When a new ERP system is implemented the Human Resources (HR) and Payroll (PR) areas can do a lot of preparation activities in their existing Human Resources Information System (HRIS) to help the information pass data integrity audits and be correct for migration into the new ERP.

The Human Resources and Payroll area of an ERP system can have influence over thousands of fields of important information and therefore are responsible to ensure that the information is accurate and in the correct format that the field requires.  Listed below are some items that the HR and PR departments can do to prepare their system to do well on data integrity audits and to prepare it for migration to the new ERP system.

1. Make sure all names are in the proper format – not all UPPERCASE and not all lowercase, but use proper case for names.  For example: Brad N. White is the proper way a payroll name should display in the HRIS system.  Of course, make sure the name matches exactly as it is on the Social Security Card or whatever legal documentation the employee uses to prove their citizenship. 
2. Address fields (like street and city) should always have the words spelled out unless you are short on space in the field.  If space is limited then have standards created for each abbreviation and make sure that if the word is not spelled out properly that it fits the abbreviation standard.  For example: Dr. for Drive or St. for Street.   
3. Social Security Numbers should always be unique in an HRIS system. No two employees should have the same Social Security Number and dependents should not have the same Social Security Number as their parent who’s the employee.   Export all the Social Security Number fields and dump them into Microsoft Access to ensure there are no duplicate use of the same number.
4. All employees (both active and terminated) should have a unique employee id number as well as have only one record in the HRIS and especially in the benefit enrollment area, regardless if they’ve held 7 positions in the company. Audit the information carefully to ensure this is the case.  Duplicate records can throw off the accuracy of headcount reports.
5. Audit your employee’s dependents to ensure that they are still eligible for benefits per the age requirements established in the new Obama Health Care Reform Act.  Also verify that they have the current student status and disability status if applicable. 
6. Verify that the annual salary and the payroll processing periods’ pay rates add up to be the same.  If there are discrepancies revert back to the Personnel Action Form to see which one is the approved (and therefore accurate) one to use.  Have whichever area of the system that is not correct be corrected by the appropriate department. 
7. Run data comparison reports between HR information and PR information and compare the information using formulas in Excel.  Highlight and research areas which do not have the same information.  Have the appropriate people fix the necessary information. 
8. Last, but certainly not least is to export all of the fields in the HRIS system and do random checks for missing or obviously inaccurate data.  For example: if someone is active and there is no pay rate you will want to highlight that field and research the correct rate and have the PR team populate it. 

It is always a good practice to have system responsibilities for Human Resources which are different from those of the Payroll team.  This not only helps ensure data integrity, but also adds a layer of control to prevent a fake employee being created and paid by someone without payroll’s knowledge.  Most systems automate the functions of feeding HR information into PR fields, so it is important that the HRIS team is accurate and timely with information to avoid someone getting underpaid and resulting in having to issue back pay or a manual check.