APS vs. Paylocity

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
APS
Score 5.8 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
APS is a national workforce management and cloud-based HR solution provider. The platform includes core HR, payroll, time and attendance (including manager and employee self-service), compliance tools, and onboarding.N/A
Paylocity
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Paylocity provides 24/7 access to your online payroll and human resource data management. Paylocity offers highly customizable payroll functionality, as well as HR, benefits administration, and time and talent management programs.N/A
Pricing
APSPaylocity
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
APSPaylocity
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
Additional DetailsThe Payroll solution is offered as a standalone service, but additional solutions must be used in conjunction with the Payroll solution.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
APSPaylocity
Considered Both Products
APS
Chose APS
We used Intuit Payroll when we used Quickbooks, then Paychex when we left Quickbooks, and APS Payroll has been the best of them as far as price, the ease of use, and the ability to do what we need.
Chose APS
Paychex was probably the best system, but the constant shifting of support teams caused a loss of institutional knowledge every time.
ADP was impersonal and support phone calls almost always went overseas. The lack of knowledge of the support service was disturbing.
It was hoped …
Chose APS
I have used ADP for many years and always found the system to be restrictive in ADP's resistance to building rules that matched the organization's needs rather than asking the organization to modify its policies to match 'canned' rules already built within ADP. Bamboo and …
Chose APS
I believe APS is better than Paychex as mid-tier provider. I believe Paycor is not as good due to the cost and functioning drastically different. ADP is terrible in comparison to anything due to it lacking customizability and support for smaller and mid-tier clients. APS is …
Chose APS
They both have their good points and negative points, overall I think ADP is a better with recruitment platforms and onboarding. But APS had some good features as well.
Chose APS
We are a work College and our students have to work a minimum of 10 hours per week at an on-campus job. APS allowed us to be able to track a student's time as well as a professional's time but in different ways. A very versatile system that meets all our needs.
Chose APS
All the other payroll systems were very complicated and had a lot of capabilities that were nto needed for an organization of our size. This made it difficult to use and confusing. APS covers all our needs and does so with ease of use and great support.
Chose APS
I selected APS because of the way they responded when I initially reached out to them. I honestly don't remember all of the payroll companies that I contacted. APS was quick to answer my question with straight forward answers. They were very pleasant and always seemed to …
Chose APS
ADP and Paychex - Noah built them after he built the ark :) Clunky, expensive, and error prone. Stratus TIme - great time and attendance program, now purchased by Paychex.
Chose APS
Cost and local. APS seems small enough to be friendly and accommodating but large enough to have access to the latest trends in Human Resources.
Chose APS
APS Online is a much simpler system to use for end users and administrators, processing is quicker (immediate), and integration between the various modules is seamless. In the past, HRB talked to Payroll module, Payroll module talked to Etime, however HRB didn't talk to Etime …
Chose APS
We were previously with ADP and while the functionality improved when we moved to the Workforce Now version, we still wanted an improved and more economical solution for integrating payroll and HR with benefits management. APS Online offers that.
Chose APS
The boutique feeling and the great customer service are worth its weight in gold! APS OnLine is also financially a great decision. All around, a perfect way for our size of company to go. We haven't looked back since!
Chose APS
APS OnLine is a cost-effective solution compared to the other big name timekeeping/payroll software options on the market today. A quick demo will show the benefits of this simple, easy-to-use yet powerful solution. They are also quick to address issues and to work with the …
Chose APS
This is the only payroll service I have used. It has been a good experience and learning opportunity.
Chose APS
We have used ADP. I have also worked with IBS Payroll solutions at another company. APS OnLine is less bureaucratic than ADP. APS is less user friendly or customer service oriented than IBS Payroll.
Chose APS
I have not used or looked at any similar products. APS sold itself to us and we are not interested in changing to another company.
Paylocity
Chose Paylocity
UKG Pro is hard on the eyes, not as intuitive, and the payroll module is rather complex. The system is very powerful but it is best suited for seasoned system admins, which not all HR teams have this type of expertise.
Chose Paylocity
I think ADP's payroll interface is a little bit better. Paylocity has more personal service but I wouldn't say it's necessarily better.
