Some factors to be considered when buying a Talent Management System

As part of our HRIS class we’ve seen how important is to get executive support to be successful with the acquisition and deployment of a talent management system. Currently, I’m supporting my HR team doing research about several recruitment solutions. Reading “Buying a Talent Management System, The 11 Key Steps to Success” a whitepaper written by Knowledge Infusion and Cornerstone on Demand, I linked all the steps in our charter assignment and these companies’ recommendations which are:

1.Establish objectives, respond to the question: What are you trying to accomplish?
2.Win executive support, this is critical to make the change happen or not.
3.Assemble a project team, define who is involved and include key parties in the org.
4.Define requirements, validate existing processes and leverage vendor best practices.
5.Establish a preliminary timeline and resource requirements, implement only what you need!
6.Prepare a business case, what will be the business impact?
7.Establish a budget, understand your budget process and consider direct and indirect costs.
8.Evaluate solutions, consider solutions based on the org’s culture and needs.
9.Select a vendor, ask questions! Involve HR and IT parties.
10.Negotiate the contract, don’t focus only on money, negotiate service levels too.
11.Begin implementation, be aware of your scope all the time, and communicate!

Wow! All these steps require strong Project Management skills. Actually, without experienced project managers who keep their eyes on resources, timelines and focus, the implementation would be a complete failure. I even got motivated to continue working on my charter… stay tuned!