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How a 120-person creative agency replaced 14 spreadsheets with one HR system in 6 weeks.
Skillfi helped the agency choose an HRIS that fit its size, cleaned and moved every record across and got the whole team using it in the first month. It's the same approach behind our HRIS implementation service.
One HR manager, fourteen spreadsheets and every Friday afternoon.
The agency had grown from 40 to 120 people in three years, and HR had grown with it, one spreadsheet at a time. Employee details lived in one file, time off in another, salaries in a third, and contracts and documents were scattered across email and a shared drive.
The HR manager spent around 14 hours a week keeping it all in sync, most of it on Fridays. Employees asked HR how much leave they had left, managers approved time off in three different places, and a quick audit found that about 1 in 6 employee records had at least one error.
Our HR system was me, a shared drive and a lot of Friday afternoons.
HR Manager, client
Pick the right-sized system, then make it the only one.
The agency didn't need an enterprise platform. It needed a system its people would actually open. We chose for adoption first, set it up around how the agency already worked, and tidied up HR policies along the way with input from a fractional CHRO.
3 vendors, scored on fit
We shortlisted three HRIS options and ran demos against the agency's real needs: time off, documents, self-service and price for a 120-person team.
Clean data, clear policies
Fourteen spreadsheets merged and cleaned, time-off policies rebuilt, and every contract and document filed against the right employee.
Self-service from day one
Employees managed their own details and time off on mobile, and managers approved requests in one click, after short training for each team.
Six weeks, week by week
From a folder of spreadsheets to one system the whole agency uses. Here's how the engagement unfolded.
- Week 13 vendors demoed
Needs & shortlist
We mapped how HR actually worked, then shortlisted and demoed HRIS options against the agency's must-haves.
- Week 214 sheets merged
Data clean-up
Fourteen spreadsheets merged into one clean employee record set, with every error fixed before import.
- Week 35 leave policies
Setup & policies
Records imported, documents attached and time-off policies rebuilt for both offices.
- Week 4Mobile ready
Self-service & approvals
Employee self-service, mobile access and one-click manager approvals switched on and tested.
- Week 512 managers trained
Training & launch
Short sessions for managers and a two-minute guide for everyone else, then a company-wide launch.
- Week 61 system
Spreadsheets retired
The old files were archived and the HRIS became the only place employee data lives.
Four things that got 120 people using it
A new HR system only works if people open it. Every part of the setup was designed so employees and managers would choose it over asking HR.
Employee records
- One profile per employee
- Contracts & documents attached
- Org chart built automatically
Leave on autopilot
- Policies by office & tenure
- Balances calculated automatically
- Team calendar for managers
Employees in control
- Update personal details
- Request leave in seconds
- Find policies & documents
Approvals & onboarding
- One-click leave approvals
- Onboarding checklists for new hires
- Reminders for pending tasks
90 days after go-live
HR admin hours per week
11 hours a week back for the HR manager to spend on people, not paperwork.
Our HR manager has her Fridays back, and managers stopped asking how many days someone has left. It just works.
Managing Director, clientStill running HR on spreadsheets?
We'll help you choose the right-sized HRIS, clean up your data and get your whole team using it within weeks. Hiring too? We can connect it to your ATS so new hires flow straight into onboarding.
- An HRIS shortlist scored on your needs
- Clean data, migrated and checked
- Time-off, documents & self-service set up
- Training & 90-day adoption tracking
30 minutes. No obligation.
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