Calamari vs. syncHR

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Calamari
Score 9.1 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
Calamari is a workforce management software system offered by Chrobrus.
$10
per month
syncHR
Score 6.0 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
SyncHR headquartered in Oakland, California offers their eponymous platform for HR management, benefits and payroll.N/A
Pricing
CalamarisyncHR
Editions & Modules
Leave Mgmt
Starting at 10
per month
Clock In/Clock Out
Starting at 20
per month
Leave Mgmt + Clock In/Clock Out
Starting at 30
per month
syncHR v5.9
Varies
Per User per Month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
CalamarisyncHR
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeRequired
Additional Details—SyncHR charges a one-time implementation fee plus a PEPM fee. All charges are based on employer size and complexity.
More Pricing Information
Features
CalamarisyncHR
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
9.4
1 Ratings
18% above category average
Employee demographic data00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Employment history00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Job profiles and administration00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Organizational charting00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Organization and location management00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
9.4
1 Ratings
16% above category average
Pay calculation00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Benefit plan administration00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Direct deposit files00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Reimbursement management00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
9.0
1 Ratings
10% above category average
Approval workflow00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Balance details00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
9.2
1 Ratings
12% above category average
View and generate pay and benefit information00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Update personal information00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
View company policy documentation00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Employee recognition00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
View job history00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
10.0
1 Ratings
24% above category average
Tracking of all physical assets00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
10.0
1 Ratings
27% above category average
Report builder00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Pre-built reports00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
10.0
1 Ratings
22% above category average
New hire portal00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Manager tracking tools00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
9.0
1 Ratings
10% above category average
Corporate goal setting00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Individual goal setting00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Performance tracking00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
8.4
1 Ratings
5% above category average
Performance plans00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Performance improvement plans00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Review status tracking00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Review reminders00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Multiple review frequency00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Calamari
-
Ratings
syncHR
8.9
1 Ratings
13% above category average
Job Requisition Management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Company Website Posting00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Publish to Social Media00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Applicant Tracking00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
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User Ratings
CalamarisyncHR
Likelihood to Recommend
9.1
(4 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
10.0
(1 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
CalamarisyncHR
Likelihood to Recommend
Calamari
Calamari is constantly striving to account for and provide useful, practical, and simple solutions to its employees that everyone can use without significant inconvenience. Always seeking to be in an active business environment that allows them to manage the various labor policies that exist in each region and company where they work.
Read full review
SyncHR
syncHR is designed for mid to large size companies, typically 200-2000 employees. Any organization that has a strong reporting need and/or a complicated payroll process could benefit from the unique features built into the platform
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Pros
Calamari
  • Complex rules to define each team member's PTO allowance.
  • Overview of remaining allowance and when it is has been requested for.
  • Easy login options.
Read full review
SyncHR
  • Automated retroactive change processing and mid-period rate changes – completely automated with no manual intervention needed - If you ever need to give someone a merit increase and make it retroactive or if an employee is entitled to enroll in health benefits on their first day employment but has 30 days to enroll, syncHR will automatically handles these retro changes.
  • A single application designed from the ground up that gives equal weight to HR, payroll, and benefit functions - syncHR is designed as a true unified solution with no back-end mainframes or separate front-ends vs backends. Everything is processed real-time in the cloud which has eliminated all discrepancies.
  • Customer Service - syncHR provides a designated account manager as your single point of contact. Since the The StaffWell Group is a 24/7 business, I needed a company that was available when I needed them. syncHR delivered with 24/7 emergency support.
  • Event-driven employee self service - Other systems we have used rely on employees to make the correct choices as to what is required when completing an employee initiated transaction. With syncHR, the system always directs the employee to the next step reducing both errors and calls to our support staff. I believe this is also the reason why we had a 40% increase in the adoption of ESS.
  • Dynamic Security & Workflows - syncHR has no static pages which allows security and workflows to be updated automatically whenever a change is made. This has virtually eliminated the time and effort required from HR to manually update workflows to the correct personnel.
