3 Tips to Get the Most from Your HR Software Implementation

Woman working on HR software

Finding the perfect HR software can be a daunting process filled with demonstration after demonstration, meeting after meeting to decide which vendor is for you, each involving a whole slew of people … your HR team, executives from your company, IT people … It’s exhausting just thinking about it!

When you find the HR software vendor who is right for your company’s needs, the next step is implementation. While you may be tempted to kick back and relax, don’t be fooled! Implementation may very well be the most important step – it should be given just as much preparation, time, and thought as the journey you took to decide on a vendor.

Read on for 3 tips to ensure you get the most out of your HR software implementation.

1. Know your processes.

It’s a good idea to know the ins and outs of your processes before you set them up in your new software.

Do you have at least a general overview of the steps your HR team must take to go through recruiting, hiring, onboarding, open enrollment, terminating, and other important processes that your new software will help execute? Having this information handy will allow for a more efficient set up and it’s also a great way to highlight inefficiencies, gaps, and liabilities in your current processes.

It also may be a good idea to take a detailed audit of your HR processes before implementing your new HR software. If you’re running short on time, don’t worry! You can always audit your processes as you implement your new software. This second option may even be your best bet, especially if you think your processes may change.

2. Be flexible.

While you should certainly come into an HR software implementation with the expectation that your needs will be met, you should also be willing to be flexible along the way.

Being flexible doesn’t mean that you’ll have to give up on any expectations about how your new software will meet your needs. However, you should note that your software may impact your well-established processes. For example, a long, tedious process may become more efficient using your new software, but it’s also possible that this same process will have a different set of steps in your new solution. Being flexible allows you to rethink elements as you go and craft more efficient, better solutions.

3. Lean on your software implementation team.

While you’ve probably already gathered a good understanding for how the software you’ve purchased works, never assume something will work the way you think it will. Always ask!

Your implementation team should encourage you to come to the table with a wish list of everything you’d like to have working in the software, but they should also help you prioritize your to-do list (don’t succumb to scope creep!) and ensure that the project stays on target.

Lean on your implementation team: they’re there as experts to guide you through the implementation process and to keep things moving. Don’t be shy to ask for guidance if you don’t understand the timeline, a deliverable, or how something in the software works. They are there to help you succeed!

This is a topic for another post, but in the early stages of assessing vendors, one thing you should understand is the vendor’s customer service policy. You should choose a vendor with responsive support beyond implementation.

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The Sentric Team

The Sentric Team

At Sentric, we help businesses make people management easier with industry-leading technology and standout support.

Sentric HR & Payroll Insights

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