Sayeed Anjum Shares How greytHR is Revolutionizing HR with Comprehensive Hire-to-Retire Solutions

StartupTalky presents Recap'24, a series of exclusive interviews where we connect with founders and industry leaders to reflect on their journey in 2024 and discuss their vision for the future.

As workplaces evolve, HR technology has become essential for simplifying operations and improving employee experiences. Leading this change is greytHR, an HRMS platform supporting over 27,000 businesses in 25+ countries. With a mission to provide a complete hire-to-retire HR solution, greytHR is helping HR professionals tackle modern challenges.

In this edition of Recap'24, Sayeed Anjum, Co-founder and CTO of greytHR, shares greytHR’s journey, insights into the HRMS industry, and how the platform stays ahead with innovation. From key industry trends to customer success strategies, this interview is packed with lessons for SaaS founders and HR leaders.

StartupTalky: What service does greytHR provide? What was the motivation/vision with which you started greytHR? 

Mr. Anjum: greytHR is a full-suite HRMS platform offering comprehensive ‘Hire-to-Retire’ solutions for managing people operations. The platform simplifies every aspect of HR, including recruiting, onboarding, engaging, paying, appraising, retaining, and retiring employees ‒ all seamlessly integrated into a single solution.

When we started greytHR, the vision was clear: to address the everyday challenges faced by HR professionals with a simple and scalable solution. Over time, this vision has evolved into a mission to create a global HR ecosystem that helps organizations build thriving, people-first workplaces. At greytHR, we believe businesses succeed when their people succeed, and everything we do is focused on enabling that success for our customers.

StartupTalky: How has the HRMS industry changed in recent years, and what trends do you see for the future?

Mr. Anjum: The HRMS industry has evolved significantly, shaped by the rise of remote work, shifting workplace models, and advancements in technology. Cloud-based platforms are now the norm, providing businesses with the flexibility to scale while ensuring security and compliance. HRMS tools have also become more employee-focused, offering mobile-first, self-service options that make it easier for employees to manage tasks on their own.

One of the biggest changes has been the integration of AI, which is transforming how HR teams operate. From automating routine processes to offering predictive insights and personalized employee experiences, AI is helping businesses stay ahead.

Looking ahead, the industry is expected to further embrace AI and machine learning, leading to hyper-personalized employee interactions and more intuitive self-service platforms. Furthermore, the integration of advanced people analytics will provide deeper insights into workforce trends, enabling organizations to make proactive decisions about talent management and development.

In essence, the future of HRMS lies in its ability to combine advanced technology with a deep understanding of evolving workplace dynamics, fostering environments that are both efficient and employee-focused.

StartupTalky: What key metrics do you track to monitor greytHR’s growth and performance?

Mr. Anjum: As a SaaS company, we focus on metrics that reflect both business growth and customer success:

Customer Metrics

• Customer Growth: Serving 27,000+ customers in 25+ countries, we track acquisitions to measure market reach.
• Net Promoter Score (NPS): Gauges customer loyalty and identifies improvement areas.
• Customer Churn: Keeping churn low ensures we’re delivering ongoing value.

Product Engagement

• Active Users (DAU/MAU): Measures product usage and stickiness.
• Mobile App Performance: Tracks downloads and in-app usage (1M+ downloads).

Financial Metrics

• Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR): Tracks predictable revenue for scaling.
• Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR): Monitors long-term financial health.

Customer Support

• Customer Satisfaction (CSAT): Currently 95%+ reflecting excellent support.
• Response and Resolution Time: Ensures timely, effective problem-solving.

By monitoring these metrics, we stay data-driven, focused on improving our product, and committed to delivering exceptional value to our customers.

StartupTalky: What opportunities do you see for future growth in the HRMS industry, both in India and globally? 

Mr. Anjum: The HRMS industry is witnessing significant growth, both in India and globally. In India, the market is expanding beyond metropolitan areas into Tier-I and Tier-II cities, with businesses actively seeking tools to streamline their people operations, ensure compliance, and boost productivity.

At greytHR, we are proud to be trusted by over 27,000 businesses and to support more than 2.5 million users across 25+ countries.

Our growth strategy is multi-faceted. Domestically, we aim to deepen our presence in cities across India. Globally, we are expanding our reach into Southeast Asia. Furthermore, we are well-equipped to support larger clients, including enterprises with over 1,000 employees, through our comprehensive full-suite HRMS. The future of HRMS is promising, and we are excited to be at the forefront of this transformation!

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StartupTalky: What new features have been added in 2024 to greytHR?

Mr. Anjum: At greytHR, we focus on delivering value through an evolving ecosystem of accessible and cost-effective solutions. Over the past two years, we’ve introduced a variety of features and enhancements tailored to meet the diverse needs of businesses. Here are some of the key modules launched recently:

• Performance Management System (PMS): A comprehensive module to manage employee goals, track progress, and conduct appraisals seamlessly.
• greytHR Recruit: An all-in-one recruitment solution designed to streamline the hiring process.
• Unite Marketplace: A hub for third-party apps, enabling businesses to integrate and expand their ecosystem effortlessly.
• Pan-Aadhar Link Validation: Bulk validation of Pan-Aadhar link status for compliance needs.
• Multiple Attendance Cycles: Enhanced management of varied attendance cycles within the organization.
• Request Hub: An upgraded support ticketing system for efficient resolution tracking.
• GTPro: A specialized solution to help Payroll Service Providers (PSPs) manage multiple clients effectively.