Chose Paylocity
I selected Paylocity because of ease of use. ADP is clunky and Paycom makes a lot of claims that are not true. isolved is the most basic system I've ever used.
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity is SO far ahead of Paycor, it's not even funny. Just from the implementation standpoint alone, Paycor was an absolute nightmare. Paylocity had some struggles, but that goes along with any implementation. The experience with Paylocity was LIGHTYEARS ahead of our …
Chose Paylocity
Paycom, you select your integrations, you have way more integrations than are possible for them. So it makes it easier to be a one-stop shop on all those integrations.
Chose Paylocity
I've used ADP, UKG, I've used quite a bit. So I think that it's in comparison, I think it's kind of ranked up there. One two. From my experience, again, it's just the ease of navigation, the steps to bring onboarding and communication. I like it. It's just a great product.
Chose Paylocity
Way better, easy to use, very user friendly for employees.
Chose Paylocity
My preference is Paylocity due to the ease of use and the employee experience.
Chose Paylocity
I feel like they all provide approximately the same services, and it came down to honesty. Both Paychex and Paycor were dishonest with us, and I wasn't comfortable staying with them.
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity exceeds our previous payroll provider by leaps and bounds. It's exactly why we switched. It is also beneficial to have our recruiting as an all in one platform rather than going between two providers.
Chose Paylocity
I've never had a reason to want to switch. It doesn't seem like they offer anything Paylocity doesn't that makes it better.
Chose Paylocity
I have used ADP and Paycor in previous companies. Paylocity was already in place when I started working here. It functions well, so I am not compelled to make a change.
Chose Paylocity
honestly, we liked Paycom better from a user interface standpoint, but it came down to pricing and Paylocity was cheaper than Paycom and for the price differential it was significant enough to be the difference in our choice. ADP never actively engaged us as i think we were …
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity needs to work harder to get to the levels of ADP or UKG for larger companies
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity has more functionality for less money
Chose Paylocity
Rippling didn't deliver 10% of what they told us they would deliver. When we came back to Paylocity, we were told we would be able to access all historical employee data indefinitely, but when we lost access one year later, I was told we'd have to pay $1,000 to gain access to …
Chose Paylocity
I have recently used and processed HR functions in Paycom. I feel that Paylocity is a much better platform for both employees and managers. The set-up is much more user-friendly and less complicated, so there's less confusion for staff & management. Things are able to be …
Chose Paylocity
We used Sage Abra before and had a few other programs prior to Sage. We were using Sage for close to 10 years. The reporting in Paylocity is much more useful and robust. We looked at several other platforms including ADP. Some had better platforms and reporting, but for the …
Chose Paylocity
ADP was very similar to the way Paylocity is, but I seem to favor Paylocity to be honest. Miter was VERY difficult to use and set up. I wouldn't ever consider using that software ever again. I didn't like a lot of aspect Miter had to offer either. Paylocity would always be my …
Chose Paylocity
Way more simple and affordable.
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity is hands down, the most user friendly, and intuitive product.
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity is far more powerful and flexible than ADP SmartCompliance. But the ADP workflow is more streamlined.
Chose Paylocity
We like Paylocity because it offers a more intuitive, user-friendly interface and stronger self-service options for employees.