Read full review
Cons
Calamari
  • Lack of a mobile app.
  • A little tricky at first to use.
  • Need HR-friendly features to add.
Read full review
SyncHR
  • Learning Management System- syncHR currently does not offer an LMS system. They only track and report training dates, licenses and certifications.
  • Although syncHR is a global solution it is somewhat limited to tracking employee headcount, HR documents, paperless on boarding and benefit information. There is no international payroll option like the one they provide for domestic employees. Although the system can handle multiple languages and currencies, I would like to see a global payroll option.
  • Succession Planning - syncHR provides little functionality for succession planning. The system can track budgets vs actuals, goals and ratings but does not offer a true succession planning module
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Usability
Calamari
No answers on this topic
SyncHR
Overall the system is very easy to navigate but more importantly my employees find it so easy to use. The percentage of employees who now use ESS went up by 40%
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Support Rating
Calamari
Working with my rep is so easy and has been the selling point on this platform. I like that I don't have to think about it much, love the Slack integrations for my team and how easy it was to transition from our old process into Calamari. It's simple, clear, and for a small team, it has everything I need. The customer support team has always responded promptly when I need anything, and we were even able to extend our trial period in the beginning and converted to a paying customer shortly after.
Read full review
SyncHR
Whenever we need support our designated account manager is there to provide answers for us. If she doesn't have or know the answer, additional support is provided via a service matter expert in that field. Support hours are 24/7
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Online Training
Calamari
No answers on this topic
SyncHR
Training was very well done and thorough
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Implementation Rating
Calamari
No answers on this topic
SyncHR
During the first few weeks of implementation it is important to have all key members participate in meetings. Finance, HR, Payroll and Benefits should be involved from the early stages to ensure that the solution is designed to meet your specific requirements. Since syncHR personalizes their solution for each company a few wrong steps early on regarding the design we wanted caused us to spend extra time later. The more info you provide syncHR upfront the better they can take all of your rules and needs into account from day one. In our case, finance did not get involved right away and therefore some of the items that we needed for our GL needed to be re-done. SyncHR was very accommodating though as they spent extra time with us to update some of the allocations so that finance got what they needed
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Alternatives Considered
Calamari
Our HR department used Excel and paper request forms for our vacation management, and tracking working hours didn't exist. We were only obliged to sign a list when we were entering the office. Calamari is a huge improvement in every aspect of time tracking and vacation management for your company. We're loving it!
Read full review
SyncHR
As I mentioned I have used UltiPro, ADP, Ceridian as well as several others and none of them seem to offer half of the functionality and service that syncHR provides. Although we had some problems from time to time, I hold companies in high regard by how they resolve these problems. It's a comfort knowing that my HCM provider truly cares about me and my business so if for no other reason than this, I feel syncHR is far and away the best system I have used. The system works as advertised which is all I could ask for
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Return on Investment
Calamari
  • It is quick and simple to provide application training to employees.
  • When there are problems with the connection, it is possible to record that the user does not mark their exit or accounts for extra time.
Read full review
SyncHR
  • Due to complexity of our payroll, it would typically take us almost 3 full days to verify hours and perform retro changes before actually running payroll. With so many retroactive changes and manual calculations it was a time consuming and error prone process. With syncHR, the accuracy of payroll has increased tremendously and the amount of time we now spend preparing to process payroll decreased to less than 4 hours per week. All approved time seamlessly moves from the T&A module into payroll and all retro transactions are automatically processed.
  • When I initially selected syncHR I was a little hesitant because I never heard of them before and was concerned about their viability as a company and customer service. Several years later I'm happy to say that syncHR has provided better support than any of the better know competitors ever did.
  • Although no system is ever perfect, overall syncHR has exceeded most of my expectations. The sales and implementation process was wonderful, the salesperson was responsive and did not oversell what the system could do.
  • Training & Implementation - syncHR spent a considerable amount of time learning my business rules in order to build the system to meet my requirements. Training was provided on all aspects of the system until my team felt comfortable enough to handle things on their own. I never felt as though we had a set number of hours of training or that our questions, no matter how redundant or simple were a bother to them.
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ScreenShots

Calamari Screenshots

Screenshot of Calendar with detailed information about upcoming absences, holidays, and remote work.Screenshot of Online Timesheets with all the details about employees' working time. Employees can clock in/out, call a break, add projects, and take notes.Screenshot of Clocking in/out and displays all the details about the work day.Screenshot of team management features.Screenshot of the integrations that are possibile using the Calamari API.Screenshot of company document management features.

syncHR Screenshots

Screenshot of Org ChartScreenshot of ESS PortalScreenshot of Ad-Hoc Report WriterScreenshot of Time & Attendance