Many organizations that postponed HCM implementations in 2020 are eagerly eyeing 2021. With more employees working remote than ever before, companies are realizing that the accuracy, automation, employee self-service features and analytics a modern HCM system offers are key to moving forward with confidence as the workplace stratosphere evolves. Wise consultant, Becky Logan, CPP, shares information about what to expect during a pandemic-affected implementation.

Focus on the Goals Your New HCM System will Help You Meet

“Companies look for a new HCM system often because of current system limitations, they know they have outgrown their system, or they just want updated capability,” says Logan, a veteran of payroll, administration and management. Especially after a year of pandemic-scale workplace changes within entire industries, organizations are recognizing that modern, cloud-based HCM software is more must-have than optional.

Organizational goals may have shifted as a result of the global pandemic, and Logan underscores the importance of identifying short and long-term goals so their new system can be set up to meet those goals. Wise helps clients understand how corporate goals should steer an implementation, focusing on achieving the return on investment your company needs to remain agile amidst change. “One of the first things that we ask new clients is ‘what isn’t working with your current system that you wish was and what do you want to accomplish?’ When clients say they want something to work a certain way, we have ideas about how we can make that happen. Being experienced in the industry and working with and implementing different systems means we may have a thought or idea that clients would have never thought of, or we can work on a part of their system they didn’t know they needed help with.”  

COVID Means a Remote HCM System Implementation

One of the reasons some companies put the purchase of new HCM software on hold in 2020 was fear that an implementation could not be as successful with the team working remotely. For our clients that moved forward with implementation, this proved to be far from true. Logan points out that though our consultants used to spend a percentage of implementation time on-site with the client, much of the work was always completed remotely. “At Wise Consulting, we were already familiar with working remotely. We can accomplish tasks in a remote fashion in any time zone. [Our consultants] are located all over the US, from Pacific time to East Coast time. We can still be in the same ‘room’ as our clients all day and we still become very close with the people we are helping.” 

Assemble a Strong HCM Implementation Team

Logan emphasizes that some things have not changed, such as companies needing to bring together a solid implementation team and prepare for the implementation to take up more time than they think it will.  “Something clients need to be prepared for is the extra work there will be on top of doing their daily job, almost like having two jobs at the same time. When they work with consultants like us, we take the pressure off them so they can continue to do their regular jobs.”  

When companies choose to implement without outside support, Logan cautions that they need to be aware that a full team with scaled-back daily job responsibilities will be necessary to get the job done.  “To make the change go smoothly, you need people from IT, payroll, HR, accounting or finance, and from the corporate level to shoulder the workload. During the process everyone needs to work together as a team to make decisions about how they are going to handle the process. It is a real team effort and sometimes companies can’t commit all these team members to do it and that’s where Wise Consulting can come in to do the heavy lifting.”

Expert Support Means a Better Outcome

Logan knows firsthand that Wise Consultants have experience working in payroll or HR roles before coming to Wise. She had a strong payroll career behind her before transitioning into the consulting role. “We work as consultants on implementations, but we have been on the opposite side and understand the angst our clients go through and the issues and problems they face. So, we are prepared and know how to solve them. If a team from Wise does not have answer on a specific issue, they have access to all the other consultants, one of whom always has the answer.”

Because our team of Wise employee-owner consultants is tight knit, Logan knows her colleagues at Wise are as committed as she is to facilitating optimal implementation outcomes for clients. “When we are assigned to a project, we have a group of people ready to handle it: a system consultant, a technical consultant, and a project manager. Once we start the project, we have the same people on that project from beginning to end so there isn’t a change of guard. This means that as the client, you know what is going on and you have access to all the information you need from beginning to end.”

Reach out to Wise for information on how we can support your HCM implementation process: HCMHelp@wiseconsulting.com, or 800-654-4550