HRMS Technology: 10 Steps to Building a Compelling Case for Investment

New technology is changing how, where, and when we work. With HR management systems (HRMS) more advanced than ever, HR is one of the fastest-growing sectors for technology investment. Employers need to embrace this technology and put people at the heart of their business strategy.

That’s why Sage created a guide to help HR and People leaders make a strong case for HRMS investments. Read on for a summary of the guide, which includes practical information on:

  • Communicating the true benefits of investing in a new HR system including ROI
  • Positioning HR as a driver of company-wide change
  • Ensuring your HR vision aligns with overall business strategy
  • Securing buy in from management and key stakeholders
  • The most powerful components to include in your business case

Creating a compelling business case for HRMS

Investing in its people is one of the most important decisions an organization can make. With today’s productivity, engagement, and talent acquisition challenges, it’s never been a better time to make people a priority.

89% of HR teams are striving to be seen as strategic partners, shaping the future of their companies. To accomplish this they need to prove the ROI of investing in people, and effectively communicate the benefits of an HRMS powered by advanced analytics, Artificial Intelligence, and the cloud.

Using cloud HR technology to drive business success

When it comes to choosing new HRMS technology, the cloud is the clear winner. By transforming the traditional HR function, a modern cloud based HRMS enables companies to design better workforce experiences. That’s because it’s inherently secure, flexible, and accessible practical anytime from anywhere.

Users can generate reports at the touch of a button. While automation eliminates the chance of human error and frees up HR leaders to focus on improving employee engagement.

8 persuasive reasons for HR investment

Implementing a cloud based HRMS comes with many tangible benefits to help build your business case including:

  1. Reducing attrition
  2. Improving performance
  3. Reducing recruitment time
  4. Driving productivity
  5. Providing better experiences
  6. Maintain compliance
  7. Making data-driven decisions
  8. Accelerating growth

Making HR the driver of change

Leadership and planning are the two key components to driving change. As you build your case, be sure to have a clear vision and control the process to achieving it. For instance, how will you prepare and support the company during a time of significant change? By carefully stating the reasons why change is needed, you’ll rally stakeholders behind one unifying goal.

Identify the 5 key stakeholders and get their support

Once you’ve clearly outlined the advantages of an HR technology investment, identify the decision makers and how to influence them. Consider their individual interests and the benefits the new system will have on their daily life. The roles of the stakeholders are:

  1. The tech expert—your IT Director, CIO

Who they are:

Your head of IT can help you avoid wasting time on technology that doesn’t suit your company’s needs. By bringing this stakeholder in early on, you’ll ensure your HRMS meets security, integration, and support requirements.

What motivates them:

Cutting costs, improving security and privacy, reducing the number of suppliers and systems, and simplifying IT complexity. They’ll also be interested in updating outdated legacy systems.

  1. The finance decision maker—your Finance Director, CFO

Who they are:

Your finance leader is focused on costs and ROI, as well as ensuring a smooth procurement process. Getting their buy in right away ensures every expense is identified. In most cases a new HRMS yields significant savings over time. Be sure to communicate the financial risks associated with not implementing new technology (the cost of doing nothing).

What motivates them:

Saving money, increasing productivity, managing risk, and improving insights and visibility company wide.

  1. The legal, risk, compliance department

Who they are:

With increasing legal responsible for data security, this department’s priority is the capabilities and security of the technology and any areas that touch on regulatory compliance.

What motivates them:

Avoiding potential risks and ensuring data protection standards are being upheld as well as adherence to regulations.

  1. The users—employees and the HR team

Who they are:

The people who will use the HRMS daily—the employees and HR team members. What will make a difference in their workday, what are their biggest point points, and what do they expect from a new system?

What motivates them:

Seeing improvements in people management, talent management, and employee experiences. Their other motivations are enhancements to self-service, benefits management, compliance, workflow, recruiting, on-boarding, and the employee life cycle. Lastly, they’ll be looking for a system that’s as intuitive and easy to use as the apps they use outside of work.

  1. The top executive—Managing Director, CEO

Who they are:

Your CEO or Managing Director expects to be informed of changes to how the business operates. Ask them about any specific objectives they wish to achieve; and while you have their attention, take the opportunity to point out the contribution HR is making to the business.

What motivates them:

Reducing overhead, becoming more agile, and increasing insights and visibility across the company.

Securing your HR technology investment

Once you’ve identified your stakeholders, it’s critical to make it easy for them to give you the go ahead. Provide them with the most convincing reasons in a well-reasoned, thorough business case for investment.

Are you preparing your case for new HR technology? Download the eBook for 10 steps that will help you succeed.