‘Global professionals’ ease HRS transition

This story is part of an ongoing series about the people behind HRS.

There are few people on campus with more knowledge of the existing human resources system than Becky Zuba.

That’s why Zuba, a human resources manager at the School of Veterinary Medicine for nearly 26 years, is part of a group working to help guide, advise and train colleagues in how to work with the new Human Resources System, known as HRS, which will launch this spring.

“I was in this role before the current antiquated mainframe-based system was developed,” Zuba says.

Zuba is part of a group of human resources managers from across the UW System dubbed “global professionals” who have been spending the last year and a half developing a comprehensive knowledge of HRS. UW–Madison’s global professionals are drawn from the central human resources office, as well as the deans’ and directors’ offices at some of the university’s schools, colleges and administrative units.

In addition to learning how HRS works, the group has tested all components of the new system and provided feedback so that it will work efficiently when it launches, Zuba says.

So far, the global professionals like what they see, with excitement about the system rolling out to campus overtaking any skepticism about a new way of doing business.

“There is a high level of enthusiasm in the global professional group,” Zuba says. “There were many times when folks literally cheered as we completed the steps to pull up the HRS screen and see that our ‘test employee’ got paid as scheduled and was enrolled in all the selected benefit programs.”

Zuba says she expects the hundreds of users across campus to feel the same enthusiasm once they begin to learn HRS and use it every day.

“Maybe expecting people to cheer may be too much, but if new users of the system are able to get their jobs done a little easier and without frustration while in learning mode, then it will be a success,” she says.

Training is starting to ramp up for those who will use HRS. UW–Madison’s global professionals will complete their training by the mid–March, while other deans’ and directors’ office staff will complete online training in the next month.

Staff in academic departments are set to start their online training in March, with the goal of having all training completed by the expected system launch in April.

Zuba says she’s most looking forward to using a system that’s highly functional and comprehensive while still being easy to use. Employees will also like having more access to up-to-date information on their payroll, benefits and leave benefits, she says.

“It will be much easier to hire and train new employees to work in this system, as it is much more intuitive than the current system,” she says. “Employees will be able to look up a lot of information that they previously had to go to the HR or payroll office to request.”