HR Technology Supplement Running a pilot
When a plan
comes together
Piloting a technology system is highly advisable
and will increase the probability of it being a
success on full rollout, finds JENNY ROPER
Launching a new ATS system.
Across 96 markets. All at the
same time. Needless to say it’s a
daunting prospect. But this is what
greeted Barbara Lee, SVP of global
talent acquisition at Nielson, when
she joined the firm as a talent
consultant back in 1999.
“There are times when you can’t
get around it, you just need to launch
as a big bang,” she says. But it’s an
experience – etched into her mind 20
years on – that only reinforced her
sense of the importance of running a
pilot when implementing a new HR
system. “Not running a pilot can
seem like a good idea, but it just
never is,” she says.
So what do HR professionals need
to consider when undergoing this
vital process?
Do:
Define roles within the
HR team
First you need to decide who in your
HR team is doing what, says Elisabeth
Simpson, head of strategic change
management at MHR. “You need to
allocate a test manager to co-ordinate
your pilot teams and ensure the
feedback is provided in a timely and
consistent manner,” she says.
“Consider how issues will be
handled internally and escalations
made to your software provider.
Thinking through the roles and
processes before you start will prevent
friction later on.”
Agree expected outcomes
“It’s all about agreeing outcomes
upfront,” says Sarah Mason, chief
people officer at Foxtons. She says
these vary across projects, but the
ultimate desired outcome is often to
positively impact business
performance. “Sometimes it might be
we’re moving from an old legacy
system, where we have no choice. In
which case the success measure
might simply be that people are using
it and it’s better than the last system.”
Decide how you will
measure success
“Don’t be afraid of anecdotal evidence
– data alone won’t always give a full
picture,” advises Donna McGrath, a
digital learning professional at
Deutsche Bank. “When testing out
tablets for a learning project at
previous employer Royal Mail we had
a range of measures from simple data
on the amount of log-ins, and
recording learning and satisfaction
with the tool, to gathering anecdotal
evidence on ease of use.”
Consider how long the pilot
should be
The length of a pilot can vary hugely,
explains McGrath: “I’ve worked with
pilots lasting a couple of months to
in excess of nine months depending
on the complexity, usage and
sensitivity around using the tech.”
Bespoke projects could take even
longer, adds Mason.
The success
measure
might simply
be that it’s
better than
the last system
28 HR October 2019 hrmagazine.co.uk
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