Employee Assistance
Ava's Employee Assistance is available for use with Unit4 ERPx.
Note: Employee Assistance is currently available for early adopters only.
What is Employee Assistance?
Employee Assistance is an automated solution dedicated to supporting you in all HR-related tasks, such as absences or balances, using chat messages. You can submit requests from any device or application, without having to search for or log in to the HR system.
What are the current capabilities of Employee Assistance?
Ava can currently help you with:
- Requesting an absence
- Checking your balance
- Retrieving your absence list
- Updating your absence
- Deleting your absence
How can I use Ava to request an absence and check my balance?
To request an absence
1. Start a chat with Ava
- Open Ava in Microsoft Teams.
- Type a natural language request, such as:
| Examples |
|---|
| I’d like to take vacation from March 10 to March 15 |
| Request sick leave for tomorrow |
| I’m feeling unwell and won’t be able to work today |
| I’d like to request tomorrow off |
| I’m planning to be off tomorrow |
2. Provide required details
Mandatory
- Start and end dates of the absence.
- Absence type (vacation, sick leave).
Optional
- Position ID or additional notes.
3. Confirm your request
- Ava will summarise your request and ask for confirmation.
- Review the details and confirm.
Note: If Ava cannot process your request due to missing details, you will be guided to correct the input.
4. Monitor status
- Use Ava or the Absences (XPS100) window to check approval status.
To check your balance
1. Start a chat with Ava
- Open Ava in Microsoft Teams.
- Type a simple question, such as:
| Examples |
|---|
| What is my annual leave balance? |
| How many vacation days do I have left? |
2. View your balance
Ava will display:
- Remaining days for each balance type (sick leave, annual leave).
- Additional balances linked to your position (if applicable).
Note: Balances are configured in ERPx under the Value references (TLG021) and Employee balances (TPR055) windows.
How can I use Ava to display my absences?
Ava enables you to quickly and easily view your absences using natural language. You can check past and upcoming absences, as well as requests that are pending approval. You can ask a wide range of questions including terms like tomorrow, last week, last year, next year, for example:
| Examples |
|---|
| Can you show me my list of absences? |
| Can you show me my absences for this year? |
| Can you show me my absences for this month? |
| Could you list all approved and pending absences? |
| I want to see the list of absences from last year |
| I want to see my absence history |
| Please retrieve my leave records |
To view your absence list:
- Open your chat with Ava in Microsoft Teams.
- Type your question or request.
- Ava retrieves your absence data and provides the information you requested.
Note: When you search for absences, we recommend that you specify date ranges instead of using all my past absences or absences from last year until next year. This will help Ava to identify easily the desired dates and prevent misunderstanding on the conversation.
How can I use Ava to edit my absences?
You can use Ava to update your existing absence requests using natural language, for example:
| Examples |
|---|
| I want to modify an existing absence |
| I need to change the details of an already recorded absence |
| Edit the absence I have created for March 7 |
| Update the dates of my absence from 10 April to 15 April 2026 |
| Change the period of my absence; it will no longer be from 20 April 2026 but from 10 May 2026 |
Ava helps you find an existing absence using details such as dates, absence type, position, or status.
Note: When updating an absence, we recommend that you provide all the required details in a single message. This helps keep the conversation history and avoid multiple messages. You can update only one absence per request. If Ava cannot identify the absence to update, you are informed and guided to manage the change directly in Unit4 ERP.
How can I use Ava to delete my absences?
To delete your absence, type a natural language request, for example:
| Examples |
|---|
| I want to delete an absence created for March |
| I want to delete an upcoming absence |
| I want to delete an absence |
| Delete an absence |
Note: Only one absence can be deleted per request.
Suggestion buttons
Suggestion buttons help you continue a conversation faster by offering relevant next actions. Suggestion buttons are available when you:
- Create an absence.
- Update an absence.
- Delete an absence.
- Retrieve your absence list.
- Check your balances.
How can I use the suggestion buttons?
Buttons are aligned across absence actions, including create, update, delete, and list. They reflect the latest request, helping you respond quickly.
To use suggestion buttons:
- Start a conversation in Ava about absences or balances.
- Select one of the suggestion buttons that appears.
- Review the generated request.
- Edit the details if required, and then send your message.
Note: Suggestion buttons are contextual. If a suggestion does not match your request, type your request directly in the chat.
After completing an action, Ava suggests what you can do next, for example:
| After action | Displayed buttons |
|---|---|
| Absence creation | List absences, View balances |
| Listing absences | Create an absence, Update an absence, Delete an absence |
| Absence deletion | List absences, View balances |
Note: If listing is part of an update or delete workflow, Ava does not display suggestion buttons.
Further information
You can find out more about Ava on Unit4 University4U and Docebo.