Moving to the Cloud might seem like a no-brainer for some, but others might take more convincing. For many HR leaders, the reasons to move HCM to the Cloud are plentiful and clear. Cloud offers promising rewards such as data and insights that can improve recruiting, retention, and employee experience. Cloud also provides automation tools that can do away with time-consuming processes, which will free up time for employees to spend time on strategic, value-adding tasks instead. While these benefits are clear to some, convincing key stakeholders to move to the Cloud can be a more difficult task. The key is to develop a convincing and compelling HCM Cloud business case. A recent blog from Oracle laid out the four steps for building the business case for HCM Cloud. The four steps included:

• Build a structured business case
• Create a sense of urgency
• Focus on the right problems
• Have a plan for success

Build a Structured Business Case

Many businesses have limited funds and resources, yet they have nearly unlimited requests for investments and technology upgrades. To get attention, and ultimately funds for a project, it’s essential to present a project as a critical part of improving business. HCM Cloud technology can shape the future of an organization, so it’s important to show your CFOs how it can benefit your company through a logical, data-based business case that shows the value of the project. CFOs are far more likely to fund projects that will directly affect the bottom line and that have tangible and trackable results.

Create a Sense of Urgency

To avoid executives pushing your project to the backburner, you have to create a sense of urgency around it. There are a lot of moving parts within an organization, so it’s easy to push new ideas to the background. Therefore, it’s not enough to show how your project will benefit your organization. You must also explain why it has to happen immediately and must be a priority for your business. If you present a business case for why you should move to HCM Cloud without emphasizing why it must happen now, your business is likely to agree with your case but not act on the idea. A successful business case shows, in concrete terms, why moving to HCM Cloud must be a priority and how postponing the project will cost the business in the long run.

Focus on the Right Problems

HR leaders are very aware of the challenges that their own teams face and how HCM Cloud solution could alleviate those problems. However, it’s not enough to focus on how HCM Cloud can benefit only HR leaders and staff. You have to show executives how the project aligns with the business concerns of the entire company. CFOs will want to understand how the cost is justified. Whether it will reduce costs, increase revenue, etc., you have to show how the project will benefit everyone, not just one part of the organization. It’s also important to have data to back up your claims.

Have a Plan for Success

After completing the first three steps, seal the deal with your plan for success. Show how this project will serve as a benefit, not a disruption. Large-scale changes like a Cloud migration will undoubtedly be disruptive to people and processes, but it’s up to you to show how it will be the least disruptive to the overall business. Have a plan for both a successful implementation and adoption, as well as components such as plans for change management, business readiness, and ongoing audits of workflows and processes. This will show that your strategy is not only plausible but ultimately a big benefit for the business.

To learn more about building an HCM Cloud business case, check out the full article from Oracle attached below.