I see a steady stream of Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for people technology platforms - HRIS, payroll, onboarding, and time and attendance systems. Each time, I feel a mix of hope and dread.

Hope, because these systems have real potential to transform the way organisations work.

Dread, because the way many RFPs are written almost guarantees disappointment.

Too often, RFPs read like someone saying: “ Find me a vehicle that’s fast, cheap, carries heavy loads, and can fly if needed.” The trouble is, trucks, planes, and cars all exist for different reasons. Each is built for different journeys, road conditions, and drivers. And even the best machine will fail if the person behind the wheel doesn’t have the skills, confidence, or support to succeed.

It’s the same with people technology platforms.

Why people technology RFPs go wrong

By the time most RFPs reach the market, they’re already set up to fail. They tend to:

• Focus on feature checklists rather than user experience.
• Accept vendor promises at face value.
• Assume technology alone will fix cultural, behavioural, or process problems.

I often hear the same feedback months after implementation:

• “The platform doesn’t work.”
• “It’s too complex.”
• “It doesn’t solve the problems we thought it would.”

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The truth? The wrong platform was chosen, on the wrong criteria, for the wrong reasons.

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It’s not about the platform

Let’s be clear - there are many strong HRIS, payroll, onboarding, and time and attendance platforms on the market. The problem is rarely the technology itself. The real issues are the conditions surrounding it:

• Processes: If workflows are broken or unclear, technology won’t fix them.
• ‍ Culture: If behaviours and norms are misaligned, a system can’t change them.
• ‍ Skills: If people aren’t ready or supported, even the best platform will fail.
• ‍ Data and architecture: If integrations, identity, or single sources of truth aren’t addressed, the platform will never perform as expected.

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Buying a people technology platform without resolving these fundamentals is like buying a plane for someone who has only just learned to ride a bike.

A smarter approach

At Five, we believe in keeping technology selection honest and practical: be honest, do less, deliver more. Instead of rushing into an RFP driven by features, we help organisations step back and ask the right questions:

• What are the real jobs to be done?
• Where are the points of friction today?
• Which challenges need cultural or process change before technology is added?
• How will the platform integrate with architecture, data, and identity management?
• Do our people have the confidence and skills to adopt and use the system well?

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We are vendor and platform agnostic. Our role is not to sell a particular product, but to guide organisations toward the platform that best fits their context, their people, and their goals.

Before you issue an RFP, ask yourself

If you’re about to issue an RFP for an HRIS, payroll, onboarding, or time and attendance platform, pause and consider:

• Have we resolved the process issues that cause the most pain today?
• Have we addressed cultural and behavioural shifts that will make or break adoption?
• Do we have the data, integrations, and architecture foundations in place?
• Are we clear on the outcomes we want, not just the features we like?

If the answer is “no” to any of these, it’s worth taking the time to rethink the process.

The call to rethink

I often wish I could stand beside procurement teams and say “Hey wait!!!! Before you go down this path, check these things first", because I’ve seen the consequences of getting it wrong - Multi-year implementations that drain time and resources, platforms that frustrate rather than enable, and investments that fail to deliver value because the wrong questions were asked from the start. Not every RFP ends this way. Some are well thought out, and some vendors are transparent and aligned, but in my experience, those are the exception.

The smartest RFPs succeed because they align the right platform, the right organisational conditions, and the right people. That’s how you avoid detours, breakdowns, and years of frustration.

And this is where our team can help. At Five, we’ve guided organisations through complex technology decisions with honesty, independence, and care. We make the process easier, more effective, and more successful. We’re here to help you make smarter decisions and to make sure your investment delivers the outcomes you need.