary. The reporting lines, roles and responsibilities within the HR Directorate have changed to reflect the utilisation of the CHRIPS.

It was agreed by the CHRIPS Project Board that “double-running” should stop three months ago, but that the position would be kept under review over the next 15 months. A review, three months after implementation, showed that approximately 10 percent of transactions resulted in queries or errors. However, after nine months this figure had reduced to approximately 3 percent and the Project Board agreed this level as satisfactory. It was noted that there is no information available to indicate how many queries or errors occur with the old system. The level of errors has increased to 41/2 per cent in the past month.

The primary reason for purchasing a new system was to improve the efficiency of payroll transactions. Dawson (1996) defined efficiency as “the amount of resources used to produce a unit of output”. The actual cost of the system is less than was paid for the old system, with the staffing costs remaining the same. Therefore, the Project Board can demonstrate to the Trust Board that efficiency has been improved. The trust is a District General Hospital, providing acute care services to the local population with a workforce of 4,200 staff.