Métis Nation—Saskatchewan (MN-S) is a federally recognized government that represents and supports over 30,000 Métis citizens in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. With significant growth and the inability to structure resources and processes into place due to its rapid expansion, MN-S turned to ADP Workforce Now Comprehensive Services for the technology and HR expertise to deliver an effective HR program tailored specifically to the needs of the MN-S government. As a result, MN-S was able to effectively eliminate manual tasks, standardize processes and create more growth avenues for its people.
Work that’s been completed in 12 to 18 months would’ve taken several years if I didn’t have the ADP Comprehensive Services support and resources available at my fingertips.
Sarah Bridgette,
Director of Human Resources
Metis Nation- Saskatchewan
Challenges
- Manual payroll processing which proved time consuming and inaccurate
- A lack of standardized processes resulted in inefficiency
- Limited resources available to support their strategy for rapid expansion.
How ADP helped
- With significant growth and the inability to structure resources and processes into place due to its rapid expansion, MN-S turned to ADP Workforce Now Comprehensive Services for the technology and HR expertise to deliver an effective HR program tailored specifically to the needs of the MN-S government. As a result, MN-S was able to effectively eliminate manual tasks, standardize processes and create more growth avenues for its people.
ADP Solutions
- ADP Workforce Now®, Comprehensive Services
Maximizing The Opportunities Available
When Sarah first came to the MN-S team, they were already using ADP Workforce Now but she noticed that only the payroll module was being utilized on the platform. Knowing that MN-S needed to scale up their teams, policies and processes, she wanted to understand how they could maximize the ADP platform. After a consultation with ADP, where the goals of what they hoped to accomplish were explained, it was suggested that they consider the ADP Comprehensive Services offering.
Understanding The Culture
Unlike working with a typical corporate structure or nonprofit, supporting an Métis distinctions-based government comes with unique challenges that require a different approach. Understanding the cultural significance of MN-S identity means respecting their traditions and governance structures through collaboration. Fortunately, ADP’s extensive experience supporting First Nations and Indigenous clients helps build trust quickly and has helped MN-S continue to make a positive impact in their community. “ADP came in and listened and acknowledged the culture and the vision I had for where I wanted to see HR within this government. They were patient - collaborating with myself and my team to achieve our goals,” says Sarah.
A Team Behind The Team
The ADP Comprehensive Services experts provided tremendous support, merging technology with consultation for staff and management. Sarah noticed significant professional growth in the team due to the knowledge shared by the Comprehensive Services team, who helped develop skills that would have taken her employees years. This collaboration provided a direct connection with the ADP experts, leading to faster turnaround times to complete tasks. Adds Sarah, “Work that’s been completed in 12 to 18 months would’ve taken several years if I didn’t have the ADP Comprehensive Services support and resources available at my fingertips.”
Simple Tasks Were Not So Simple
As dedicated public servants of the Métis people, the MN-S team is committed to serving their community – a commitment that begins internally, as the HR team provides essential policies and procedures for effective public service. But before the implementation of ADP Comprehensive Services, there were no standardized processes throughout to help the team operate efficiently. Even simpler tasks like administering promotions or reclassifying job titles proved challenging. “Before, a manager would reach out and we would just do it because we had no processes in place,” says Tenelle. But since the transition to ADP Comprehensive Services, she adds “We’ve been able to access resources to bring standardization and consistency across all departments.”
Removing The Guesswork
One of the first tasks Tennelle tackled was creating a clear roadmap to achieve leadership’s growth vision. She adds, “With my ADP compensation expert, I walk away learning something new every meeting with them.” Her ADP compensation expert provides her with the major and minor benchmarks they need to hit, which helps leadership understand when they’re on track or when a pivot is necessary. Before ADP, decision-making had often been based on instinct, lacking concrete information or data. Their compensation expert brought insights from various organizations and businesses, offering valuable knowledge about market trends. Now, Tenelle’s team is better equipped to determine different strategies that will work for them. She adds, “You can’t run the government off a gut feeling. The opportunities are endless when it comes to ADP Comprehensive Services.”
Less Manual, More Accurate
Promoting efficiency and reducing errors are goals any organization will find effective, and MN-S is no exception. However, before transitioning to ADP Comprehensive Services, Alexandra recalls how they were processing timecards manually, which was not only extremely time-consuming and kept her from focusing on other tasks, but also often resulted in inaccurate records. Today, with a streamlined process that significantly reduces her workload, it takes half the time to process payroll and errors have been vastly minimized. “Now I get time to focus on other systems, ensuring that the setup of everything else on ADP we’re able to do and I’m able to check the time and attendance module to ensure that things are running smoothly and that errors are prevented,” adds Alexandra.
Development And Retention Are Key To Growth
The MN-S team is dedicated to developing its people, enabling them to thrive in their roles and advance within the government. This focus on long-term development and retention will be key to their continued growth. With the help of their dedicated ADP learning development expert, they’re able to develop the resources from compliance courses to development training and address their learning needs conveniently in one platform, with access to over 400 modules in the Comprehensive Services learning and development library and the capability to upload customized learning content. “A lot of people will be really excited about the learning portal that we’re mapping out right now. My experience working with the ADP learning development expert has been really good. It feels so personable. You can always connect with someone - they’ll have the answers and are willing to guide you through it,” says Courtney.
