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Implementation of Sympa HR System for international organisation

This case focuses on ‘international HRM project management and consultancy for Sympa HR software’ and describes the implementation of the Sympa HR system for Multi Corporation, an internationally operating organisation in the property and asset management sector, active in 16 countries. The goal was to establish an international HR system that contributes to: lower operational costs, employee cost allocation, talent management, international compliance, and accessible management information.

Background

The project was initiated due to the need for a flexible and future-proof HR system capable of supporting both operational HR processes and strategic HR and business objectives. This included replacing the existing Workday HR system and introducing functionalities tailored to an international and decentralised business environment with 16 countries, more than 800 employees at the start, and an HR department consisting of 10 team HR managers/ HR officers, including the Multi Corporation headquarters and local HR teams in the Multi Corporation countries.

The project ambition | Implementing Sympa HR in an International Environment

The project involved the implementation of the following HR processes and functionalities with the aim of:

  • Lowering costs for the organisation through improved operational efficiency by harmonizing, digitising, and automating core HR processes for employee onboarding, internal mobility, and offboarding, leave, absence via workflows and automatic interfaces (APIs) with internal and external applications.
  • Allocating employee costs through the implementation of functionality for allocating personnel costs across properties, assets, and projects.
  • Supporting talent management to fulfil the needs of the HR department at headquarters and in the countries, enabling a performance management cycle with a focus on Manager- Employee conversations, competencies, manager ratings, final ratings and employee development.
  • Harmonising the configuration of generic and country-specific functionalities across the international organisation, covering the following countries: Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Latvia, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Ukraine, Switzerland, France, United Kingdom, Denmark.
  • Providing management information within the HR system and integrating HR data with the Business Intelligence environment.

Approach

  • In collaboration with the HR team: at headquarters and HR managers from the involved countries, a project-based approach was followed. This included:
  • Workshops: Organising and facilitating workshops to identify and prioritize HR system requirements.
  • Project Management: Setting up the project organisation, planning, communication, and coordination of project activities, including implementing an HR support model and application management after go-live.
  • Configuration and Implementation: Working with the software provider Sympa to configure Sympa HR, based on identified requirements, including data migration, and setting up API connections with payroll systems and other internal and external applications.
  • Training and Documentation: Creating multilingual help texts, professional user guides, and online tutorials for managers and employees, as well as training key users to work independently and effectively with the system.

Click here for more information on Project management and consultancy for Sympa.

Results and Next Steps

A fully operational Sympa HR system implemented in an international environment. The system is integrated with other organisational processes such as payroll, business intelligence, identity & access management (IAM), management reporting, and more. It also includes specialized HR tools such as performance management (interviews and appraisals), learning management, and employee cost allocation. Additionally, country-specific functionalities are available to meet local requirements and regulations.

The next steps involve continuing to work in line with an agile HR system development roadmap, enabling the organisation to anticipate current and future developments. With this agile HR system development roadmap it is relatively easy to quickly onboard new companies, countries, and HR processes according to an implementation blueprint. This ensures the HR function can consistently and proactively support the business’s growth.

Noteworthy | One significant finding from the project evaluation was that the success of the implementation greatly benefited from organisational involvement and support. Engaging local HR managers, the ICT function, Finance, and the Board of Directors through the steering committee proved essential. Sympa truly became an integrated HRM system.

Additionally, providing project support for change management, communication, and decision-making around HR processes and tools was critical. This highlighted the importance of change management in an international implementation where HR teams work at a relative distance and deal with cultural differences.

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