New software to replace outdated public personnel IT system

THE Department of public administration and personnel on Friday said it plans to replace its two decades old IT system and that it was open for consultation on a draft tender worth more than €500,000.

Expected to be announced next month with a value of €512,000 plus VAT, department chief Kypros Kyprianou said the new system was aimed at improving better management of leave and working hours.

“Apart from the fact that it will be Windows-based and more user-friendly, it should give us more options such as quick and easy access to information on how well working hours are recorded and any types of leave,” whether for sick leave or holiday, he said.

The data will be stored electronically and no longer handwritten, allowing management and staff to see how much overtime work they’ve accumulated or how much leave they are entitled to.

According to Kyprianou, the new system will also make it easier to spot excessive leave as the current IT system has plenty of limitations.

Dated from the 1990s, the software is outdated, he said and the replacement should save time, particularly from dealing with handwritten forms.

The move is part of a broader enterprise resource planning (ERP) system which allows organisations to integrate various functions into one system.

Kyprianou said this system would also be implemented in the Treasury and would concern personnel matters such as payroll, benefits and overtime.

He added the E-Oasis system which aims to reduce the use of paper in the state sector would be rolled out to all ministries, and that the finance and foreign ministries are already using the system.

Once staff is trained it will be implemented, Kyprianou said, adding it is also currently used at the presidential palace and the customs department.

Savings are huge when considering the time it takes to find a folder, file it, move it and store it, he said.

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