Case study...

Case #5

You are an HR Technology consultant, and you have been asked by the client, a large nonprofit employing over 700 people, to implement an HRIS system by the end of the year (that means you have over 60 days to do it).  You were referred by a trusted individual for this engagement, and you have an opportunity to talk to the Executive Director tomorrow over coffee regarding this engagement?

How are you going to approach this engagement?

First of all, I would thank him/her for the opportunity to discuss their options and then I would ask a lot of questions to find out the following information:

What’s the rush? (perhaps this ED knows nothing about HRIS and the implications of setting one up)

What problem(s) are they trying to solve?  

What, if any, HRIS is currently in place, and if so, what’s not working?

Who will use it?  What types of reporting is needed?

Is there an experienced HRIS/IT person on-board?

Who will help to implement and train? 

Is there an existing System of Records?

Are they looking to save money or productivity time?

What is their budget? (being non-profit probably not much)

Arrange for Demos of various programs?

This should be treated as a process, rather than a project with a deadline as based on what currently exists, if anything, this could be a huge multi-faceted project that to try and implement in 60 days would be quite challenging, if even possible to be successful.