Questions I take into an HRIS demo

Key takeaways

Ask what fields exist on day one, not on the enterprise roadmap.
Ask who can see compensation if compensation is in the record.
Ask for the import, including managers, not just names.
Ask whether payroll is in this contract or in a different product.

HRIS demos wander into recruiting, time tracking, and a mobile app. I keep four questions on the table. They match the HRIS guide: the record, the permission, the import, and whether payroll is in scope.

What is on the record we would turn on

FieldsOn the quoted plan
PermissionsShown, not described
ImportIncludes the manager
PayrollYes or no, in writing

I ask the seller to open a profile and read the fields that exist on the plan in the quote. For HiBob I expect the core HR record the homepage describes, and I ask whether UK or US payroll is in that plan. For BambooHR I expect employee, payroll, time, and benefits, and I ask whether the payroll add-on is in the quote. For Rippling I expect the single employee record the HRIS page describes.

Who can see and edit

Role-aware visibility is a phrase I want demonstrated. A manager should see their team. An employee should see their own profile. Compensation, if it exists, should not be on by default for every admin. I still ask to see the roles on the plan we would turn on, including on HiBob, where the homepage does not print the permission model.

The import, including the manager

A CSV of names is not an org chart. I ask them to import a file that includes manager and status, then I look at one team. Broken manager links show up immediately. They also break review routing on the performance side.

Is payroll in this contract

I ask for a yes or no. If the answer is no, I stop evaluating tax and benefits in that demo. If the answer is yes, I ask which country and which pay schedule the quoted module covers. BambooHR calls payroll an add-on. HiBob names UK and US payroll on the homepage and does not say every country is included. I do not fill the gap with a price from a blog post. More on that discipline is in the system of record, not a survey directory.