The Temptation of “Set and Forget” Technology
It’s easy to see why businesses get excited about new technology. Platforms like Dayforce offer a powerful suite of tools - integrated payroll, talent management, compliance tracking, performance reviews, self-service portals, AI-powered analytics, and more.
They’re often marketed as the solution to uplift your for workforce performance. But even the most powerful platform can’t fix a flawed process.
Without a clear plan for how your people, policies, and workflows will align to the new system, you risk investing hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars into software that simply digitises inefficiency.
By itselft, Automation does not equal transofrmation
There’s a fundamental difference between automation and transformation:
Automation: Makes something faster or easier
Transformation: Changes the way something works to achieve better outcomes
A system can automate leave requests, onboarding, or payroll calculations. But if your approval process is clunky, your onboarding tasks are unclear, or your payroll data is riddled with errors, automating those steps only speeds up poor outcomes.
The danger is you create the illusion of progress, without meaningful improvement.
That’s why leading HCM providers and consultants always start with a process review. The right software needs the right structure to deliver lasting results.
Why Good Systems Require Good Process
Here’s a simple principle we use with clients:
Don’t customise the software to fit your bad process. Adapt your process to fit the software’s best practice.
Most modern HCM platforms are built around standardised, proven processes for onboarding, performance reviews, time and attendance, award interpretation, and more. If you spend your implementation budget tailoring the system to match inefficient workflows, you're missing a critical opportunity to improve.
Instead, aim to:
Configure the platform to reflect your business (e.g. job roles, leave types, policies)
Avoid unnecessary customisation that deviates from best-practice logic
Let the platform’s structure guide improvement, not fight against it
You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, just align to one that works.
Good processes enhanced by smart integrations support complexity - integrate what matters
Modern businesses rarely operate in silos. Workforce data needs to move seamlessly between systems—whether it's linking time and attendance with a production schedule, syncing payroll with point-of-sale (POS) data, or ensuring shift patterns align with operational forecasts.
That’s where middleware becomes essential.
Rather than over-customising your HCM platform, middleware allows you to:
Integrate business-critical systems like manufacturing platforms, POS, rostering tools, or ERP systems with your HCM
Streamline data flows between systems—reducing manual entry and reconciliation
Preserve the integrity and upgradeability of your HCM platform by avoiding intrusive customisation
Enable real-time insights by connecting workforce performance with operational performance
Middleware acts as the translator and traffic controller—handling data transformation, validation, and synchronisation between platforms.
This approach ensures your HCM remains clean, scalable, and aligned to best practice—while still supporting the complex needs of your business.
A Real-World Example
At Renofy, we’re currently working with a client on one of the most complex HCM implementations in Australia.
Despite employing fewer than 3,000 people, the organisation operates across six legal entities and uses a highly bespoke award interpretation model.
Rather than customising the core Dayforce platform to meet every nuance, we implemented a middleware layer. This layer translates business-specific requirements before passing them into the HCM platform, enabling compliance without compromising long-term scalability.
The lesson? Even the most complex environments can work with best-practice systems—when design is thoughtful and strategic.
Strategic Advisory Matters
One of the most valuable roles an HCM consultant can play isn’t technical—it’s strategic.
An experienced partner won’t just ask: “What do you need the system to do?”
They’ll ask:
“How do your people work today?”
“What’s holding back performance?”
“Where is HR spending time it shouldn’t?”
“What does success look like in 12 months?”
With this lens, implementation becomes more than a checklist. It becomes an opportunity to redesign HR with purpose.
What does better HCM look like?
One of commpnly used hashtags is #betterHCM. Here's what better HCM and a successfull implementation typically includes
Proces Review: an Audit of existing busines processes and identify inefficiences.
Early review of Industrial Instruments: identifying 'red flags' that will need to be considered more closely in the design of your new solutions
Strategic Alignment: Define what HR success looks like—then build toward it.
Best-Practice Configuration: Use the platform as intended wherever possible.
Middleware Only Where Needed: Reserve integrations for truly critical exceptions.
Change Management: Train and support your people so adoption becomes seamless
Final Thoughts: Start With Strategy, Not Software
Technology is an enabler, not a silver bullet.
The real value of an HCM system lies in its ability to support well-designed processes, inform better decisions, and elevate HR into a true strategic force.
But that can only happen if the foundation is solid. So before you implement, customise, or automate, take a step back:
Review how HR operates
Define the outcomes you want to achieve
Build your system around those goals
Because in better HCM - as in business -good processes drive great performance.
