Enabling Scale and Growth with HR Tech: Lessons for HR Leaders in Shift-based Sectors
In this episode of the Pinpoint Podcast, we spotlight Early Childhood Management Services (ECMS) and their remarkable journey of implementing HR technology to support rapid growth in early childhood education across Victoria.
With the guidance of Pinpoint HRM, Cornerstone OnDemand and Humanforce, ECMS successfully navigated a complex HR transformation, delivering a complete HCM solution that included Workforce Management (WFM) and Payroll in just nine months.
After a decade of underinvestment in people systems, ECMS has quietly pulled off one of the most successful HR tech projects we’ve seen. Achieving in months what many organisations struggle to deliver in years.
This episode is packed with practical lessons for HR tech leaders looking to scale, simplify, and achieve measurable results without losing sight of their people. Whether you’re a CHRO, HR tech leader, or executive preparing for your own transformation journey, this case study shows what’s possible when people, strategy and technology are aligned.
Key Takeways for HR Tech Leaders
From this episode, you’ll learn how ECMS:
- Applied a Maturity Model to evaluate and select their people solutions
- Built a compelling executive business case aligned with strategic priorities
- Resourced their project effectively with strong governance and SMEs
- Stayed anchored by guiding principles for pragmatic decision making
- Optimised their systems post-go-live to enable scale and growth
The results speak for themselves: productivity gains, reduced turnover, improved engagement, and a surprising competitive advantage.
Listen to The Podcast Episode
Meet the Experts
Stuart Braganza-Travis
Head of Strategy, ECMS
Stuart has curated a portfolio CV with roles including strategy, organisational transformation, measurement and impact, external relations and portfolio growth. The one constant throughout his career is a fundamental belief that healthy, happy and talented people are what make organisations succeed – therefore elevating and integrating the ‘people strategy’ as the organisational strategy is a no-brainer.
“We knew that if we were going to embark on this next decade of growth, we needed strong people systems and processes in place to enable our strategy.”
Amanda Hughes CPHR
Director of People, ECMS
Amanda is a certified human resources professional with extensive experience in early childhood education, health, and financial services within both private sector and not-for-profit organisations. She excels at simplifying the complex and has a passion for leveraging technology to enhance organisational capability, leading teams to deliver exceptional business outcomes through people system transformations.
“We needed a solution to replace the admin activities – allowing people to do the people work and let the systems do the system work.”
About ECMS
Early Childhood Management Services (ECMS) is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to fostering lifelong learning. Each week, ECMS supports over 6,500 children across 75 kindergartens and childcare centres in Victoria, delivering high-quality early education that shapes stronger communities
Case Study: How ECMS Got It Right and Pinpoint’s Role in This Success Story
ECMS faced a familiar challenge for frontline organisations: tight margins, increasing compliance demands, and a workforce crisis with no end in sight. Driven by an “if not now, then when?” mindset — and a focus on what mattered most, their people — ECMS tackled their HR tech transformation with clarity and pragmatism.
By partnering with Pinpoint, ECMS was able to:
- Articulate their vision and strategy for people transformation over the next 10yrs
- Identify the HR tech solutions that would enable their people growth agenda
- Successfully implement Cornerstone for HCM and Humanforce for Workforce
- Management (WFM) and Payroll
- Engage HR tech Experts On-Demand to bolster their project team
- Achieve outstanding adoption and engagement rates at go-live
“Pinpoint has been a constant and invaluable partner throughout our entire project journey. One of the best decisions we made was engaging Neil as our ‘on-demand’ client-side PM. He brought the expertise, experience and flexibility we needed.”
The results of our partnership demonstrate what’s possible when strategy and pragmatism work hand in hand:
- Full HCM, WFM and payroll solution delivered in 9 months
- Turnover halved, now significantly below sector average
- Significant uplift in employee engagement scores
- Improved internal mobility, reducing reliance on agency staff
- Doubled headcount without adding payroll resources
Read more about the ECMS project – A Blueprint for HR Tech Success in Shift-Based Sectors.
FAQs
What is Cornerstone OnDemand, and what is it used for?
The Cornerstone platform is an AI-powered, unified talent management suite designed to enhance workforce agility. It integrates learning and development, performance management, compliance management, and workforce planning into a single solution, enabling organisations to optimise talent strategies across the entire employee lifecycle.
What’s the difference between Cornerstone and other HR platforms?
Cornerstone stands out for its AI-driven capabilities, seamless integration, and comprehensive suite of talent management tools. It fosters workforce agility, supports employee growth, and aligns talent strategies with business objectives, all within a single, scalable solution.
How long does it take to implement Cornerstone?
Most Cornerstone implementations take 3 to 9 months depending on modules, scope, and integration complexity. A phased approach can accelerate go-live for priority areas like Learning or Performance.
What is Humanforce, and what type of organisations is it best suited for?
Humanforce is a workforce management, payroll and HR platform designed for shift-based, hourly, and mobile workforces. It’s widely used in aged care, hospitality, retail, and healthcare sectors. Its strengths lie in advanced rostering, award interpretation, time & attendance, payroll integration and mobile-first functionality.
What makes an HR tech project successful?
A successful HR tech project is one that goes beyond implementing software to deliver measurable business outcomes. It combines a clear vision, strong executive sponsorship, the right project team, and effective change management to ensure user adoption and long-term value. Pinpoint HRM focuses on designing HR technology programs that align with strategy and deliver tangible impact.
How do you set the right vision for HR technology transformation?
Success starts with defining a clear future state for your people function. This means articulating your business drivers, maturity goals, and employee experience aspirations. Without this, projects risk being seen as “just an IT upgrade.” Pinpoint HRM recommends using a maturity model to guide Future State workshops and align technology to business strategy.
What roles are essential for HR tech project success?
A strong project team is one of the most important predictors of success. Key roles include the Executive Sponsor, Client-Side Project Manager, Business Analyst, Change Manager, and subject-matter experts. Each plays a unique role in steering transformation. For a full breakdown, see Meet your Dream Team: 8 roles that define Cloud HR project success
How do client-side project managers add value to HR tech projects?
Client-side PMs are the driving force for transformation. They keep the project on track, manage vendors, engage stakeholders, and ensure outcomes align with business strategy. Without one, organisations risk delays, budget blowouts, and poor adoption. Learn more in The Role of the Client-Side Project Manager.
What are the biggest risks to HR tech project success?
The top risks include lack of future state clarity, under-resourcing, poor change management, weak governance, and lack of executive sponsorship. These challenges often derail transformation. Pinpoint HRM outlines how to mitigate each in 7 Critical Risks to HR Tech Success.
