Flynn Managers & Contractors

For a business that wants to manage rapid growth efficiently, it’s vital to have repeatable, scalable systems and processes in place. That was the situation facing Flynn MC, a construction management contractor whose international business had been expanding rapidly, to a point where it’s expected to make up 50% of turnover by 2026. The company’s headcount grew from 30 people in 2020 to nearly 200 by 2024. 

The growth came after successfully delivering critical environments like pharmaceutical and healthcare manufacturing facilities, large-scale commercial fit-outs, aviation facilities, and food processing plants, across Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Denmark, with projects in northern Europe in the pipeline.

Flynn first introduced BambooHR as its HR information system in 2020. “Grouper, as the BambooHR agent in Ireland, successfully managed a seamless launch of the platform, ensuring that the system worked well from the administrative side as well as ensuring that the employee experience was a very positive one also,” says Deirdre Breen, Head of Human Resources at Flynn MC. 

Grouper also successfully ensured that Flynn’s team could roll out a time tracking system. “That’s crucial for our project team because it lets them track everything in relation to the costs associated with a project. Through Grouper, we got what we needed and we’ve been using that feature ever since. And it’s brilliant,” Deirdre says.  

She estimates that the HR system has saved “hours” in the working week, leading to greater efficiency in the business. “Not only for HR, it’s saved time for managers. Employees have access to their own employee records and their personal data, they put leave requests through the system and can see if they have been approved or not.”

The system also has a mobile platform that gives employees access to their own data, allowing them to check their annual leave balances, or update their addresses if they move house. This is a powerful feature, Deirdre says. “They have a lot of power over their own data. That takes a burden off HR because we’re not getting emails asking ‘how much annual leave do I have left’?”

The mobile platform’s ease of use is also welcome. “That’s a big thing for us, if there is someone who isn’t very technology-savvy. They can log hours on a project through their smartphone – that is really important. The feedback and engagement from all employees with the system has been great,” Deirdre adds.

Replacing the previous method with a single system for all HR-related information has also improved the security of the data. “There’s an audit trail function on the system so you can always see when the data has been changed. You can stand over the data with much more certainty than you can with spreadsheets,” she says.

Grouper’s close support is valuable. “We’ve been with Grouper since 2019 and so we would see Moji as a very close partner. We would also recognise that he understands our business. We’re not plaguing him with questions and requests so when we do put in a request, it’s always actioned and responded to,” Deirdre says.

“You know that your request is going to an individual, not just a huge helpdesk system. That’s significant. And in terms of the response, it’s always been very quick and immediate, and they’re always happy to jump on a call if we’ve got an issue. The system is working the way we want it. Moji has a ‘can-do’ attitude whereas a lot of vendors say ‘you can’t do that’. He will always look at a workaround or solution for us. We won’t always get what we want but if it can be done, he’ll find a way.”