Features
APSPaylocity
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
APS
9.1
Ratings
10% above category average
Paylocity
8.3
Ratings
2% above category average
Pay calculation10.00 Ratings8.70 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors8.00 Ratings8.10 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment10.00 Ratings8.80 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.00 Ratings7.60 Ratings
Direct deposit files10.00 Ratings8.90 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management8.90 Ratings8.30 Ratings
Reimbursement management8.90 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.9
Ratings
3% below category average
Employee demographic data00 Ratings8.30 Ratings
Employment history00 Ratings8.20 Ratings
Job profiles and administration00 Ratings7.70 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.00 Ratings7.70 Ratings
Organizational charting00 Ratings7.60 Ratings
Organization and location management00 Ratings8.10 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)00 Ratings7.60 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.7
Ratings
6% below category average
Approval workflow00 Ratings7.90 Ratings
Balance details00 Ratings7.50 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
8.4
Ratings
2% above category average
View and generate pay and benefit information00 Ratings8.60 Ratings
Update personal information00 Ratings8.70 Ratings
View company policy documentation00 Ratings8.10 Ratings
Employee recognition00 Ratings8.20 Ratings
View job history00 Ratings8.50 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.7
Ratings
4% below category average
Tracking of all physical assets00 Ratings7.70 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.2
Ratings
4% below category average
Report builder00 Ratings7.30 Ratings
Pre-built reports00 Ratings7.50 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data00 Ratings7.00 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
8.1
Ratings
2% above category average
New hire portal00 Ratings8.30 Ratings
Manager tracking tools00 Ratings7.90 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.6
Ratings
6% below category average
Corporate goal setting00 Ratings7.40 Ratings
Individual goal setting00 Ratings7.70 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings7.40 Ratings
Performance tracking00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.5
Ratings
5% below category average
Performance plans00 Ratings7.30 Ratings
Performance improvement plans00 Ratings7.10 Ratings
Review status tracking00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Review reminders00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Multiple review frequency00 Ratings7.60 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.5
Ratings
4% below category average
Create succession plans/pools00 Ratings7.40 Ratings
Candidate ranking00 Ratings7.40 Ratings
Candidate search00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Candidate development00 Ratings7.20 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
APS
-
Ratings
Paylocity
7.9
Ratings
1% above category average
Job Requisition Management00 Ratings8.10 Ratings
Company Website Posting00 Ratings8.20 Ratings
Publish to Social Media00 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings7.90 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention00 Ratings7.40 Ratings
Applicant Tracking00 Ratings8.10 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts00 Ratings7.90 Ratings
Best Alternatives
APSPaylocity
Small Businesses
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.2 out of 10
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.2 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.1 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.1 out of 10
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 10.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
APSPaylocity
Likelihood to Recommend
8.5
(0 ratings)
8.2
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.7
(0 ratings)
8.8
(0 ratings)
Usability
10.0
(0 ratings)
8.2
(0 ratings)
Availability
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.9
(0 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.4
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
6.8
(0 ratings)
6.6
(0 ratings)
In-Person Training
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.1
(0 ratings)
Online Training
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.1
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.7
(0 ratings)
6.6
(0 ratings)
Configurability
8.0
(0 ratings)
7.1
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
8.0
(0 ratings)
7.4
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.3
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
9.0
(0 ratings)
7.8
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.6
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
APSPaylocity
Likelihood to Recommend
APS Payroll is an easy to use payroll system, and integrates well with some things such as the APS Hire feature, which handles onboarding, and the eSelfServe timeclock feature. It exports well to Quickbooks, but is only ok with NetSuite. (It works but is a completely manual process and takes a lot of setup.) Our tax registration and filing has been fine and we're always apprised of any tax discrepancies such as small Unemployment overages/underages when filed compared to what was withheld.
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I have already recommended Paylocity to another company and they are using it. The ability to streamline multiple platforms into one is the key feature as it saves time. Also, the speed of loading, the customer service help, and the ease of payroll processing are all reasons why we like utilizing Paylocity. It would be nice to have a referral bonus program as I was told there wasn't one when I referred the company and they signed up
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Pros
  • It's fast and intuitive. Our previous contractors were ADP and Paychex and neither were intuitive. Our payroll runs have less errors now than with previous vendors. Payroll prep time is down from 5 hours with ADP to 2 hours with APS for the HR Manager.
  • The limiters are great. I'm always afraid of that error that no one caught. Let's assume that you add a $200 limiter to overtime. Any time that a staff member is about to receive more than $200 in overtime for that pay period, a red flag goes up for the HR manager to double check.
  • We have 3 programs in public schools that block certain ports. APS has a 2nd feature using GPS so that staff can only check in for their shift while they are in the designated GPS range. Great for someone who has to report to a remote location. Just add the GPS coordinates and they can't check until they get to the project.
