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No business case for HR self-service is complete without analysing the outlay on the supporting IT systems. While much of the focus in IT implementations traditionally falls on the cost of the initial software licence, true cost of ownership spans the entire lifecycle of the product. It’s important that all stakeholders – including HR, finance and IT – are involved in this element of the business planning, since implementation invariably involves some trade-offs.

Self-service capability is typically purchased as an add-on to an existing HR system or during a fullblown HRMS replacement cycle. The cost of ownership equation will therefore vary. Assuming it’s implemented as part of a broader HRMS purchase, the true cost of ownership consists of a wide range of factors including:

- Licence fee and annual maintenance costs – In addition to the upfront costs, most applications carry a maintenance fee of up to 20+ per cent per year to cover ongoing product enhancements

- Implementation fees – The cost of installing a system and tailoring it to your specific work environment will be influenced by numerous factors, including:

- How much you choose to change the system. Most organisations adapt new IT systems to the way they work – how much it costs to do so will depend in part on the way the system was designed. In particular, it’s important to establish how much your needs can be met through configuration (e.g. changing fields and screens) rather than customisation, which involves changes to the underlying software code. Extensive customisation can be expensive and may complicate future upgrades

- How much integration is required to connect to other systems, both within HR and in other business functions

- Training – The cost of training is routinely underestimated in IT implementations. Worse, training is often the first item to be cut when budgets come under pressure – which is usually a false economy, given how significantly training influences user adoption. Where self-service systems offer access through a browser-style interface, the user training requirements will be significantly reduced

- Support – The cost of support provided by both IT and HR should be factored in throughout the implementation and beyond

Computers In Personnel Ltd
28-30 Chapel St
Marlow, SL7 1DD
0870 366 2345