Strategic HR Review

Employee selfservice at RDF

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To cite this document:
, (2005),"Employee self#service at RDF", Strategic HR Review, Vol. 4 Iss 6 pp. 4 - 4
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/14754390580000823

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, e-HR
How technology is changing the way HR works

Employee self-service at RDF

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ounded in 1993, RDF Media is one

of the UKs leading independent
television production companies.
Staffing levels at RDF can vary
significantly, depending on the number
of programs commissioned. The
organization has 120 permanent staff,
with an additional 200-300 on fixedterm contracts.
RDF needed a system that could
quickly generate tailored employment
contracts on demand and let employees
update their own data in a secure
environment. The HR team wanted to
free-up time spent on paper-based
administration and create the ability to
view up-to-date personnel records that
remote employees can amend even
while away filming on location.
Julie Hirsch, director of HR at RDF
Media, says, Our key objective was to
streamline the HR processes and have an
HR system which would be more useful
in helping us manage our large number
of fixed-term contract workers. We
wanted a system that was easy to use,
that would enable our people to keep
their own records up-to-date and one
that could be branded with our
company logos to create a sense of
corporate identity. We also wanted it to
generate common sense reports and be
flexible to future customization.

Encouraging self service

In April 2004 RDF partnered with HR
software providers Snowdrop to begin
replacing its employee records database
and installing new software that
encouraged, rather than just allowed,
employees to update their own records.
The previous system was deemed old
fashioned and difficult to use. It placed

an administrative burden on the threestrong HR team as they had to input

each change individually to meet legal
requirements in terms of data protection.
The software implemented for
personnel records management and the
web-enabled self-service tool allow
employees to access and add to their
personal data such as sick days and
holiday requests.

RDF MEDIA
Founded in 1993, RDF Media is one of
Britains leading independent television
production companies. It produces
popular shows including Wife Swap and
Faking It. In May 2005, it successfully
floated on the AIM stock market.
updates. This provided a quick
introduction to using the software.

Customizing the new system

To accommodate RDFs use of
contractors and part-time workers, the
Snowdrop system was customized so
different types of employment contract
could be generated. As the tool is webbased, strict security settings were also
added to protect employee information.
The system was also branded in line with
RDFs company image to maintain its
corporate identity (see Figure 1, below).
A log-in process was built to prompt
new users to change their details. When
each employee logged on to the
system, an automatic e-mail was
generated, requesting changes or

Freeing HR time

The new system eliminates the need for

traditional paper-based processes.
Previously, staff had to fill out forms to
request holidays, which would then
need to be manually entered on to the
system by the HR team.
Julie Hirsch comments, The new
system has released the HR team from
some of the more time-consuming and
tedious tasks. It really came into its own
when the company was recently
preparing to float; as a public company,
we were able to produce very
comprehensive reports required in the
due diligence process at
Figure 1. RDF Medias web-based employee self-service tool
the touch of a button. Once
a report has been set up, the
data in the report is
constantly refreshed as any
changes are made to
individual records on the
main database.
The software has been
welcomed by everyone in
the business. Our people
find it easy to use and feel
its a good way to keep their
personal data in order,
despite hectic filming
schedules.

Volume 4 Issue 6 September/October 2005

Melcrum Publishing Ltd. 2005 For more information visit www.melcrum.com or e-mail info@melcrum.com