It's perfectly logical and normal for a company wishing to invest in a brand new HRIS to want to ensure the success of its project.

During our optimization and implementation mandates, we find that it's not so much the process or tool itself that can put the project at risk, but rather the team's resistance to change. Creating buy-in for new tools and working methods can be a real challenge.

When an organization undertakes to optimize its HRIS, it is essential to take stock of the involvement of the various stakeholders, particularly managers, who will be in the front line to act in line with the company's HR policies and culture.

Here are a few ideas and solutions to help you set up an action plan to maximize manager and employee buy-in to your HRIS.

Shared responsibilities between managers and HR team

First of all, it's important to consider the division of responsibilities between the HR team and the managers.

• What division of roles does the company wish to establish between the HR department and the managers/project managers?

• Do the managers really take responsibility for human resources management? Ideally, a mini-audit would be necessary to measure the involvement level.

• Do they have the right tools? Are they autonomous in carrying out their HR tasks?

Strategy to encourage buy-in

In collaboration with your internal communication and training teams, we invite you to establish a strategy to maximize your managers' and employees' commitment to the new HRIS.

1. Lack of awareness

Sometimes, employees are not fully aware of the benefits and opportunities that an HRIS can bring, such as improved efficiency and precision in HR processes.

Project team solution / Transformation coaching :

At team meetings, explain the rationale behind the change in order to make it meaningful. In general, when change is meaningful, it's easier for stakeholders to buy into it.

Example : an Onboarding and Integration Module is under-utilized by your managers. Let's get back to what makes this process so meaningful : it's not just a list of digitized tasks for the manager, but also, and above all, a tool that makes the new employee feel welcome, maximizing his or her level of commitment and motivation from the very first days, or even before the start date. It allows the employee to experience the corporate culture and feel part of it.

2. Anchoring habits

Managers and employees are often attached to their familiar, safe working methods, and are therefore reluctant to adopt new technologies.

Project team solution / Transformation coaching :

When HR teams notice that there is resistance to using the HRIS, they must immediately get into listening mode, so that employees can express their concerns. Active listening will enable you to work on your posture so as to “put yourself in their shoes”. If we take our example of the onboarding and integration process, it will be important for a member of the HR team to meet managers individually, to listen to their concerns about using this new module. Very often, issues arising from concerns can be resolved more easily than you might think.

3. Perceived complexity

Some may find HRIS systems complex to use, or fear that they require intensive training.

Project team solution / Transformation coaching :

The training offered to new HRIS users is often maximized at launch, when the system is still in its infancy. Andragogy theories show us that it is through repetition of training activities that learning is consolidated. So it's a good idea to keep training sessions short, focused and repetitive.

In conclusion

It's essential for HR to realize that optimizing/implementing an HRIS and making the project profitable depends on all stakeholders buying into the tool and processes. But rallying the troops isn't always easy! Cognitive biases play a significant role in the way work teams perceive and react to change. Some see it as a threat, a danger. So it's important to take the time and resources needed to manage change properly.

Do you have a project in mind? Our team is made up of both HRIS experts and Change Management Consultants. Our talents are at your service!

 

Carole Mari, MBA, CHRA, HRIS Main Advisor