Human Rights Commission tests market for new ERP platform

The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has gone to market for information on enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems as it weighs a new platform to underpin its corporate services, part of a broader digital transformation.

The approach is a request for information (RFI) rather than a live procurement - a market sounding to help the Commission understand available solutions, supplier capabilities, implementation approaches and procurement options, with responses that may inform any future approach to market.

The Commission says its objective is a secure, scalable enterprise solution that standardises business processes, improves data quality and visibility, strengthens governance and regulatory compliance, enhances user experience, and provides a foundation for future organisational capability and growth.

The Commission wants an ERP spanning workforce and people management (including recruitment, onboarding, payroll, leave, performance and workforce reporting); procurement and contract management; financial management (budgeting, forecasting, accounting, accounts payable and receivable, project accounting, asset management and reporting); travel and expense management; system administration and security; and reporting, analytics and integration with other corporate systems.

It says the platform would serve a wide range of users, from employees, people managers and approvers to HR, finance, payroll and procurement staff, system administrators, senior executives and Commissioners.

AHRC says it has already completed preliminary discovery activities and documented its future-state requirements, information it may make available as part of any future approach to market.

For respondents, the Commission stresses that it operates in a resource-constrained environment and wants a contemporary solution that is cost-effective to implement, administer and maintain across its lifecycle, asking suppliers to address implementation complexity, ongoing support, business continuity, data migration and data protection.

It prefers solutions that maximise standard, out-of-the-box product capabilities and minimise or eliminate custom development, offer scalable licensing and operating models appropriate for a Commonwealth entity, and come with a clear, vendor-backed product roadmap.

Responses are due by 11:59pm Canberra time on Friday 18 September 2026.