StartupTalky: What are the unique selling points (USPs) of your HRMS? 

Mr. Anjum: Our focus has always been on delivering a platform that is versatile, user-friendly, and future-ready. Here’s what makes greytHR stand out:

1. Scalability: Whether you’re a team of 5 or 50,000, greytHR adapts effortlessly to your needs, making it suitable for organizations of any size.
2. Compliance-Friendly: Our platform is designed to stay ahead of statutory requirements and changes, helping businesses remain compliant without effort.
3. Comprehensive Coverage: greytHR handles every aspect of HR and payroll, from onboarding to offboarding, offering a truly all-inclusive solution.
4. Mobile-First Design: Critical HR tasks can be performed on the go using the greytHR app, ensuring accessibility and convenience.
5. Intuitive UX: With a user-friendly interface, greytHR is easy to navigate, even for those with low technical expertise.

By combining innovation with a customer-first approach, greytHR continues to deliver solutions that simplify HR operations and empower businesses to focus on what they do best.

StartupTalky: Customer success has become more important than ever. How do you ensure that your clients, particularly CHROs and CFOs, are engaged and satisfied?

Mr. Anjum: Ensuring that CHROs and CFOs are engaged and satisfied starts with truly understanding their goals and challenges. A B2B HRMS needs to go beyond being a product ‒ it must deliver real, measurable value that aligns with their strategic priorities. At greytHR, we focus on being a partner that CHROs and CFOs can depend on to drive success. Here’s how we do it:

1. Solve their biggest challenges: For CHROs, success often hinges on improving employee engagement, simplifying HR processes, and gaining better workforce insights. CFOs, on the other hand, prioritize controlling costs, ensuring compliance, and maintaining financial clarity. A great HRMS like greytHR tackles these challenges head-on by automating compliance, optimizing payroll, and providing data-driven workforce analytics that aligns with these priorities.
2. Deliver an intuitive and reliable platform: HR platforms handle critical operations like payroll, compliance, and employee management. That’s why we ensure greytHR is easy to use and reliable, minimizing friction for both HR teams and employees. With a mobile-first design and self-service capabilities, we empower CHROs and CFOs to stay connected and informed — anytime, anywhere.
3. Build a thriving customer success ecosystem: Engagement doesn’t end with implementation. We’ve built an entire ecosystem that includes a dedicated support team, community, and expert-led resources like training programs and webinars. Our webinar series, Parichay, invites CHROs from across industries to share best practices and expertise, creating a space for collaboration and learning. Similarly, our award-winning podcast series, greytFM, brings thought leaders together to inspire and educate HR professionals.

StartupTalky: What are the different strategies you use for marketing greytHR? Tell us about any growth hack that you pulled off.

Mr. Anjum: At greytHR, our marketing is rooted in the philosophy that the best marketing comes from delivering exceptional value. Our deep, feature-rich HRMS, coupled with robust compliance capabilities, ensures that our product becomes our strongest advocate. 

We’ve created a vibrant HR ecosystem that goes beyond software. It includes greytFM, our award-winning podcast, where industry leaders share actionable insights, and Parichay webinars, led by CHROs and experts, to explore best practices. Through the greytHR Community, we connect HR professionals to share knowledge and collaborate. Our extensive compliance resources and tools further empower businesses to stay ahead of regulations with confidence.

With platforms like greytHR Academy, offering training and certifications, we ensure our customers and prospects are equipped to succeed. This value-driven approach makes greytHR more than a product ‒ it’s a trusted partner dedicated to the growth and success of businesses.

StartupTalky: What advice would you give to other SaaS founders looking to build successful products in the HR tech space?

Mr. Anjum: The HR tech space is an exciting domain to build in today because we’re not just creating tools — we’re shaping how people work, grow, and thrive. 

The most successful products are those that are built with the customer at the center of everything they do. In the HR tech space, this means deeply understanding the evolving needs of HR professionals, employees, and organizations. 

Start with trust. Whether it’s data security, compliance, or reliability, your customers need to know they can depend on you. Trust is the foundation of every great SaaS product, and in HR, where you’re handling sensitive employee data, it’s non-negotiable.

Innovate relentlessly, but with purpose. Technology should be a force for good ‒ something that simplifies processes and enhances people’s lives. Focus on delivering solutions that not only solve today’s problems but also anticipate the challenges of tomorrow. AI, automation, and analytics are powerful tools, but their true value lies in how they empower people.

Finally, adaptability is key. The tech landscape is constantly changing. What works today might need to evolve tomorrow. Therefore, stay curious, listen to your users, and be ready to adapt when necessary.

Explore more Recap'24 Interviews here.