Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/169755
HRO Today Forum APAC crux of any solution is the output. She summed up: "We're processing pay for Ericsson in a variety of locations. Mark and his team aren't going to come into the centre and tell us how to run pay. What they're really looking for is a very strong output in terms of what we're doing." Rogers said the solution is made up of three components: the technology, the delivery location of the service (processing pay, validations, executing leaves), and compliance, control, and auditability. Ericsson has a SAP interface. "We're taking from Ericsson that zero to gross information so that allows them to protect the master record of employment, which sits in the SAP system," she noted. Talent2 strived to deliver a common employee experience for all staff members across the region. They developed a web-based self-service portal that housed employee HR administration forms; time management and award interpretation information; payroll documents; leave management documents; and information on superannuation and benefits. Talent2's technology supported delivery of local and regional reporting (see Figure 1 on page 25). Looking Back, Looking Forward With the goals and objectives on the table and met with a technological solution, the next step was implementation. "What we did really well in this particular implementation is we set up waves," Howes explained. "We implemented countries in groups of three. We had a very good change process in implementing that. I think the systems that Talent2 brought to the table and the partnership that we were able to create was very strong." But an impending deadline of 12 months turned the pressure levels to high. "Where we then failed though I think was we said, 'I've implemented that country, phew, let's move onto the next three,' " Howes recalled. "We actually started to have a few problems in the first three countries but we lost a little bit of sight of how they were actually going because we were spending so much time and energy on the next three due to the goals and objectives. You can't lose sight of what you've actually implemented or the ongoing management piece." "Don't outsource a problem. You need to make sure that you're as confident in the way that you do it, then outsource it, then look for your efficiencies and improvements." —Mark Howes, Ericsson Communicate to all parties. "When I look back, I think we communicated our vision well at the senior stakeholder engagement level. But we probably didn't invest enough time communicating to the individual people who were currently processing payroll in the country what it meant for them." Enlist a project manager. "For us, a must-have was we appointed a dedicated resource to implement this particular project. I look back now and say that if we didn't have that then, I don't think we would have been successful. We put a full-time project manager into the Philippines to manage this as a dedicated activity on the Ericsson side. That was one of the real benefits of being able to create that partnership in the solution as well. Because they were then able to be a central point of all the resources and engagements that you were dealing with both internally and with your outsource partner." Consider cultural appreciation. "This is a very diverse region, so what it means to process payroll in Bangladesh is different from Australia and Singapore. A lot of the global organisations are centralising and looking at how do we create economies of scale and efficiencies. We all need to do that, but let's not lose sight of the people engaged in the process and the nuances of the cultural appreciation that we have." Post implementation, Howes had the opportunity reflect on the overall journey, and offered some advice: Stick to your guns. "Being really clear with your vision, with your outsource partner about where you want to be and how you want to get there is an absolute imperative. For us it is absolutely about how do we make sure we maximise economies of scale with the infrastructure from an Ericsson point of view. We have a frame agreement that is very clear and a set of five key performance indicators that we will measure every month." Know your current process. "Don't outsource a problem just because you don't want to do it or have it anymore. You really need to make sure that you're as confident in the way that you do it, then outsource it, then look for your efficiencies and improvements from that point of view." Understand what's possible—and what's not. "When it comes to all of these outsourcing arrangements—whether it's payroll or recruitment—you need to be true to your organisation in terms of which ones you want to prioritise and value and which ones you want to be flexible on," Howes concluded. [26] HRO TODAY GLOBAL | SUMMER 2013