Summary

In 2003, Norman walker, head of HR at Novartis, received approval from the management board to implement a global human resource information system having a cost of 78 million dollars due to the gap between present HRIS and the global one. Moreover the company has to face many problems with their current HR system which was regarding the consistency in the standards, data consolidation and on time availability for the matrix structure and many other reasons. Due to these reasons the company was not able to centralize and standardized of the HR system the 140 countries. Novartis, since its formation in 1996, Dan Vasella the CEO, had transformed the organization from two with slow moving functional into a high performance company. His main goal was to make the Novartis a 'premier talent machine by 2005'. The new global HRIS system was the key element in this transformation. It was clear to Walker that this was a major organizational change effort, not simply an IT implementation. The main aims for the global HRIS to cover centralized and standardize all geographical regions and all business units and global function form the 360 affiliates and 140 countries in which they are operating. Novartis was obviously not the first major corporation to go through this type of transformation. A growing number of organizations had experience in implementing HRIS systems, but none started with the exact same circumstances and, therefore, adopted different approaches. In spite of these differences, there were lessons to be learned, both positive and negative, from other companies experiences. SAP, the system Novartis chose, provided a number of success stories to illustrate how my SAP HR, its comprehensive HR solution, had helped companies around the world optimize their HR function, The system has the capability to reduce the administration cost from 60% to 20% and on the other hand it increases the customer services and consulting from 30% to 60%. Not only that this system will increase the working efficiency and effectiveness of the company by reducing the processing time from 12 days to 12 second (according to a multinational corporation). The system also support the OTR process, provide global data through one HR web tool, support the growth and organizational change, increase the operational efficiency of the company, improve the customer satisfaction, increase standardization, support the workforce management and business strategy, delivery cost and HR operational cost. In talking with others who had implemented global HRIS system, it was clear to the HR management that the implementation could be long and, at times, painful process. Not only would it affect how the HR process would work, HRIS also would put major pressures on how HR associates would interact with other department and line management in the firm. Although Walker had made substantial progress in transforming the HR function, much of their efforts remain transactional and not strategic. The case describes the changes Walker had already made and poses a set of challenges that need to be addressed to implement the new HRIS project.

Problems
1. The first and the major problem is the implementation of the new global HRIS because many of the line managers were resisting regarding its the acceptance and the implementation. Not only that the impact of the new system on the relationship of HR professionals with their business partners and other managers. Each additional complexity expanded the difficulties with the subsequent implementation. 2. The new global HRIS is not able to fulfill the key objective of the company or the existing HR and the IT department notable completely execute its up to its maximum and optimal capacity which include the technical challenges for system implementation such as web enabling of critical processes. 3. HR management team knew that they were embarking on a transformation that was far more than simply a technical challenge, but they were not completely sure that they understood what this might detail. 4. Failure to standardize and centralized the complex new HR system which increased the difficulties with subsequent implementation. The HRIS efforts represented a major change in the fundamental role and responsibilities of the HR function within the company. 5. Threats regarding data protection and privacy issues in of all the 340 affiliation and 140 countries. 6. Risk of overselling the project in order to gain commitment which can cause problems. This can cause problems when the actual system does not deliver the promised benefits 7. Problem can arise that the new global human resource system is designed with the feature which only add value to overall business especially in the IT department but not relevant or interesting to HR. 8. While operating in the 140 countries there will be a problem regarding cultural differences which include the communication between the global branches, misinterpretation of the information and commitment in the implementation of the new global HR strategies. 9. In such advancement it is easy to lose momentum over a long implementation process. It is important for the company to stick to the schedule of deliverables and not let things slip. Metrics are important. But remember, that the company or the HR cannot fix everything in advance, do not let planning substitute for action.

Reasons
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Highly fragmented market Gap in the infrastructure priority was the lack of a global HR information system. Existing IT system within the company was not so adequate. No consistent standard No consolidated database No ability to provide data in a form to reflect or support their matrix structure. Difficulty in supporting the business in identifying, moving and tracking talent. Multiple, fragmented systems PeopleSoft, SAP, or no system decentralized by the country or by the business unit. 9. Exposure too many small vendors with non-integrated niche application.

Solutions
1. In order to overcome these obstacles first of all the HR must communicate or set a series of meetings with the line managers of the religion level of all the 340 affiliations and 140 countries to bring them in this agreement and the acceptance of the new global human resource information system. 2. Senior leadership of the company must be actively involved in the effective implementation of this new system to resolve any disagreements regarding the system design and keep the top managers on track. 3. The HR manager or the department should apply this global human recourse system in one place and on the basis of the feedback or the result regarding the acceptance and rejection of the new system, should go for or apply it in the other departments. 4. To make this process work requires constant communication and the explicit sharing of assumptions across the organization, including global, regional, and market constituents. The overriding business value of the project must be convincingly articulated. 5. The HR should first made the implementation of the new system, 2) then test it base upon the employees behavior, 3) made the analysis base upon the employees working attitude, 4) and then finally made the evaluation of the data or the analysis that the company should go for this new system or not. 6. The role of the HR department and the manager within the company would require a more fundamental transformation i.e. a shift from a functional expert and transaction processor to strategic partner and change event. 7. While engaged in a global implementation effort, it is crucial to pay close attention to cultural differences and cultures requires different approached and an understanding of the responses. The signals that constitute agreement and

support can vary by country, and there is a potential for misinterpretation of how much commitment is present. 8. Significant priority of the company was to implement a firm wide HRIS that would convert many of transaction-based HR core processes to an internet-based system. Success of the global HRIS within the company lay in the organization acceptance of this new way of doing business. 9. Company objective should be in the accordance with the individual performance of the company. 10. End users or the lower management must be involved and fell ownership of the system. This means thinking through in advance how they will be involved, what the marketing and communication messages will be, and how the tools will really be used.