Encore knows UKG well. In fact, they won an Innovation Award from Ultimate Software, now UKG in 2019 for being on the leading edge of HCM. Encore is also growing fast: tasked with integrating 5 component companies and 4,000 new employees in a 12 month timeframe, the HCM team knew the stakes were high. They needed to augment their skilled staff with knowledgeable practitioners who could hit the ground running to help them meet their aggressive integration deadlines.

Encore turned to Wise Consulting for expert assistance. Wise consultants worked as an extension of their team, helping one smaller, 1,000 employee component company by providing onsite support to quickly implement HR technology core and payroll. For another project, Encore needed to set up benefit coverage for 1,800 new employees on a tight deadline. With help from Wise, Encore brought them from a cold start to 30% open enrollment completion within 30 days of the acquisition’s close. That included Job, Location, and Employee imports as well as custom field maintenance and Open Enrollment launch, something three different vendors had said was impossible given the timeline.

“We have a very skilled team and yet every time we are interacting with Wise, you guys are teaching me something. Augmenting staff with best practices from someone who has been there before really helps the pace of an integration project. We think of Wise as members of our own team and grant them that same level of autonomy,” says Carl Schleyer, Vice President of Total Rewards and Human Resources for Encore.

Carl adds that he has been impressed with how the Wise team enables efficiency without sacrificing quality. “Your team has helped us move at a pace that was not possible before. We were doing things in 30 days that were taking 3-6 months before. [The Wise] team enhances our capabilities, they teach us along the way so that we have the skills and experience level, and the brainstorming about how to solve the problem. Those are all things that we can’t get through the normal ticket and service request process. You should be proud of the people you have. It’s very impressive.”