Help in choosing an HRIS: why use a firm?

Implementing an HRIS to optimize your HR processes is beneficial, but complex. There are several crucial stages in this process: drawing up specifications detailing your company’s specific needs, organizing a call for tenders with software publishers, and then deploying your IT solution.

To help you navigate your way through this process efficiently, selecting an independent firm specializing inHR expertise can really save you time. HRIS selection assistance provides considerable added value, enabling you to identify the solution best suited to your business challenges and organization.

In this article, we’ll look at why you should use the services of a Council to help you make the right HRIS choices.

Help with HRIS selection: what to expect from ?

An HRIS project is always complex in that it requires time, energy, organization and a budget to respect. To bring your HRIS project to a successful conclusion, you need a real methodology and a certain expertise to avoid spreading yourself too thinly and making mistakes.

A firm is supposed to help you choose an HRIS that meets your needs and respects your budget. Your provider will be there to avoid building a gas factory with an inadequate deployment budget. It is important to know that the more complex a software is, the more difficult it is to maintain.

The idea is for the professional in charge of assisting you inchoosing an HRIS solution to steer you as far as possible towards existing, tried-and-tested solutions, so as to minimize the need to develop additional modules. The consulting firm you select will make sure to reduce the initial costs as much as possible and will anticipate the maintenance and evolution of the modules you will use.

It’s important to understand that the firmhelping youchoose an HRIS will not be the same as the one in charge of deploying the solution. In fact, when implementing an HRIS, the firm tasked with helping you choose the solution best suited to your company’s needs will not be able to implement the HRIS within the company, as this would be an obvious conflict of interest.

An office to save time and serenity

The important thing to remember is that choosing independent firms for HRIS expertise generally saves time. The professionals who will help you set up your HRIS will ensure that you don’t miss out on your priorities.

From the drafting of specifications to the deployment of the final solution, our HRIS experts will give you the peace of mind you need to avoid any risk of error.

The choice of an HRIS must be carried out as a project, following a precise methodology.

6 key steps to successful HRIS selection with the support of a Council firm

Discover the six steps that will guide you through your HRIS project:

1. Frame the HRIS project with precision

The initial scoping of your HRIS project is fundamental to its success. A specialized Council firm can help you clearly define the functional scope of your future system, the strategic objectives to be achieved, and the technical and budgetary constraints to be taken into account.

This phase helps to establish effective project governance, identify key stakeholders and plan a realistic timetable.

If you’re running an SME, there are specific criteria to consider when choosing the HRIS solution that ‘s right for you, particularly in terms of company size, budget and system scalability.

By structuring your approach from the outset, you lay the foundations for a successful HR digital transformation that is aligned with your company’s overall strategy.

2. Define HR needs clearly and precisely

Thoroughly identifying your needs is the most critical stage in the HRIS selection process. A Council can help you map out your current HR processes, analyze friction points and identify optimization opportunities. This phase involves business workshops with the various stakeholders to gather their functional and technical requirements.

To make this project a reality, you’ll probably need to convince your management to invest in an HRIS tool. Prepare a solid argument highlighting the productivity gains, cost savings and improved employee experience.

The HRIS consultant translates these requirements into detailed specifications, prioritized according to their criticality (must have, nice to have), thus facilitating the creation of a complete set of specifications which will serve as a reference throughout the project.

3. Pre-select HRIS solutions to meet requirements

The ecosystem of HRIS solutions is vast and complex, with a wide range of different offerings. A specialized Council brings its in-depth knowledge of the market to bear in identifying relevant solutions according to your specific criteria: company size, business sector, required functional modules, integration capabilities, scalability and business model (SaaS, on-premise).

This expertise enables us to rule out unsuitable solutions from the outset, and to draw up an initial list of potential HRIS solutions, taking into account feedback from similar projects and technological trends in the HR sector.

4. Establish a rigorous shortlist of HRIS solutions

Drawing up a short-list is a decisive stage, requiring a structured methodology. A Council can help you draw up a multi-criteria evaluation grid weighted according to your priorities: functional coverage, ergonomics, flexibility, security, performance, total cost of ownership, quality of support, product roadmap, etc.

Among the essential functionalities to evaluate, pay particular attention to reporting capabilities. Indeed, effective HR reporting is crucial to steering your HR strategy and making decisions based on reliable data.

Comparative analysis of the shortlisted solutions, enriched by exchanges with editors and customer feedback, enables us to narrow the list down to 3-5 finalists. This methodical approach guarantees the objectivity of the selection process, and facilitates decision-making based on tangible criteria aligned with your HR challenges.

5. Organize personalized demonstrations for each HRIS finalist

Demonstrations are a key moment for assessing the suitability of solutions for your needs. Council can help you prepare demonstration scenarios based on your real-life use cases, enabling you to assess the fluidity of user paths and the relevance of functionalities.

These sessions involve future key users to gather their impressions of the ergonomics and intuitiveness of each solution. The HRIS consultant structures the post-demonstration evaluation according to objective criteria, and facilitates further exchanges with the editors to clarify technical points, customization options and implementation methods specific to your context.

6. Select the optimum HRIS for your digital HR transformation

The final decision must be based on a holistic analysis integrating all the elements gathered during the previous stages. A Council firm can help you finalize the comparison of the finalist solutions, taking into account not only functional and technical aspects, but also strategic factors such as the vendor’s financial strength, its capacity for innovation, the quality of its partner ecosystem, and its international presence if necessary.

This phase includes the development of a detailed business case for each solution, with projected ROI and risk analysis.Expert support guarantees an informed decision, geared to the long-term success of your HR digital transformation and the optimization of your business processes.

Conclusion: the expertise of a Council, a strategic investment in your HRIS project

The selection andimplementation of an HRIS represents a major challenge for companies wishing to optimize their HR function. As we have seen throughout this article, calling on the services of a Council specialized inHRIS selection is not just an option, but a genuine strategic investment.

By supporting you through a structured methodology, our HRIS experts enable you to secure your approach, avoid common pitfalls and make a choice perfectly aligned with your business challenges. This rigorous approach guarantees not only the relevance of the solution selected, but also the optimization of your long-term return on investment.

The expertise of a firm like SQORUS provides you with an objective, independent vision, enriched by the experience gained from many similar projects. Our consultants master the subtleties of the HRIS market, know the strengths and weaknesses of the various solutions, and anticipate technological developments that could impact your choice.

Would you like us to support you in your HRIS selection project? Contact our experts to benefit from our proven methodology and sector expertise.

See also our feature on "HR strategy management tools".

• What are the key issues facing HR departments today?
• Organization, talent management, recruitment: priority HR projects?
• Human resources management: what HR strategies for the future?
• Best practices to manage your HR strategy in an optimal way
• The different HR management tools to carry out your HR strategy
• HRIS software: the different areas of intervention for the HR function
• How to convince your management to invest in an HRIS tool?
• Is it necessary to be accompanied in the management of an HR strategy?
• What indicators should be defined to measure the performance of an HR strategy?
• HR strategy: how to achieve effective HR reporting?
• Who should drive HR projects in the company?
• Setting up a working group for an HR project: who should be involved?