Many entrepreneurs have experienced the need for an app that would enable them to efficiently complete human resources-related tasks such as calculating employee salaries and income tax, managing personal staff data, paying for employees’ health coverage, and keeping track of employee attendance, said Afia Fitriati, CEO and cofounder of Gadjian app.

Gadjian, a homegrown, cloud-based payroll app, has seen a steady increase in enterprise users over the years as SMEs seek to streamline their human resources (HR) department.

“Calculating salaries is a complicated task because there are weekly salaries, daily salaries, monthly salaries and overtime pay. If done manually, it would take a long time. Our app aims to increase efficiency in the workplace so that the HR department may be able to focus on more pressing issues like the development of employees’ capabilities,” Afia said recently.

The start-up, founded three years ago in Bandung, West Java, has amassed clients from various fields of entrepreneurship.

“Various enterprises have used our app, including cafes, boutiques and manufacturing businesses,” Afia said. “We set out to gain 100,000 clients by next year.”

Afia, who previously worked for a fashion e-commerce platform, said she believed demand for HR-related software would only increase in the next several years as more SMEs recognized the need for digital solutions to HR issues.

“This is our third year. The challenges have mainly stemmed from our own work culture, which discourages HR personnel from trying out new digital solutions. Meanwhile, HR departments in developed countries are already used to experimenting with new software that could help them improve work efficiency,” she said.

SMEs have been touted as one of the primary drivers of national economic growth. According to the Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Ministry, 60 million SMEs are expected to collectively contribute 60.34 percent of the country’s gross domestic product by the end of this year. Furthermore, the ministry also found that the sector represents 97 percent of the nation’s workforce.

The Gadjian app, which was previously only available on Android devices, is now accessible as desktop software. Afia said she had ensured that both versions of Gadjian would prioritize ease of use.

Customers of the Gadjian app are charged Rp 20,000 (US$ 1.43) per user every month, a significantly lower price compared to other, more conventional HR software, according to Afia.

“Traditional HR software typically charge Rp 100 million for 100 users. They’re not exactly a viable option,” she said, adding that the Gadjian app used the United States-based Amazon Web Services for cloud storage.

Afia went on to say that although Gadjian was a cloud-based app, vital information uploaded by its users would remain confidential.

Rifaatun Miladina, a finance department representative of Homservis.com, said digitizing some administration work within the HR function of her company had been very helpful to save time and energy for more productive work.

“It’s very helpful, especially when it comes to calculating employee salary and general accounting,” she said. (rfa)

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