Software expert reveals the most common pitfalls businesses face when choosing tech
This article was produced in partnership with Subscribe HR.
Ksenia Stepanova of HRD Australia caught up with Mathew French of Subscribe HR to discuss how to make HR technology work for you.
HR Software Expert Mathew French outlines the most common pitfalls businesses face when choosing their software products.
HR technology is a vital tool for both small and large businesses, and more companies are starting to seriously invest in HR software – however, they are also increasingly experiencing the pitfalls of buying products that don’t suit the specific needs of their business.
Commenting on the challenges of choosing the right technology, Subscribe HR founder Mat French says that companies can often get caught up in ‘iceberg syndrome’, where they don’t see the hidden costs and complexities of a product, or are too focused on its ‘look and feel’ rather than its functionality. He noted that sales pitches can often focus on flexibility, efficiency and ease of set-up – but when it comes to actually implementing the product, incompatible software can cause a lot of unexpected difficulty, and can end up costing businesses more in the long run.
“When trying to understand the functionality of the HR software and how it aligns with business requirements, it is easy for HR managers to miss important details about the complexities and costs associated with implementation,” French explained.
“More often than not, businesses assume that the core features of a system are flexible because they are told by vendors that they are, only to find out later that they have not been told the complete story.”
“The cost to create all the necessary features that the business needs can then become prohibitive, putting road blocks in the way of a fast implementation,” he advised.
“The lack of flexibility in HR products often cause a project to fail, and challenges the narrative told by sales people at the start.”
French noted that a lack of flexibility is often a key issue when trying to implement software. If clients find that a product can’t be tailored to suit the unique requirements of their business, then implementation and integrations can become difficult and expensive, and can result in significant additional customisation costs.
Having multiple geographic locations can also create more complexity, particularly if the software developers are not involved in the setup process. French said there are multiple things that a business should investigate before purchasing software, and flexibility and ease of integration should always be key considerations.
“Businesses need to ask whether the system can be easily adapted and configured by changing system-related content – for example, fields, tabs, forms, database objects, etc.,” French said.
“They should also ask whether it allows users to set up workflows and push notifications quickly and easily, and whether if allows for IT development staff to quickly change code within their own system. All of this will give businesses the flexibility they need to make their software work for them.”
Subscribe HR is based on the same Platform-as-a-Service model as salesforce.com, and is designed to deliver a flexible cloud-based software to mid-sized businesses across Australia and New Zealand. French noted that the platform has been deliberately designed with flexibility in mind, and allows clients to adapt and change their systems as needed.
“Subscribe HR has spent a decade creating its highly flexible cloud HR platform,” French said.
“It has been created with deep and rich configuration tools, which allow end users to modify and adapt their software as required.”
“This not only assists with a faster and more cost-effective initial implementation, but it also allows for customers to scale their system beyond their initial requirements,” he said.
“That means they don’t outgrow their application, and the business can adapt changes more easily into the initial roll-out. These are just some of the benefits of choosing software with a high degree of flexibility.”
To learn more, visit Subscribe-HR.
Mathew French is the Founder of Subscribe-HR and was one of the pioneers of Cloud HR Software in Australia. In 2009, Subscribe-HR designed and built Australia’s first pure-play, Cloud HR Software Platform. He has over 15 years’ experience in building and delivery Software for HR Professionals and People Leaders. Subscribe-HR is now one of the most Flexible HR Applications in the world.
