Choosing HR software can be a big step. Read our handy guide to the essentials before you commit.
1. What do you need it to do?
There are lots of platforms on the market. Assess what your need is. Do you need to manage holidays and sickness better? Would you like requesting and approving days off to be streamlined? Is a central employee records database a priority? Are you tired of the admin involved in onboarding new employees? These needs are well served by a platform offering core HR features.
2. How will the software provider demonstrate it adds value?
Ask the software company for testimonials and evidence from businesses like yours. Did they save time and money? Would they recommend the platform?
3. How easy is it to set up?
Simple set up is essential. Without it, your employees won’t take the time out of their busy day to use the system. Ask the software company for a demonstration so you can assess how much time it takes. What support do they provide? Make sure that the support will be there when you need it, to onboard your employees seamlessly.
4. Will your employees actually use it?
How well designed is the software? Is it intuitive, well laid out, simple and beautiful? Does it look like software that employees use outside of work like their phones or Facebook? if it does, they will use it. If its clunky, like most B2B systems, they probably won’t bother, and will go back to workarounds rendering your investment wasted.
5. Is it fully mobile?
No-one these days is always in an office at a desktop. The new breed of HR software is fully optimized for mobile for both you and your employees. They expect to be able to do their business on the go on phones and tablets. Your HR software should work the way you work too.
6. Is your data safe, private and secure?
Make sure the software company has a good security and privacy policy and that your employees’ details will be secure. Check that the company won’t sell your data on. A cloud based platform should be run on a reputable infrastructure like Google Cloud infrastructure. This means you have the peace of mind that the software is taking advantage of the Google security model built on over 15 years of experience.
7. Is it flexible enough to grow with your business?
There’s no point limiting your growth with software that won’t scale. Look for a platform that offers the flexibility to grow with you – making anything possible. You don’t know what the future will hold and what your business needs will be. Your HR software must be ready for your expansion.
8. Does it integrate with existing software, needs or business processes?
Make sure your software can handle payroll, expenses, slack integration and other important business tasks. Your HR software should be flexible enough so that you can add or remove (and only pay for) the features you actually need, when you need them.
We’ve carefully designed Air to be the best HR platform for small and medium sized businesses.
