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September 6, 1999

Better HR Apps

Resource Partner expands PeopleSoft program; Lawson ships new software

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esource Partner Inc. and Lawson Software Inc. last week introduced new products and services to help emerging enterprises implement human-resources applications quickly and at a lower cost.

Resource Partner, an outsourcer that specializes in PeopleSoft Inc. implementations, is expanding its PeopleSoft HRMS application rental program to services companies with annual revenue of less than $250 million. HRMS is PeopleSoft's flagship human-resources module for managing employee career development, recruitment processes, personnel records, salary planning, compensation packages, and government regulations.

Resource Partner has been outsourcing PeopleSoft HRMS to large companies since 1996 after inking a service bureau licensing deal with PeopleSoft that lets it host multiple clients from a single server. The ability to consolidate multiple companies on a single box lets Resource Partner provide the applications to users at low cost, according to the company.

Resource Partner's clients pay a monthly fee based on the number of employees; the fee includes templates and WAN connections. Customers can also designate key human-resources employees to have access to Resource Partner's Customer Care Center, staffed by PeopleSoft-certified consultants.

Sam Amore, VP of marketing at Resource Partner, says that by outsourcing the HR functions, businesses not only eliminate up-front infrastructure costs, but also leave room for growth. "As smaller companies grow or make acquisitions, we're able to scale easily since we have the infrastructure set up," Amore says.

Allie Young, a principal analyst at Dataquest, says smaller businesses can benefit from offloading HR application updating and maintenance to a service provider that has the resources and technology in place to implement revisions easily. "An applications service provider that has the PeopleSoft skills and connections can address a lot of the productivity issues of the application," she says.

Bundled Payroll Solution
Enterprise resource planning vendor Lawson Software's new product, Fast HR/Payroll Solution, is available though ASPs USinternetworking Inc. and Shared Medical Systems Corp. or as a standalone application for internal use. The HR and payroll automation package for midmarket companies includes the Lawson Insight Human Resources Suite, which lets employees update their own records and query payroll information, and offers answers to commonly asked questions on benefits, vacation accrual, and company policy.

Through a deal with IBM Global Services, Lawson is incorporating IBM's Project Office project-management tool to track the software implementation from start to finish in an effort to decrease costs, improve communication and workflow, and provide real-time confirmation of project progress.

The package also includes BSI Payroll Tax software, an option for classroom or computer-based training for HR employees using the applications, and postimplementation support from Lawson.

"Our smaller customers have a need for a strong integrated payroll solution, but they don't have the resources to spend a lot of time on the implementation," says Ro Sakmann, Lawson's director of product marketing for HR products. "Providing them with a bundled package and implementation services is answering their demands."

Available for Windows NT and Unix systems running an Oracle or Informix Corp. relational database, the package is priced from $450,000 to $600,000, depending on the number of users and the level of service customers require. USinternetworking and SMS will also host the applications, with pricing set by the ASPs.

Analyst Young says emerging enterprises need to pay closer attention to human-resources applications. "HR is one of those business functions that every company needs," she says. "It's a critical factor in retaining important skills, keeping up with laws, and updating benefits-yet it is never a core competency."

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