3 Ways to Rule Out HRIS Vendors Without Getting on a Demo

You've been asked to kick-off a new HRIS evaluation process and your first job is to figure out where to start.

The HRIS software market has over 50 vendors today and nearly a dozen of those options have sprung up in the last decade.

You don't have time to evaluate all 50 or really even 5. So how do you find the best 3 options for your needs?

Learn More: Request a free HRIS Vendor Report with pricing, pros/cons and user reviews

You could ask OutSail for help and our free services will speed up this process. But you're a self-starter and want to develop these skills yourself. So here's how to do it:

1.) Size Match & Scalability

The number one reason that businesses fail or succeed on an HRIS platform is because they end up with a platform that wasn't the right fit for their size and needs.

Either the technology was way too robust and they could never take advantage of the features, or the technology was too limiting and incapable of mapping to their needs.

In order to find out which vendors are the right fit for your company, you need to learn about their average customer size.

The challenge with this is that most vendors are not advertising their average customer size and most salespeople are willing to say 'Oh, we work with businesses like yours all the time.'

So the best way to find this information (aside from asking us) is to use software review websites. When you visit sites like G2 or Capterra, they will tell you what sized companies are reviewing the technologies.

For instance, almost 90% of all reviewers of Gusto have less than 50 employees, so you can infer Gusto is an SMB solution

Additionally, almost 90% of all reviewers of Workday have more than 1000 employees, so you can infer Workday is an enterprise solution.

Finding a system that is the right fit for your organization is the easiest way to ensure success and remove irrelevant vendors

Blog: Workday Reviews - Pricing, Pros/Cons, User Reviews

Blog: How Long Does It Take To Buy and Implement an HRIS

2.) Missing Functionality

The next way to rule out vendors without getting on a demo is to peruse their website for missing modules.

Some vendors offer every module from hire-to-retire. But many vendors, especially ones that are relatively new to the market, cannot offer the full suite.

For example, many of our buyers are looking for payroll to be included in their HRIS, but many HRIS vendors don’t offer payroll. This can be another easy way to knock out

ADP Workforce Now Reviews - Pricing, Pros/Cons, User Reviews

3.) Low Market Presence

A third and final way to remove unqualified vendors from your shortlist is to research their market presence.

This doesn't mean that the largest companies in the world are necessarily best equipped to meet your needs. However, there is a certain threshold of funding, employee size, customer reviews and buzz that you should expect from a vendor that will become the foundational platform for your HR operations.

Blog: Questions to Ask When Evaluating HRIS Systems

Without a well-funded, talented team and large customer base, it's unlikely that a vendor will continue to have enough revenue to keep growing, adding new features and expanding their services.

A few ways to check on market presence include:

1.) Vendor headcount - Look at each vendor's LinkedIn company page to see how many employees they have and how that compares to your other options

2.) Vendor funding - Search the company to see if it is public or private. If it is private, use Crunchbase to search for their funding history.

3.) Market presence - Search the vendor on popular review sites to ensure that there are legitimate customers out there. Also ask your network.