The Evolution of the Field of Human Resource Information Systems: Co-Evolution of Technology and HR Processes

In this paper, we review the professional and academic development of the human resource information systems (HRIS) field to assess its progress and suggest ways for moving research forward. To do so, we examine the interplay between the evolution of technology and the HR field through four key eras of technology: 1) mainframe, 2) client server, 3) ERP and Web-based systems, and 4) cloud-based systems. In each era, we discuss how HR practices and requirements drove the need for the use of these systems and how these systems allowed the HR field to evolve. In addition, we trace the HRIS subfield and its relation to the technological evolutions occurring in the HR field. Somewhat surprisingly, we found that much of the research on the use of technology to support HR has occurred only in the last 15-20 years as a response to the use of the Web as a medium for delivering HRIS. We conclude by discussing how scholars from the information systems and human resources fields can come together to help advance HRIS.