Keep it ridiculously simple. When we supported a fast-scaling tech company rolling out a new HRIS, the winning move was building short, role-specific walkthroughs—think 2-minute screen recordings and one-pagers, not 30-slide decks. We broke the habit of overwhelming people with every feature upfront. Instead, we focused on answering one question: What does this person actually need to do in the system next week? One time, I sat with a head of operations who was stressed that managers weren't approving leave requests in time. Turned out, they had no idea how to. We built a one-click guide tailored just to that task, and suddenly the issue vanished. It sounds almost too simple, but that's what works—show people what they need, when they need it, and cut the fluff. At spectup, we often remind clients that adoption isn't about features—it's about habits. So we bake training into real workflows instead of isolating it in a separate "learning phase." And a little humor or human tone in the materials? Helps more than you'd expect.
One tip for creating effective training materials for a new HRIS system is to break the content into bite-sized, role-specific modules. I've found that employees are more likely to engage with training when it's tailored to their daily tasks rather than being overwhelmed by a generic, one-size-fits-all approach. For example, when we rolled out a new HRIS last year, I created short, interactive video tutorials for each department, showing them exactly how to perform their most common tasks in the system. I also incorporated quizzes and real-life scenarios to keep them engaged. This approach not only helped employees feel confident using the system but also made the transition smoother. By focusing on practical, hands-on learning and keeping the content relevant to their roles, employees were more invested in the process, leading to faster adoption and fewer support calls.