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  • Payroll is made pretty easy. I love that we have the ability to log into payroll, we just upload the information from commissions, things like that where there are exceptions to a regular payroll run. It may make it very easy to do that, just a quick upload. Additionally, when we're in the payroll grid, it gives us the ability to just make quick changes to people's pay or their tax schedule, tax withholdings, things like that without having to go through a lot of different screens. It's just very easy to access just for the click of a button. Love that.
  • We talked about performance reviews, talked about payroll with benefits administration, it allows us to utilize EDI feeds with our benefit vendors so it creates a seamless, but we just enter the information into Paylocity and then it seamlessly provides that information to our vendors. That's been really helpful. And adjusting benefits is also very easy within Paylocity. I love the recent edition of compensation analysis information, so I'm able to go into the compensation module and look for jobs that are similar to a job title at our company. I can enter the job description, I give them what state that the person or the job is in, and it pops out compensation data. It gives me different options, so titles that might be similar. So if there's not something that's an exact fit, I'm able to find something really, really close. It's been a huge upgrade because before that I was having to use a different vendor and paying $400 per job and now it's significantly less expensive to Paylocity and I'm still getting great quality data. It's been very helpful.
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Cons
  • More robust HR reporting options and better customized report building.
  • Be able to have multiple recruiting pipelines that are tracked.
  • Less glitches in APS Hire. Especially with sending onboarding emails and applicants not being able to open them.
  • Better file feed communications and auto-updating to save time and add efficiency to processes.
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  • I'd like to see a forum in which users could discuss the platform, raise both questions and concerns. I feel that changes are done without enough input from users.
  • Improving hold time recently with customer service.
  • Accuracy of new 'graphic' payroll report - the new report is not complete when payroll is done, so it is unusable from my perspective. I rely on the preprocess payroll register. This is one of those 'improvements' that have not been positive in my experience.
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Likelihood to Renew
I have been using the system for over a year now and feel more comfortable with the functionality of it. I have just recently implemented the benefit administration portion.
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We most likely will because we are learning how to use it better all the time. It does integrate with our Advanced Benefits. But the customer service is not responsive when needing help. It almost always requires several contacts to get anywhere, and the contacts can be several days apart. Once you actually get to TALK to someone, things are usually resolved fairly quickly, but their email system is not efficient. I get half answers and they close the ticket! But once I can get to someone, it is almost always great service. Very hard to get someone though.
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Usability
The APS Payroll software is very easy to use, and it is easy to train new employees on it. The APS Payroll support team is very helpful and response time is quick. It is easy to enter/change employee information, adjust salaries and benefits, etc. New features have also been added that makes it even better, such as being able to set up your own income/deduction items.
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I simply love Paylocity! We have run into some issues, but no company is going to be perfect. The flow of the modules is really nice, no double entry of data. The Time & Labor flows into Payroll nicely and Benefits flows into the employees Pay Setup which goes onto the employees paycheck with little to no issues.
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Reliability and Availability
I haven't had any outages
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Over the last 3 years, we've only had one major service issue that rendered Airbase unusable for us for about 24 hours. That said, they navigated the SVB bank crisis very well and made sure funds were available during that time.
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Performance
Very quick
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We had some minor hiccups throughout the year but they have all been fixable. Paylocity integrates well with our 401k provider, Principal, and our benefits, OneDigital. It makes it simple to house everything and have it all connected. It doesn't slow anything down to have Principal integrated. It makes it more efficient
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Support Rating
I had to learn APS on my own, and the support team held my hand. They are still there when I have an occasional question. Anytime I need support, I can call my rep or send an email and help is on the way, without failure. The support team is awesome
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I really appreciate that we are assigned a support manager. That person is very familiar with our set up, our needs and our history. However, I've spoken to others on the support team and have had very positive interactions and get the help needed.
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In-Person Training
Even if it wasn't in-person on location, we felt like we had our trainer in the room with us.
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I didn't have in-person training, but I'm sure it was just as great as any other training/assistance Paylocity provides. Paylocity customer service is always available. You never have to be on hold and their answers are always accurate and timely. Documents in the help section are helpful as well. My in-person training was conducted y one of our employees who was involved in the initial set-up and training of all employees. She was excellent.
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Online Training
We had great webinars.
