Needs Assessments Prior to an HRIS Purchase

Needs Assessments
One of the major reasons HR professionals and organizations use Needs Assessments before purchasing an HRIS is due diligence. If they value their organizations they will evaluate what it is they need before they approach the sales people who will look at them as “easy pickings.” As Humpty Dumpty conveyed to Alice: “If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there?” you have to have a plan. You need to fully describe the “current situation” and the targeted “end-state.” You need to know what are the required forms and in what format are they needed by both external regulators as well as internal ones. What does your organization want to achieve? Are they looking at increasing training? Also consider in your overall plan a benchmark of what your closest competitors are using. Look at what is being used by those organizations that are similar to you and yet are not actual competitors. They will normally tell you more information about the utility of their software. Get the input from everyone who will be involved in a manner that is appropriate. You could survey the employees and ask them if they would like a portal to the HR Department and if so “What do they want to see on the site?” Last but not least you need to do a “Gap Analysis.” This will help identify what you need to learn, to buy, to install, to license, and to plan for as far a future changes. Here is a good site on performing Needs Assessments a little old but still viable: http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~rouda/T2_NA.html

"Cheshire Puss,...Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?""That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat."I don't much care where--" said Alice."Then it doesn't matter which way you go," said the Cat."--so long as I get SOMEWHERE," Alice added as an explanation."Oh, you're sure to do that," said the Cat, "if you only walk long enough."- Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll