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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Ascentis (discontinued)

    Score7.5 out of 10
    N/AAscentis HR uses web-based management programs to help automate complex HR processes. Ascentis’ other services included customizable payroll, time and attendance and recruiting modules. Ascentis was acquired by UKG in March of 2022, and will be discontinued.N/A

    Payroll by Wave

    Score10 out of 10
    N/AWave Accounting headquartered in Toronto now offers Payroll by Wave, a payroll app for small businesses.N/A
    Pricing
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Considered Both Products
    Discontinued Products
    No answer on this topic
    Wave
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    78%
    Would buy again
    40 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    5 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    90%
    Delivers good value for the price
    35 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    5 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    86%
    Happy with the feature set
    44 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    5 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    65%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    22 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    65%
    Implementation went as expected
    24 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Human Resource Management
    Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    7.1
    150 Ratings
    14% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Employee demographic data6.7137 Ratings00 Ratings
    Employment history7.3140 Ratings00 Ratings
    Job profiles and administration6.9128 Ratings00 Ratings
    Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.6.7126 Ratings00 Ratings
    Organizational charting5.290 Ratings00 Ratings
    Organization and location management8.0109 Ratings00 Ratings
    Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)8.8102 Ratings00 Ratings
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    7.8
    125 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    9.4
    5 Ratings
    13% above category average
    Pay calculation7.1115 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Support for external payroll vendors6.162 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Off-cycle/On-Demand payment8.328 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration6.7108 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Direct deposit files9.2100 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management8.692 Ratings9.55 Ratings
    Reimbursement management8.851 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Leave and Attendance Management
    Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    7.8
    105 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Approval workflow7.999 Ratings00 Ratings
    Balance details7.099 Ratings00 Ratings
    Annual carry-forward and encashment8.484 Ratings00 Ratings
    Employee Self Service
    Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    7.0
    153 Ratings
    16% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    View and generate pay and benefit information7.8138 Ratings00 Ratings
    Update personal information8.6151 Ratings00 Ratings
    View company policy documentation5.4110 Ratings00 Ratings
    Employee recognition6.061 Ratings00 Ratings
    View job history7.3108 Ratings00 Ratings
    Asset Management
    Comparison of Asset Management features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    5.8
    33 Ratings
    33% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Tracking of all physical assets5.833 Ratings00 Ratings
    HR Reporting
    Comparison of HR Reporting features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    6.3
    147 Ratings
    19% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Report builder7.0144 Ratings00 Ratings
    Pre-built reports7.5142 Ratings00 Ratings
    Ability to combine HR data with external data4.673 Ratings00 Ratings
    Onboarding
    Comparison of Onboarding features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    5.1
    98 Ratings
    45% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    New hire portal5.398 Ratings00 Ratings
    Manager tracking tools4.976 Ratings00 Ratings
    Performance and Goals
    Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    7.2
    57 Ratings
    12% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Corporate goal setting6.743 Ratings00 Ratings
    Individual goal setting7.653 Ratings00 Ratings
    Line-of sight-visibility7.138 Ratings00 Ratings
    Performance tracking7.250 Ratings00 Ratings
    Performance Management
    Comparison of Performance Management features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    6.0
    63 Ratings
    28% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Performance plans5.659 Ratings00 Ratings
    Performance improvement plans5.650 Ratings00 Ratings
    Review status tracking5.857 Ratings00 Ratings
    Review reminders6.555 Ratings00 Ratings
    Multiple review frequency6.650 Ratings00 Ratings
    Succession Planning
    Comparison of Succession Planning features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    5.9
    27 Ratings
    29% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Create succession plans/pools6.421 Ratings00 Ratings
    Candidate ranking6.421 Ratings00 Ratings
    Candidate search5.027 Ratings00 Ratings
    Candidate development5.823 Ratings00 Ratings
    Recruiting / ATS
    Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Ascentis (discontinued) and Payroll by Wave
    Feature
    Ascentis (discontinued)
    5.5
    89 Ratings
    36% below category average
    Payroll by Wave
    -
    Ratings
    Job Requisition Management5.485 Ratings00 Ratings
    Company Website Posting5.279 Ratings00 Ratings
    Publish to Social Media5.659 Ratings00 Ratings
    Job Search Site Posting5.871 Ratings00 Ratings
    Duplicate Candidate Prevention5.657 Ratings00 Ratings
    Applicant Tracking5.783 Ratings00 Ratings
    Notifications and Alerts5.369 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Small Businesses
    UZIO
    Score9.4 out of 10
    Patriot Payroll
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Zoho People
    Score8.6 out of 10
    APS
    Score5.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    PeopleStrong
    Score10 out of 10
    ADP Streamline Payroll
    Score6.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Likelihood to Recommend
    7.2
    (164 ratings)
    10.0
    (6 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    6.3
    (12 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    7.6
    (44 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Availability
    6.7
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    7.1
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.2
    (150 ratings)
    8.9
    (2 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    8.3
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    8.3
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    3.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    6.7
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    9.6
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    9.6
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Ascentis (discontinued)Payroll by Wave
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Discontinued Products
    In working with Ascentis in payroll, the program makes my job so much easier. I am new to this position and the learning process has been so much easier with this product than those in the past. I appreciate the patience I am given when I call in for assistance as well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    Great for small business payroll needs. Reports and taxes are taken care of, everything is automated and once you're set up it's literally just a matter of minutes to run payroll each time. You also get email reminders which is helpful. There are premium features available for companies with larger/more robust needs, and I would definitely recommend looking into this software if you are searching for a user friendly payroll solution
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Discontinued Products
    • Easy to use software. I have had several new HR employees comment on how easy the system is to learn!
