5 Things to Look For In an HR Case Management System for Education

A survey recently found that 83% of HR leaders say that HR technology helps them be more flexible and responsive to the constantly evolving world of work. Whether it’s dealing with remote or hybrid employees or adapting to new legislation, your institution needs a modern case management system that fits with its current size and processes.

Whether you’ve never used case management software before or want to replace your old system, knowing where to start can feel daunting. In this guide, you’ll find five features you should look for when choosing the best case management software for the education industry HR to fit your organization.

1. Web-Based Platform

Does your HR staff work remotely or in a hybrid capacity? If so, remote access to your HR cases is essential. Even in-office teams can benefit from a web-based platform. This feature allows team members to add details, evidence and files and check on a case’s progress from anywhere, at any time.

As a result, employees can work from home or while traveling, or even just ensure important information doesn’t fall through the cracks between an interview room and their office. A mobile-friendly platform that works well on all devices is ideal for actioning urgent tasks as well.

RELATED: Enterprise-Wide Case Management: Why It’s Best for Your Business

2. Human Resource Information System Integration

Having to manually type or copy/paste employee information into case files is tedious, leaves room for error and simply isn’t an efficient use of time. HR teams rarely have a minute to spare, especially at larger institutions. Save your team time and effort by choosing case management software that integrates with your existing HRIS or employee database, like Case IQ.

The best HR case management software for educational institutions automatically populates case files with relevant employee information (e.g., name, department, job title, employment type). Once you’ve integrated your HRIS with your case management tool, filling in the details a case file, whether it’s set up by an HR team member or submitted through a reporting mechanism by an employee, takes just a few seconds.

3. Data-Driven Reporting

Not sure where to focus your training efforts and policies? A case management system that analyzes your case data to spot trends and areas of risk in your institution can help. Sorting through that data takes a lot of work and time, and your team could miss an important insight. Choose a case management system with reporting capabilities to do the analysis for you.

Your education industry HR case management software should have reporting tools to create custom pie charts, graphs, heat maps and more. With Case IQ, you’ll be able to sort data by complaint type, location, case age, settlement status or any other aspect you want to analyze.

RELATED: 4 Ways to Make Better Data-Driven Decisions with Case Management Software

4. Secure Collaboration

HR cases often aren’t confined to the HR department. You may need to collaborate with other campuses, the compliance office, campus security or police, the IT team, or external experts to gather all the information you need to resolve a case. At the same time, keeping that information confidential is a top priority.

Your ideal case management system should give you the best of both worlds. Choose software with role-based access, which allows you to manage what cases and information each team member can edit and view.

In addition, look for a system (like Case IQ) that’s hosted on a secure centralized database. Rather than sending sensitive data through email or paper files, team members can collaborate right in the secure platform.

RELATED: Intake, Management and Reporting: How to Streamline Each Phase of Case Management

5. Excellent ROI

Case management software is a big investment for your organization, so you don’t want to take the decision lightly. The right system can help your institution save time and money by reducing administrative work, meaning your HR team can resolve more cases in less time, with fewer staff members.

Effective case management software can also help you avoid fines and lawsuits, as well as reputation damage for your institution. When your team addresses cases quickly, thoroughly and in compliance with relevant regulations and laws, your employees feel safe, and you avoid negative consequences.

Incidents such as harassment, discrimination, safety concerns and employee misconduct affect more than just those directly involved. They can disrupt the overall school environment, affecting students, other employees and the institution as a whole.

Education HR teams need tools specifically built to support comprehensive incident investigations. The data provided by an effective, efficient case management platform like Case IQ offers institution-wide visibility, guiding your organization’s leaders to take steps to prevent future incidents.