Human Resource Information Systems: A Current Assessment

Human resource information systems (HRIS) have become a major MIS subfunction within the personnel areas of many large corporations. This article traces the development of HRIS as an entity independent of centralized MIS, assesses its current operation and technological base, and considers its future role in the firm, especially its relationship to the centralized MIS function. The results of a survey of HRIS professionals from 171 U.S. corporations are described in order to provide an overview of the current design, operation, and effectiveness of HRIS. The findings of the survey are discussed in terms of their implications for management of human resource information systems.