Our client is a non-profit organization based in New York City. The client was on its third human resources and payroll (HR) system in ten years and was frustrated that the current system was not meeting its needs. There was significant manual effort and calculation involved in running payroll each cycle, and employees and managers found the system hard to use. There were also defects which the vendor had not been able to resolve.

The client approached Anoteros for support in sourcing a replacement system, with a clear goal that the new system must meet the client’s need for both the short and long-term.

Anoteros recommended a more thorough selection process than the client had used for its past system selections. This started with a current state assessment where we shadowed and held workshops with the HR and Finance teams to map their current processes and identify where there were issues, gaps, and opportunities. The assessment identified opportunities for improvement not just in the technology but in policies, process, and roles. Using the insight garnered from the assessment, Anoteros developed a list of 650 business requirements for the new HR system and broader recommendations for policy and process improvements.

Perhaps the most significant finding from the assessment was that the client’s current-basis pay approach was an impediment to fully automating the payroll process. The client’s current system simply wasn’t built for it, and therefore had been configured to “fit a round peg into a square hole”, which explained why the current process required so many manual interventions.

Anoteros conducted a market scan to identify HR systems that could meet the client’s requirements, including a current-basis pay approach, as the client was considering in parallel whether to move to arrears-basis and did not want to force that decision due to a system selection. From the market scan, three vendors were identified and we worked with the client to conduct a thorough Request for Proposal, demo, and selection process. After presenting the options and recommendation to the leadership team, the recommended vendor was approved and we then led the contract negotiations process.

When Anoteros and the HR team presented the preferred vendor recommendation to the client’s leadership team, along with the recommendation to change the pay approach from current-basis to arrears-basis, both recommendations received unanimous approval, with the robust approach giving the leaders confidence that they were making the right decision for the organization.

In the contract negotiations, we realized 28% in savings over the term of the contract and secured substantial protections for the client related to data security and system resiliency.

We are now thrilled to be leading the implementation process for the client.