Learning to use an HRIS Report Writer - I have seen that many people who are trained on using a report writer are apprehensive to do so. Report Writing programs, such as Crystal, which many of the systems use, have a reputation of being difficult to work with and to learn. I actually don't think this is the case.

If you have not done report writing in another system, the first thing you need to understand is the logic of report writing and how database files and fields react with each other. When performing report writing training, I always tried to make sure the students understood the logic first. I would not allow them to take notes during this part of the discussion. More than a few students were not happy about this but I am confident in my methods. Once you get the logic, writing reports is pretty easy and I actually think fun. Here's my report writing logic. Report writers are stupid. You have to tell them everything they need to do. They assume nothing and they don't think.

The first thing you need to do is determine which database contains the fields you will need within your report. Most systems will come with a database dictionary that will provide this detail. Then you will select the fields you want in your report. From here, you determine grouping, sorting and totals. This is all pretty simple stuff.

Here's the tricky part. At this point the report query is pulling all information from the database. If you are running a turnover log, for example, you have not told the stupid report writer that you only want terminated employees in your report. The same thing is true if you only want to run a report for active employees; you must tell the report writer to do so. If you only want employees with a birthday in June, you will have to filter your database to only include these options.

The biggest problem I have seen after people receive training on a report writer is that they don't jump in and use the new knowledge and two months down the road, when they need a report, they forgot what they learned. If you find this article helpful, you may also want to read our article on HRIS System Software Training Options.

Extra Tip on Report Writer Training

When implementing a new human resources software application, you are going to have your hands full. I recommend waiting two to three months after you have implemented the software to receive training on the report writing software. At this point, you will understand far more about the fields your system contains and the pros and cons of the standard reports offered.

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