IRIS Software's Stephanie Kelly on developing a strong HR playbook

IRIS Software Group's Chief People Officer, Stephanie Kelly explains why having a robust HR strategy is essential.

People can make or break a business which is why, as we move into turbulent economic times, having a robust human resources playbook is more important than ever.

That is the message from Stephanie Kelly, Chief People Office at IRIS Software Group, whose career so far has seen her serve as the global head of HR for three international firms.

Stephanie began her working career at an NHS Trust in the payroll department and worked her way up through the organisation before going on to work for private equity-backed software companies focused on creating enterprise value businesses.

She said: "I think there is definitely something in the phrase don't waste a good crisis as we go into tough economic times.

"If you have hired the right people into the right jobs and have got the best people for your budget then you will have the best people around you to help you make decisions.

"There has to be really tight alignment in the organisation around the three or four things that are going to make the most difference to your business."

IRIS Software Group, based in Slough, was established in 1978 and provides business software solutions and services to accountancy practices and educational organisations, as well as payroll, HR and financial management software to SMEs.

Its turnover has grown from £5 million in 2002 to £258 million in 2022 with this growth achieved through organic growth and acquisitions.

Onboarding staff after an acquisition

Stephanie has worked with the IRIS executive team on ten acquisitions since she joined the company in 2018 and says that having a clear plan following a company buy-out is essential.

She said: "We work on our integration plan before the business is even ours by getting as much information as we can about the company so that we don't make any missteps when we acquire that company.

"We then get our arms around the management and as many employees as we can and make them feel part of IRIS.

"The big learnings for us in terms of HR and acquisitions have been about the importance of over communicating especially in the early days."

Stephanie says attitude, drive and the ability to adapt to changing circumstances are the key soft skills that differentiate candidates that both she and her team interviews.

"We are looking for people who care, want to come to work and give their discretionary effort, she said.

"Conscientiousness is key as is inquisitiveness and the ability to be agile or learn agility.

"We need people who can help us predict the future and they must be able to adapt to the future as we move along."

Getting genuine and insightful feedback from employees is no easy task.

Collecting accurate feedback from staff

Stephanie, however, has implemented a tech-based HR feedback system which collects the views of employees and reveals where morale issues and pressure points exist in the organisation.

The company carries out monthly surveys of employees with feedback delivered back to employees anonymously.

She said: "We use the full power of technology to collect feedback from employees.

"This gives brilliant analytics across the business so the executive team can look at a heat map by manager, department or function to see how people are doing.

"They can then use this information to really support managers in providing the best working environment that they possibly can."

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Creating an effective incentive structure

Many executive teams struggle to get the balance of their employee incentive structure right which can lead staff towards a pattern of behaviors at odds with the company's objectives.

Stephanie says IRIS rewards employees based on performance and how much value they deliver to the company with incentives structured around getting people to buy into the company's success.

"Incentives based around how much people do each day is a variable that employees can control quite easily, she added.

"We also look at rewarding people when the times are good and reducing this when the times are not so good.

"An incentive scheme with some type of profit sharing which is calibrated around performance is the model that we work towards."

How and where we work has changed rapidly since the pandemic with hybrid and home working models of working now the norm.

Stephanie played a lead role in developing IRIS’ hybrid working policy, "Come Back Into the Office for a BIT", where employees come in at designated times each week with the B standing for belonging, the I for innovation and the T for teamwork.

Stephanie said: "Anyone who wants employees to come back to the office 9am to 5pm needs to have a really good reason for doing so because that is not the way that quite a few people want to work now.

"You have to be really practical and pragmatic about why you want people to come back into the office in the first place."

Stephanie is a big believer in developing young talent, having been given her own big break at the age of 29 when she told a visiting CEO what was right and wrong with his company.

She was then promoted to global head of HR with responsibility for operations in 31 countries.

She said: "We make sure those with talent are fast-tracked through their careers.

"The first step is to make sure they have a great line manager so they can benefit from their wisdom and they will be there to guide and support them.

"We also focus on building their confidence by letting them know what they are bringing to the organisation in terms of tech skills and new perspectives is going to benefit the business."