Full-Suite HCM Solution for Fast-Growing Biotech Client

Client Background

This Client is a pre-commercial biotechnology company headquartered in San Francisco, California, focused on developing therapeutics to treat, cure, and prevent autoimmune diseases. The organization employs over 300 full-time employees, primarily in clinical roles, along with approximately 100 contractors across the United States and Switzerland.

Operating with a lean business model, the Client strategically allocates resources toward research and product development, maintaining a smaller footprint in administrative functions such as HR, IT, and finance. With plans to grow headcount by approximately 50% over the next three years and expand globally, the organization required scalable HR technology to support its evolving workforce.

At the time of engagement, the Client relied on a legacy SMB payroll vendor and third-party benefits platform, resulting in a fragmented user experience and limited HR functionality. The organization sought a more unified, enterprise-level solution to support its long-term growth strategy.

The Challenge

The Client’s existing HR technology environment was fragmented and insufficient to support its growth and global expansion plans. While the legacy payroll vendor met basic payroll needs, it lacked robust HR capabilities, and the benefits experience was managed through a separate third-party platform, creating a disjointed and inefficient user experience.

Additionally, key processes such as compensation management were being handled manually through spreadsheets, limiting scalability and increasing administrative burden. The Client also faced challenges with vendor support and service quality, further impacting operational efficiency.

Despite having an experienced HR team familiar with the HCM technology landscape, the organization lacked a clear roadmap for transitioning from its current state to a future-state solution that would support the business over the next 5–7 years. Establishing a single source of truth for global employee data and ensuring the selected solution could meet both U.S. and international requirements were critical priorities.

Client Profile

• Pre-commercial biotech company

• Based in San Francisco, CA

• 300+ employees and about 100 contractors

• U.S. and Switzerland workforce

• High-growth, global expansion plans

The Project

The Client engaged HRchitect to lead a comprehensive HCM evaluation and selection initiative, along with the selection of an implementation partner.

The project began with a highly collaborative discovery phase involving a broad group of stakeholders across HR, IT, payroll, compensation, benefits, recruiting, and total rewards. Through surveys and discovery sessions, HRchitect helped the Client define business-critical requirements, decision drivers, and success criteria, with a strong emphasis on operational effectiveness, technology, vendor support, and usability.

A key objective established during this phase was the creation of a single, global system of record that would support both U.S. and Switzerland-based employees while enabling global compensation processes.

Following discovery, HRchitect conducted a marketplace workshop and recommended a shortlist of vendors aligned with the Client’s requirements. A structured RFP process was executed, including scripted demonstrations, stakeholder scoring, and detailed vendor fit analysis.

During evaluation, HRchitect played a critical advisory role by identifying functional gaps in one of the leading vendor options, particularly around international time tracking and compensation capabilities, ensuring the Client made a fully informed decision aligned to its global needs.

The Client ultimately selected UKG Pro as its HCM solution of choice and proceeded with a comprehensive due diligence process, including reference checks with similar organizations.

In parallel, HRchitect supported the Client in selecting an implementation partner. Given the Client’s strategic preference to outsource system implementation and ongoing support, HRchitect provided a shortlist of qualified partners and guided the evaluation process. Based on expertise, value, and trust established throughout the engagement, the Client selected HRchitect as its implementation partner.

Key Benefits

• Established a scalable, future-ready HCM strategy designed to support rapid growth and global expansion over the next 5–7 years

• Achieved a single source of truth for global workforce data, unifying U.S. and international employee populations

• Eliminated fragmented systems and manual processes, improving efficiency across payroll, benefits, and compensation

• Enabled confident, informed vendor selection through structured evaluation, detailed analysis, and expert advisory support

• Selected the right implementation partner with confidence, leveraging trust and continuity built throughout the engagement

The Results

Through a structured and collaborative process led by HRchitect, the Client successfully selected a full-suite HCM solution and implementation partner aligned to its long-term business strategy.

The organization is now equipped with a scalable HR technology foundation designed to support both its current operations and projected growth over the next 5–7 years. By consolidating systems and eliminating manual processes, the Client is positioned to improve operational efficiency, enhance the employee experience, and maintain a single source of truth for global workforce data.

Additionally, the strong partnership established throughout the selection process led the Client to choose HRchitect not only as an advisor, but also as its implementation partner, ensuring continuity and confidence as the organization moves into the next phase of its HR transformation.