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Our rep was very thorough and made sure we fully understood the software before turning us loose alone. Paylocity was very good to do periodic check ins to ensure we understood the features and answered any questions we had. The training reps are very well trained and are very patient with clients.
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Implementation Rating
It would have been helpful to understand the phases of the implementation up front so I could have prepared differently for enrollments, billing, and transfer of information to payroll. At the end of the day, I'm happy with the selection and the system and anticipate I will like it better as we go along. We have done a number of other system implementations in the past few years, and this has been pretty painless, however, I've had a few surprises.
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We were handed off to multiple implementation people, some quit, one went on leave, one left suddenly, one was transfered to a diff dept...all causing a significant amount of disruption for our team. Many had conflicting info on how to properly set things up...hence a complete mess was left for us to figure out
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Alternatives Considered
We had used ADP for years and had always struggled with their customer service. With over 20 locations (20+ W2s, quarterly filings, etc) we had a lot of questions. We would have to call and sit on hold for long periods of time to talk to someone who couldn't always answer our questions. Then we would get different answers from different people or have to re-explain our issue. It was a major time suck for my employees and they dreaded having to call all of the time. For us - the final straws for us to switch providers were: +Numerous year end filings with incorrect names and addresses (they couldn't keep our 20+ locations separate even though our paperwork was completed correctly) +Incorrect SUI rates for several locations that resulted in tens of thousands of dollars in overpayments which was a lot of money for small hotels. We had sent in numerous requests for them to fix this but it never happened +Lack of care - even though we were having all of these issues, nobody would work with us to get them all resolved and make sure to remedy the situation. We had to seek out a manager to get them resolved but even after this, we still had more issues. Overall - DON'T stick with ADP or even think about switching to them. They might be able to slash prices but their poor customer service and lack of care will cost you in the end. It's not worth it. APS does everything ADP had the capability of but we don't have the errors or headaches we did before. I am really looking forward to this year end!
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Paylocity is SO far ahead of Paycor, it's not even funny. Just from the implementation standpoint alone, Paycor was an absolute nightmare. Paylocity had some struggles, but that goes along with any implementation. The experience with Paylocity was LIGHTYEARS ahead of our experience with Paycor, and the system itself is so, so much better.
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Scalability
I've never had a problem with the system nor in finding the right information.
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We have gone from a medium sized company to a larger company with no issues whatsoever with Paylocity being able to keep up or do what we need it to do for the size of our needs. In fact, it does more than we even use at this juncture
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Return on Investment
  • We were able to transition quickly and continue to successfully hire and onboard new hires for several Clubs that opened within weeks of moving to APS.
  • We do struggle a bit with the ease of reporting simply because our locations are all under separate EIN and that can make it difficult to easily combine data queried under custom reports, so the volume of reporting that I might wish to be able to push through weekly in order to help address 'real time' trends is not always available.
  • The lack of effective dating for position and wage changes does mean that HR and available APS data is not 'real time' accurate and that HR does need to return to the system to update changes well after-the-fact, which is not ideal.
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  • Paylocity has helped us with recruitment by streamlining the process and making it efficient. It is saving me time.
  • Paylocity has also helped us with compensation so we can create a fair and robust compensation plan.
  • I also like using the data insights feature, which helps me keep track of over time, payroll and benefits costs, and retention numbers. This also saves me time as it is all in one place.
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ScreenShots

APS Screenshots

Screenshot of workforce planningScreenshot of expense management

Paylocity Screenshots

Screenshot of a view of real-time employee data and performance metrics used to uncover and analyze trends. This creates an impactful understanding of the business, increase retention, understand labor costs, and plan for changes.Screenshot of where to automate manual processes with Paylocity's self-serve automation engine, Workflows. Users can implement routines for time-consuming manual tasks.Screenshot of where to manage and comply with employment law. Paylocity's HR Compliance solution helps users to stay on track and view important employee compliance items, from Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), healthcare, and compensation.Screenshot of how Paylocity Recruiting can automate hiring processes. amplify outreach, showcase a company's culture, and build stronger candidate connections to swiftly fill positions.Screenshot of recognition and rewards in Paylocity.