Opening Address by Senior Minister of State for Manpower Mr Zaqy Mohamad at the Enabling Business and Workforce Transformation through HR Technology virtual event

Senior Minister of State for Manpower, Mr Zaqy Mohamad , Virtual

Dr Robert Yap, President of the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF), 
Mr Tan Choon Shian, Chief Executive of Workforce Singapore (WSG),
CEOs, HR leaders, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.

1. Good morning. Thank you for inviting me to the HR Tech Transformation Programme or HRTTP share back session organised by SNEF and WSG. 

Accelerated digitalisation of HR to enable business and workplace transformation

2. COVID-19 has radically changed the way we work. It’s wonderful to see all of us here on webinars. This has become very commonplace, as we’ve learnt to adapt to the various SMMs, and many of us now work from home. With the need to maintain business operations remotely, companies have had to accelerate the adoption of technology. Businesses have also incorporated digital and automation capabilities as a critical part of their business model and processes.
 
3. HR professionals, being key enablers of business and workplace transformation, have quickened the pace of digitalising HR processes. This is driven by new technologies such as artificial technology, robotics, and the Internet of Things.

4. The HR Jobs Transformation Map, which was launched last year, highlights how technology is redefining business models and jobs. In fact, we anticipate that up to 90 percent of HR jobs will be affected in the coming years. 

5. HR Tech can thus serve as a catalyst for HR professionals to deliver strategic value to the business. This is where HR professionals can enhance their value proposition to their organisations by acquiring key skills such as digital acumen to better use data to understand business needs and improve HR decisions. HR job roles and processes also need to be redesigned to reap the full benefits of HR tech solutions. 

Launch of HR Tech Transformation Programme

6. To help businesses ride the wave of HR transformation, WSG introduced the pilot HRTTP in March 2020. The HRTTP aims to support the adoption of HR tech solutions through process re-engineering, redesigning of jobs, and change management. To-date, 10 companies across sectors have benefited from the pilot and achieved good outcomes, such as productivity savings and the adoption of higher-value job roles.

7. Following the successful pilot, I am pleased to announce the launch of the HRTTP, which will be scaled up to support 50 companies, benefitting over 250 workers. We will continue to assess the programme, and if suitable, scale it up further to allow more companies and workers to benefit in future. 
 
8. Let me share the story of Fei Siong Food Management, an SME that participated in the pilot HRTTP: 
a. With support from the HRTTP, the HR team created bilingual learning modules via a mobile platform. 
b. Bite-sized modules were designed to make it easier for employees who may not be digitally savvy. An example is the administration of self-swab tests which many Fei Siong employees undergo regularly. Employees were able to access the learning modules on-the-go, and abide by COVID-19 SOPs in a timely and efficient manner.

9. Fei Siong also reviewed the way courses were delivered. Instead of conducting physical one-on-one briefings and post-training guidance for outlet staff, trainers can now conduct these sessions via mobile. 
a. This means that Fei Siong can roll out training modules to more employees in a shorter time frame. 

10. By reducing manual training and administrative tasks, Fei Siong saved about 50 percent of the time spent on staff training. The time savings were channeled into enhancing learning effectiveness and driving new learning initiatives.  

11. Another pilot company which benefited from the programme is LS 2 Services. The company utilised Jot-form, a cost-effective online form creator, and the OneDrive cloud storage platform, to digitise its performance management and HR administrative processes. 
a. This reduced their reliance on hardcopy HR documents like appraisal and leave forms. 
b. Employee experience was also improved as employees are now able to submit HR documents conveniently via their mobile devices.
c. About 60 percent of the time savings were channelled towards value-added tasks to improve the performance management process. 
d. The HR Manager’s role was redesigned with enhanced performance data analysis responsibilities. It is now better placed to identify and drive initiatives for employee development and performance. As you can see, HR Tech is not just for large companies; SMEs are also adopting such technologies to drive greater productivity. 

Launch of HR Job Redesign Toolkit 

12. I am also pleased to announce the launch of the HR Job Redesign toolkit by WSG and SNEF. It is an interactive self-help tool to guide companies in their job redesign efforts. 
a. Enterprises will learn job redesign methodology and change management through templates. 
b. HR professionals will better understand the type of technological tools that can be applied to suit different HR practices. 
c. I encourage all of you to try out the toolkit, which is available on SNEF’s website from today. 

Conclusion

13. With that, I urge business and HR leaders to champion HR technology adoption and continue to upskill your HR teams. Let us all work together to build a future-ready HR team, and drive business and workforce transformation. I wish you all a fruitful session ahead. Thank you!