    • Problem Solving- Ascentis is always problem solving! When we were in the process of selecting a new payroll company, we needed unemployment claims management assistance for our locations, something Ascentis did not currently offer. The sales rep went out of his way to find a unemployment claims management company that would work with Ascentis and us. That company has helped us keep an 80% win rate for our claims!
    • User conference- Engage is an awesome way to learn more about the products Ascentis has available as well and meet up with the staff you work with every day!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    • An intuitive, clear UI helps you know where everything is, what options are at your disposal. Calendars and timelines show that Wave really thought out how to provide you with useful tool.
    • Pay day can be automated and straightforward.
    • Wave onboarding provides guidance at what information to input next until you are all set up.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Discontinued Products
    • Updating the system so it is one platform and not two.
    • Create changes to the benefit enrollment process and upgrade the system so hire dates do not need to be changed to trigger benefits for status changes.
    • Focus updates on HR Admin, mobile application, ATS and transitioning to one platform. Larger areas of focus have been on the payroll portion of the system with a few updates to other areas.
    • When something is broken, quicker turn time on fixing the issue.
    • System needs updates to support AAP reporting.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    • Implement an employee time clock option through a separate link which automatically applies to the weekly time sheets.
    • Option to further customize payroll statements
    • Add a per employee payroll dashboard with the option to review rolling, quarterly, and weekly snapshot. Info to include gross pay, employer paid tax, employee paid tax, etc...
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Discontinued Products
    This rating would be a 10 if it were not for some issues we have been having recently with the benefit carrier connections. The carrier connections are critical for us so how these issues are resolved will be key in our renewal decision.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    Discontinued Products
    I'd give it a 7.5. If the modules were easier to access and not so buried (or placed in left field to find), I would give it a higher rating. As I said, as the potential to be great if ACCESS to other modules was easier.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    Very simple & straightforward system to learn and when time is always of the essence the efficiency is much appreciated
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Discontinued Products
    They normally give you notice when an update will affect the use of the system. Otherwise, when we have an error , we send a message to the support team. Sometimes someone will get right back with you and sometimes it takes a while.
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Discontinued Products
    Yes, this pages do load pretty good but there are times when things are slow and I believe that's because they are sometimes trying to do updates.
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Discontinued Products
    Support is attentive and quick to answer the call and get the answer for you. If they for any reason cannot answer right then, they are back to you within a day and always seem to have a sense of urgency. You truly get the impression that they are aiming to make you happy.
    Incentivized
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    Wave
    Quick response times, personalized service. They offer in-depth videos and guides for helping to get set up. Any time I have a question about taxes or reporting, they answer quickly and give comprehensive answers. Members of the team with whom I've interacted have been courteous, friendly, and helpful. Overall, great support.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Discontinued Products
    First, to clarify our "in-person" training was done mainly through Web-X meetings and conference calls. It was the closest thing we got to as far as an "in-person" training for this software. However, for the large majority of it, this type of training worked out well. We were able to share our screens and the trainer was able to share his/her screen. We could follow along with what we were doing in our database in real time and see how different functions worked and how manipulating our information could produce different results. It was also nice in that it provided for real-time results if something hadn't been coded correctly or we were having issues as to why something wasn't working the way we thought it should be. However, it did have some downsides in that we often had to rely on a conference phone and that made it difficult to hear people on both sides. Also, sometimes the trainers had internet difficulties when working from home and that caused issues with the WebX meetings.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Online Training
    Discontinued Products
    Ascentis HR has a number of online training videos to watch on a number of different topics. I gave it a lower rating because there is not much interactivity with the videos and it seems to cater to really only one or two learning styles. Plus, one has to be pretty motivated to go to a separate area to access the videos and then pull up a specific one to watch it and then learn. From my experience, people know that they are there, many just don't take the time and effort to go find them and actually watch them - especially since the username and password are different from their normal username and password.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Discontinued Products
    It was very easy to implement, but the customization pieces should really be fleshed out in order to determine the full need of an organization at the time of implementation. I believe if a little more time was spent on the requirements, the recruiting module would not have to be customized again at a cost at a later date.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Discontinued Products
    Ascentis has far better customer service and the implementation experience was also better. The ability to do a lot of customization is also easier with Ascentis as it's smaller organization. The payroll has positive and negatives compared to ADP but the accuracy is the same in both. Ascentis just started their community site which doesn't have a lot of traffic but hopefully can become more like ADP's community site, which was extremely helpful to me as an administrator.
    Incentivized
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    Wave
    First is the cost. Since QuickBooks removed the inhouse solution and moved everything to the cloud, the cost for a small business is prohibited. Wave is reasonable in cost. Support for QB isn't great they are always trying to upsell and commit. Wave support in comparison is 100% better, and most of the answers are in their manual
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Discontinued Products
    Large acquisition would be very complicated, seems more appropriate for companies under 100
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Discontinued Products
    • HR DPT. is much more effective, as we can assess any employee information no matter where we are, etc. This helps to provide information immediately when requested!
    • Employees have access to Ascentis, and therefore to their timecard, open enrollment, etc., from anywhere at any time!
    • Time, PTO requests, employee goals, and evaluations can be approved from anywhere at any time!
    • Recruiting can be accessed any where at any time, and this helps with hiring, internal communication, etc.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    • Peace of mind that all the payroll tax-related stuff is taken care of accurately and on time.
    • Easy to use interface saves time and helps ensure I am paid on time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Ascentis (discontinued) Screenshots

    Screenshot of Access all of your details including, paychecks, personal file, timeclock, etc via our mobile app.Screenshot of Punch-in and punch-out on the go.Screenshot of Centralized location for everything related to a user or admin.Screenshot of Every employee has access to their personal information in one location.Screenshot of Pre-built reporting along with Ad Hoc reporting gives you the ability to understand your business as a whole.Screenshot of Benefit enrollment made easy for your employees.