5 Keys to Promoting Employee Buy-In for New HR Management Tools
Software companies make all kinds of promises about what their products can do for your organization. Higher productivity, better performance management, streamlined payroll, deeper data insights—HR software certainly does hold enormous potential for supporting and growing your workforce. But only if your employees jump on board.
Sometimes the most important sales pitch you make is the one that takes place within your own four walls. Getting employees to adopt new HR management tools isn’t always easy, especially when it means overhauling their standard operating procedures.
So how do you do it?
Ensuring a Successful Tech Rollout
It’s not enough to send a memo, host a launch party, and call it done. In fact, that’s a great way to cause dissension in the ranks. Bringing everyone on board with a new software platform takes plenty of advance planning and careful consideration. Here are 5 keys to doing it right:
- Understand what motivates different roles. Different positions on the org chart will interact with software in different ways. Understanding what matters to the various stakeholders within your organization as they perform their daily job functions will give you insight into what they want from their HR management tools. For example, CEOs look at the big picture and will want to know numbers: How much can you save, how will it affect productivity, and how will it increase accuracy/efficiency? End users, by contrast, want to know how the software will make their jobs better: How will it eliminate current frustrations and prevent new ones?
- Anticipate concerns.
Different stakeholders will also have different concerns about the software. Anticipate those concerns and be prepared to demonstrate how the software addresses specific challenges. How long will it take the software to pay for itself? Will the new software take personal connection out of the equation in favor of checklists and data entry? How does the platform support employee engagement?
- Make sure the software serves your people, not vice versa.
In the flurry of research about what the software can do, don’t forget to consider whether it will, in fact, make your employees’ jobs better. Bells and whistles might look great in the software demo, but do you really need them? Will they add unneeded steps to your procedures? Will the software remove necessary human touchpoints from functions like performance management or recruiting?
- Consider the user experience.
The software must be easy to learn and implement or employees won’t use it. Today’s HR software vendors have made huge strides in user experience and design, so take advantage of those capabilities to boost engagement.
- Provide sufficient training and support.
Most people need more than a one-hour training session to feel truly comfortable with a new software platform. Invest the time and effort to make sure employees feel comfortable with the functions and features of the new system, especially if you’ll be moving previously manual processes to an online automated system. Data entry and universal adoption will be key, so don’t skimp on training.
Implement New HR Management Tools Strategically
One of the most important questions you can ask when considering a new tool is: Do we need this? Can you take maximum advantage of the capabilities offered? Can you really use the new features and functions?
When you purchase strategically, you buy for your company needs and potential, not for the software’s wow factor. And when you know you have a tool that will improve efficiency and productivity from the top down while making day-to-day responsibilities easier, you won’t have a hard time demonstrating that it was the right choice.
Are you considering new HR technology for your company? Find your perfect software match with our detailed matching tool!
About the Author: Susan McClure is our resident content marketer at PEOCompare.com. She writes about HR outsourcing, HRIS, and general employment issues. When she isn't writing, you might find her browsing shelves at the library, exploring a local hiking trail, or digging in the garden with her family and fur kids.
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