Best-of-Breed VS All-In-One HRIS Solutions

The choice between best-of-breed software products and all-in-one systems is a crucial decision for businesses when selecting their software solutions. While it may offer initial simplicity, it is crucial to recognise that, in the long run, choosing a full system could be a short-term gain, that might ultimately incur higher costs and reduced process efficiencies for your business.

Special Features

All-in-one HRIS solutions may lack specialised features compared to standalone software. If your organisation requires advanced functionalities in a specific HR area, recruiting for example, an all-in-one system might not provide the depth you need. As your organisation grows, an all-in-one HRIS might face scalability issues. It may not adapt well to the evolving needs of an organisation, leading to potential system and process constraints.

All-in-one solutions often come with a higher price tag. While they consolidate various HR functions, you may end up paying for features you do not need or use. Smaller businesses might find the cost prohibitive. If your organisation is already using specialised tools for certain HR functions, integrating them into an all-in-one HRIS may pose challenges. Migrating data and ensuring seamless compatibility can be complex and these systems may not allow for extensive customisation forcing your organisation to adapt its processes to fit the system’s predefined workflows, limiting flexibility.

Implementation

Implementing a comprehensive HRIS can often take years and require dedicated team members from within your organisation to focus on the implementation. There is a major change management process needed and requires extensive support and training for internal users to navigate and utilize all the modules. This learning curve disrupts productivity during the transition period.

Additionally, relying on a single vendor for all HR functionalities means your organisation becomes dependent on that vendor’s performance and support. If the vendor encounters issues or goes out of business, it can significantly impact your HR operations. All-in-one HRIS solutions do not adopt new technologies and innovations as quickly as specialised best of breed solutions do. This could result in your organisation missing out on the latest advancements in specific HR areas.

Best of breed systems refer to individual software applications that excel in a specific function or task. These applications are typically developed by specialised vendors, such as QJumpers, and focus on providing the best functionality within their niche. Best of breed software is known for its specialisation, innovation and depth of features within a particular domain. For example, a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software provider offers advanced features specifically tailored for managing customer relationships that an HRIS does not all-in-one HRIS’s provide a broader range of functionalities, but lack the depth, innovation and specialisation of best of breed software in specific areas.

Integration

Integration can be achieved through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) or middleware. Best of breed solutions offer more flexibility in choosing the best-in-class tools for each specific function.  By choosing this path, businesses can mix and match different specialised solutions based on their needs which can also be scaled independently. If one aspect of the business grows, it’s easier to upgrade or replace a single software application rather than having to replace an entire suite of HR tools that one HRIS constrains businesses into.

While an all-in-one HRIS aims to provide a unified user experience, the quality of each module’s user interface and functionality can vary. Users might find some modules more intuitive and user-friendly than others.  In virtually all HRIS systems, certain modules have been bought from other suppliers and integrated into the HRIS – not always in a very seamless way.  So even though it looks like one platform, it is usually a combination of technologies mashed together. 

By integrating best of breed solutions into an HRIS, you also get to choose what data to include within an HRIS.  For example, an applicant tracking system will hold all applicant data but only send new hire data to the HRIS.  This greatly reduces data storage (and cost) within the HRIS and means that data security for applicant data can be managed independently of employee data.

Ongoing Maintenance and Support

Maintenance and support for the QJumpers Best-of-Breed ATS solution does not depend on multiple vendors, just one. We also offer free training and personal support from a single source of contact which simplifies this process for users. HRIS systems charge for support and system changes. Usually system changes cannot be easily done by the users and so extra unbudgeted costs are incurred on top of your normal licences fees. 

Ultimately, the choice between best-of-breed software products and all-in-one HRIS’s depends on the specific needs, priorities, and preferences of a business. Some businesses may benefit from the depth of features provided by specialised best of breed solutions, while others may value the convenience and integration of all-in-one systems. It is essential to carefully evaluate the requirements and weigh the pros and cons before making a decision. 

If you would like to find out more about our Best-of-Breed Application Tracking System, please get in touch via [email protected]