4 Ways HR Leaders Can Drive Continuous Value from HR tech

Are you looking for a new HR system but know you face an uphill battle to get sign-off from the powers that be? Do the words ‘return on investment’ (ROI) and ‘total cost analysis’ fill you with dread?

The good news is that calculating ROI has evolved. There is so much more value you can extract from a cloud HR system that you can’t put a figure on.

We like to think of these as the non-quantifiable or intangible benefits – things like better employee experiences, faster decision-making, and improved engagement. They are just as important, if not more, than the quantifiable ones – but are often overlooked or not considered when it comes to investing in a new HR system. This is because they are harder to quantify. But the beauty is they deliver increased value over time and offer continual payback.

Read on for the four ways a modern HR system can deliver repeated value beyond the quantifiable.

1. Empowering HR to be leaders of change

During the pandemic, 65% of HR leaders say their teams had a vital role to play, driving change, enabling remote working, and supporting well-being. Responding swiftly to change remains critical for organizations to thrive in the constantly evolving climate, so having a flexible system is key.

A highly configurable cloud solution will let you customize and create additional fields, which allows you to instantly start capturing new employee data without the need for IT or technical support. A flexible HR system also empowers HR leaders to lead change quickly and easily through automation, actionable insights, and redesigning the way people work – value you can’t put a figure on.

2. Helping you invest now for the organization you want to become

To get continual payback and value from your HR tech, you need the ability to look ahead and establish what you want your chosen platform to do in the next three, five, or even 10 years.

You may need your system to help solve current and urgent challenges, but what big challenges are coming over the horizon? Is merger and acquisition (M&A) activity likely in your company’s future?

Having a system that can scale with you as you grow is vital and means you won’t have to buy a new system in the near future. You want one that’s future-proofed for whatever’s ahead, not just right for now.

3. Supporting you to experiment and test

For real tangible business transformation, the days of doing things once and then ticking them off your to-do list are far gone. Revisiting, testing, iterating, and trying new things are commonplace for progressive companies that want to get ahead.

The in-built features of your HR platform – such as 360 feedback, customizable dashboards, and flexible workflows –make it easy for HR and People leaders to adopt a ‘test and learn’ approach.

For example, HR and People leaders looking to deliver great hybrid experiences with well-being at the center might survey their employees every month to gauge sentiment on their return-to-work policy and then continually refine and tweak their policy based on the feedback.

The right HR system makes it easier to communicate with your entire workforce, wherever they are, gathering employee feedback in real-time and speeding up your ability to respond not just now but in the future too.

4. Enabling you to drive and accelerate digital transformation

Digital transformation allows your organization to become more employee-centric and provide consumer-like experiences to your workforce, helping you attract and retain the best talent.

Using a cloud HR platform, onboarding becomes a complete digital experience.

The solution empowers managers to improve the manager-employee relationship with digital tools to seamlessly manage performance reviews and connect more easily with their remote teams. You might not be able to put a number on that, but it continuously enriches the entire employee experience within the organization.

Choosing the best global cloud HR platform for your needs will also support your organization in having the right mindset, the right culture, and the right skills to create lasting change across the organization through digital transformation.

It’s time to go beyond the numbers

ROI, in the traditional sense, is one way of measuring the payback from your chosen tech – and it’s important to request those numbers from your chosen vendor.

However, going beyond the numbers to explore the broader value-adds is key to ensuring you get sign-off on the tech investment and reap the continual value of your HR tech both now and in the future.

Information used in this article was provided by our partners at Sage.