As part of the development of our latest White Paper “HRIS adoption in organisations – Focus on user support”, we have updated our HRIS Adoption Barometer.
In 2022, we observed the evolution of issues related to HRIS adoption, questioning whether there might be obstacles inherent to certain HR fields (Access the 2022 Barometer here).
This new edition focuses on a different aspect: what is the connection between the efficiency of user support and HRIS adoption?
Scope of the Barometer
The qualitative survey that underpins our White Paper was preceded by a quantitative survey. This questionnaire was administered online between November 2023 and April 2024 to 65 HR and HRIS professionals (all based in France).
This quantitative survey was not intended to be representative but served to frame the subject. It helped identify key challenges, particularly around user support, and to prepare the qualitative survey.
Respondents were asked to select options from drop-down menus, rank items by level of importance, and provide comments if the proposed options did not adequately reflect their situation.
To capture the evolution of HRIS adoption practices in organisations, the results presented in this article are compared, wherever possible, to those from previous editions conducted in 2019 and 2022.
The 2024 respondents represent organisations of all sizes:
And from various sectors of activity:
With HR and HRIS responsibilities, primarily HR or HRIS functional roles:
The main processes managed in their HRIS include:
In 2024, respondents identified the following characteristics of their HRIS:
Barometer of HRIS adoption in 2024
The quantitative survey reveals an average level of HRIS adoption. Many organisations have only partially adopted their HRIS or, in some cases, not at all.
According to respondents, the average adoption score for HRIS among users is 3.5/5.
While the average adoption score is 3.5/5, this figure varies significantly depending on multiple factors, detailed in the “Obstacles” section of the White Paper. Adoption also differs by sector, company size, geographic region, and HR processes in question.
It is challenging to establish a comprehensive view of adoption in organisations based on the responses. Nevertheless, respondents generally find the level of adoption to be satisfactory.
Ranking of the main impacts of poor HRIS adoption in 2024
When HRIS adoption is poor, numerous impacts are observed.
The most commonly reported impacts, identified by 78% of respondents, are:
- Decreased employee and manager satisfaction
- Degradation in data quality
- Damage to the HR function’s reputation
It is worth noting that all the impacts listed are significant in the organisations surveyed. The lowest-ranked impact—deterioration in the cost-effectiveness of HRIS support—was still reported by 62% of the respondents.
Other impacts emerge from poor HRIS adoption.
We also tracked the evolution of these key impacts over time, comparing results with previous Barometers.
The impacts most frequently discussed during qualitative surveys were presented in a word cloud at a round table organised for the White Paper launch:
Focus on User Support
A wide range of user support mechanisms has been implemented within the organisations surveyed.
Firstly, these mechanisms appear to correlate with organisation size, the number of users to support, and the resources available.
Nevertheless, most respondents (83%) favour having a dedicated HRIS support team, regardless of organisation size.
This is followed by informal peer support mechanisms, such as turning to colleagues (62%), the HR representative (43%), key users (38%), and line managers (32%).
Other mechanisms—such as a business helpdesk (28%), IT department (18%), HR portal (18%), or chatbots (5%)—are less frequently implemented.
The quality of the user support service was rated 3.61/5, close to the average score for HRIS adoption (3.5/5) and training effectiveness (3.29/5).
One key takeaway from the Barometer: 89% of respondents confirmed a correlation between the quality of user support and HRIS adoption.
According to Christophe Quaranta, Manager AMOA and HRIS Payroll France at Air France: “Once the tool is in ‘production’, the support is the application’s quality thermometer. You can assess the level of adoption not just by the number of questions asked, but by the quality of those questions. Are the issues being raised basic? If so, the tool has not been fully understood, which means more training is needed. Support is where you need to set the right indicators to identify areas for improvement and strategies to enhance user understanding.”
Christelle Le Briz, Payroll Programme Manager for the Gendarmerie Nationale: “The effectiveness of support is crucial for HRIS adoption. If someone raises an issue and no response is given, they may feel their request is being ignored. This creates resistance to adopting the HRIS. People start to question why they should bother adopting a system that doesn’t work properly. Ensuring high satisfaction and listening to user feedback are essential for adoption.”
Training systems implemented in organisations
Training is often considered the number-one solution to foster HRIS adoption.
The survey highlights a variety of training methods used since 2019:
Distance learning leads the way, used by 88% of respondents (+32% since 2022, and +46% since 2019).
PDF/paper user manuals rank second, with 86% of responses (+21% since 2022).
Training by key users and other departments remains in third place (66%, +7%).
Face-to-face training is close behind, at 65% (+16%).
Finally, embedded training assistants (e.g., Shortways) saw a slight increase, with 17% of responses.
However, training alone is not deemed effective enough:
Respondents rated the effectiveness of training systems at an average of 3.29/5.
Reaching all employees is increasingly challenging, particularly for remote workers and multinational companies. This underscores the importance of varying training approaches.
The limited effectiveness of training contributes to poor HRIS adoption, highlighting the need for additional strategies to improve it.
Explore more on HRIS adoption:
