Initial findings from our four case studies suggest that although new or upgraded HRIS systems
are being used to automate and devolve routine administrative and compliance functions
traditionally performed by the HR function, the potential for this technology to be used in ways that
contribute to the strategic direction of the organisation is not being realised. More specifically, our
results suggest that the opportunity to enhance HR’s role as strategic partner as a result of the use
of HRIS is being hindered by three main challenges. The first challenge relates to the ability to
maintain the levels of senior management commitment and resources needed to implement and
manage new or upgraded HRIS. The second concerns managing the complexity of the HRIS and
its associated functionality. The third challenge stems from barriers associated with the acceptance
of HRIS among key managers and employees along with the importance attached to managing the
change processes associated with the implementation and introduction of the new or upgraded
systems.
These challenges demonstrate that the material, functional characteristics of technologies
such as HRIS are complex and make them difficult to introduce and operate. At the same time, and
in line with a social constructionist approach to the study of technology each of the challenges
illustrates that how and when a technology is used is also determined by the agency of its users
and the social context within which it is adopted (Orlikowski et al., 2001). In sum, only through an
appreciation of both the material and the social can a more informed understanding of the
challenges that surround HRIS implementation and operation be obtained. In this respect, our
findings are in contrast to the more technological deterministic view of earlier studies of HRIS that
suggest that it is simply the technology itself which has implications for the changing role of HR.