BambooHR vs Iris HR Software Formerly Octopus HR

Overall BambooHr has excelled in satisfying our needs. It performs well as a one-stop-shop for HR challenges. It has benefitted us as an excellent repository for personnel information both in processing prospective and new hires, as well as existing employees. It provides a fairly simple, but [the] straightforward system for managing and using time off. Some areas do need some work, however. There is no ability to set up a default set of time-off types/accruals for a new hire, which means this has to be done manually for each new employee. This creates a lot of opportunities for human error. It also has a very opaque and unhelpful API when it comes to the management of the time data; Whereas the rest of the API is exceptional. Lastly, the ability to request time off only allows for a flat number of hours in a day; it doesn't allow the employee to request specific times. As a result, we rely on the employee and manager to communicate the time successfully in the notes field. There is a big difference between arriving 1 hour late, leaving 1 hour early, and stepping out for an extended lunch.

I would definitely recommend Octopus HR if companies need every employee, not just one HR team, to use it. I think it's too much and would suggest something like Taleo for one team to use. Key questions would be: Do you need a simple platform? Are you using this just for your HR team or will everyone need access? Is the way employees request PTO at your company disorganized?

• BambooHR has a top-notch electronic onboarding process. It is fully customizable and works very well with applicants of all technological capabilities. Onboarding allows you to add every step the new employee and the business partners must complete through timed, dated, notifications, digital documents, e-signatures, and a back-end administrative ability to follow up.
• BambooHR has good applicant tracking system. They currently integrate with indeed and ZipRecruiter. However, it is easy to create links for other platforms with the ability to distinguish where you are getting recruiting traction. In addition the ability to rate, and communicate about an applicant is confidential between the hiring managers and HR. Also, there is an easy way to create a candidate pool of eligible candidates for later passive recruiting, that is called Talent Pools.
• BambooHR has a unique feature called Announcements. This function allows various announcements to go out via email, through the application, or a combination of both to directed target audiences or the entire company.
• BambooHR also sends out announcements (customizable) on every new hire. This allows folks to see who is starting and learn a bit about them before they meet them.
• BambooHR has a great function for tracking time by the task or job. This is great for tracking productivity gaps for administrative positions or job costing for positions that have billable hours.
• BambooHR also has easy to organize digital documents. You can easily upload documents via drop and drag. Documents can be added to folders and then downloaded later if an employee terminates.
• Goal in performance management are very good, they follow the SMART methodology but there is no way to attach them to a performance review. They do allow the employee to adjust using a slide bar and you can attach people to a goal. In addition it notifies the supervisor but you cannot shut off notifications.

• It's simple. I really appreciate that the layout of Octopus HR isn't something I have to question. I know where to look for something because it's clearly labeled, that's more than I can say for a lot of other HR systems I've seen.
• Support. If I ever have a question about setting something up, or if something goes wrong, they're always on top of it. For instance, I had no idea how to set up employee photos on our accounts. I tweeted them and they responded right away, I'm based in LA and they're a UK company, I was impressed that they were able to respond right away. They make sure their customers are taken care of.
• Great self guide. If there's ever an ordinary question I need answered their "Octopus Guide" is very thorough and walks you through everything.

• Some edge cases aren't as fleshed out. For example, asset inventory management isn't something BambooHR can really excel at currently.
• Something akin to Google Forms but with the privacy protections of being already in the HRIS would be great for collecting anonymized responses.

• Adding employee photos. That's definitely something I think is hard to figure out on your own.
• An easier way for users to retrieve their passwords. Sometimes I notice even when employees put in all the correct information, the system doesn't recognize it.

We have tried other software in the last year and have not found it to be comparable to Bamboo HR especially in relation to the HR functionalities such as workflows, onboarding, automation, user-friendly experience, innovation, timekeeping, and ability to integrate with other 3rd party Payroll processing software. In addition, the employee ease of access and navigation of the platform makes this software crucial within our current culture of multi-site and remote work environments.

Employees don't complain about it! If anything they've commented on how nice of a tool it is to have.

Does not have many problems and this ensures all of users are able to use it reliably. There is a free demo available to illustrate the accurate usage of the platform and even customer support. All of these help in improving the usability of the platform and ensure that all users are comfortable with the platform.

Yes, there is a huge team in the back of the online platform or it looks like it because I have never been left without an answer when I have a question or waiting from a response on my chat .... There must be a huge team, this is so great and I always seem to have someone that is very knowledgeable too. So many times in the past I had to leave with customer service that would connect you with someone else because of the expertise, here everyone seems to be some kind of an expert in the HR function.

I love BambooHR. Reports are easy to run and download and it usually covers any types of requests I get from the management team. You get excel or .csv downloads/reports and it is fast and simple, not too crowded so it is easy to read through. We don't integrate the tool yet but again, soon we will. we just did not had the time to utilize it yet but that's the plan.

Support is effective and responsive. During our time with BambooHR we did not experience many issues, but initial support on setup was helpful and allowed for a quick turnaround on getting started. Since then, few needs have arisen for contacting support, but I would not hesitate to do so and would recommend BambooHR based on the quality of their support team.

The online training team is great. Theis is so well done! very user friendly, very nice to go through. Then you get all those exemples and questions to test you and make sure you understand the training as we go along. This is a great asset from the tool, I don't think I have ever been left without understanding because there is help and additional resources to understand or extra windows that explain terms or answer Q&A.

it was very easy to sign up, quick and we could use the site very quickly as well.

I would say they both have a lot of strengths for sure. Workday manages data on a mass scale a little bit better in my opinion, but Bamboo HR is more user friendly and pleasing to the eyes

Very different platforms. You get a lot of bang for your buck using Octopus HR. It's a much more modern and simple layout and that's something forward thinking companies definitely enjoy.

There is so much you can do with this platform, it is incredible and so welcoming. We don't utilize it 100% yet just because we are growing and the HR team has not been able to concentrate on other areas offered to us but but we will soon. Which is also why we got the product, specifically because what BambooHR can do to help us meet our growing business needs.

• There has been an excellent rate of profitability in our work season, especially thanks to the optimization of our operations through BambooHR.
• Currently estimated gains appear to be 500%, which leaves our ROI at 4, demonstrating that the platform has a high return on investment.

• Employee efficiency. There's never a question of who I request my time off with. The program sets up line managers who take in all the requests.
• Less wasted time. Contact info and photo are very visible and easily accessed.