HR Digital Transformations are notorious for not delivering business benefits. Why is this? How do you ensure you avoid it?
Why are you doing it?
The first step on the journey is to understand the why?
For example:
- A new business need or requirement
- A problem that must be solved
- A better way of operating
- A need to bring in efficiencies and effectiveness
- A legislative need
Whatever the why, there must be a compelling answer.
So how will you do it?
Do not start on the how until the why is fully understood. Many transformations focus on how before the why is fully explored.
To move forward consider:
- The objectives
- The scope
- Are there any constraints or dependencies?
- Do you need to carry out a feasibility study?
- What resources will be required?
- What funding will be required and how will this be justified?
Now you understand the how. Can it be done?
Is it Feasible?
Is the business ready for it? Will it work? How long will it take? How much will it cost?
- Is there a known solution?
- What are the benefits?
- Are there alternatives?
- Do you have the capability to deliver it?
- How long will it take?
- Do you have an outline plan including time, quality and cost?
So it is feasible, lets develop the business case and benefits.
Measuring Business Benefits
What is the business benefit? This needs to be answered and measured.
Example measurements:
- Customer Service – the transformation will improve customer service in the “X” area due to “Y” improvement. We can measure this by measuring “A” data
- Example: Customer service will improve in the “onboarding process” due to the “new digital onboarding tool” This can be measured by feedback from the new onboarded employees and the numbers of completed onboarding processes within SLA
- Financial – the transformation will return financial savings by reducing infrastructure and operational costs
- Example: The transformation project will cost £10m over 18 months. Post-implementation the run costs will reduce by 3 million per year and the operational costs will reduce by 2 million per year. Therefore the breakeven is 2 years (ROI). 3.5 years from the initial transformation there will be a saving of 5 million per year
- Operational – the transformation will improve the “H” process due to the “I” improvement. We can measure this by measuring “B” volumes
- Example: The transformation project will improve the “query resolution process” by “automating standard queries” and therefore removing the need for triage and manual response. This can be measured by the number of successful automated responses versus the original manual processing time (saved time) and the number of follow on queries (quality of automated response)
- Data quality – the transformation will improve the “C” data set due to the “F” improvement. We can measure this by reporting on the “G” data set
- Example: The transformation project will improve the “employee record set” due to the “employee self-service” improvement. This can be measured by the “Employee Record” report highlighting data completeness and inaccuracy %
- Business reporting – the transformation will improve “J” management information due to the “K” process improvement. This can be measured by the “L” business report
- Example: The transformation will improve the “headcount reporting” due to the “employee data set” process improvement. This can be measured by the “Global Headcount Report”
The Business Case
Measurements (examples above) should be defined in the Transformation Business Case. Post-implementation the measures can be reported regularly to validate the original business case. Any variances can then be explained and subsequently managed.
NOTE: Many transformations are seen as failures due to the lack of defined measures. How can you measure success or failure if you have no measures to measure against?
The business case should always include the following items:
- Vision – what is the business vision the transformation will achieve. This should be an exciting future state
- Objectives and Scope – what needs to be done and what are the boundaries
- Assumptions – what are the key assumptions that must be considered
- Risks and Dependencies – what are the things that could significantly impact the transformation and what things must happen to support the transformation
- Deliverables – what are the deliverables, these should be obvious and need to be specified
- Business Benefits and Costs – what will the benefits be (measurable) and what is the overall transformation cost. This will give the ROI (return on investment)
What will the HR solution look like?
This should describe how the solution will meet the business case. It should define the main deliverables required and the project approach. The project approach needs to include the outline timescale and the project management methodology that will be utilised. It should also explain how the solution will be delivered (e.g. pilot, phased, big-bang approaches) and its ongoing support model.
Any risks to the solution implementation should also be highlighted at this stage.
The Plan to Implement your HR solution
The outline plan should be a high-level overview of the whole project. More detailed plans will fall out from the outline plan and are often segregated into logical workstreams.
The high level plan should cover the following areas:
- The approach to be taken the methods used and the governance framework
- Initial cost estimates
- The key project deliverables and associated acceptance criteria
- Facilities and tools needed to support the implementation
- The makeup of the project team
- The initial RAID (Risks, Assumptions, Issues and Dependencies) log
- An overall schedule showing the key milestones
Note: The overall plan should be validated and amended as the detailed plans are developed. It is important to have a realistic plan that the whole project team buy into and commit to. Many outline plans stay “rigid” even when the lower level plans clearly indicate a mismatch. It is important through the governance framework and reporting channels that plans are not baselined until all detailed planning has been completed.
Now get going and good luck with your HR Transformation!
If you need support with your HR Digital Transformation or would just like some advice please get in touch through our contact page.