HRdirect Smart Apps vs. UKG Pro

UPDATE 3/20/2020: I initially gave HRDirect a "0" recommendation due to all the issues we had with the PTO Module. However, since purchasing the Harassment Training Module ($90), this product is the best value for the money and puts us in compliance with mandated requirements. It is easy to use and well-presented. At this point in time, with the issues and frustration level of all our employees, managers, and payroll department, it would be difficult for me to recommend this app as suitable in any scenario. However, should HRdirect fix the issues and get the app to perform as it was originally designed, it would be a great product for a small to medium company that has limited resources yet wants a good product for the money. In our experience, the new hire portal did not appear to be functioning properly; our new hires were not able to access the blank documents. They could see them but not open them (PDFs).

Incentivized

I would say, well, I don't want to focus on less appropriate. I want to be well suited. I really feel like if the transparency with our count rep and then just diving in onto how to problem solve and how to troubleshoot, I think that's most important with that.

Incentivized

• Initially, you were able to see all activity and drill down for details.
• It was easy-access for all our employees in the 7 states we operate in.
• It provided tracking for the managers.
• Payroll had access to all PTO requests.

Incentivized

• UKG has an amazing support team to reach out to if assistance is needed
• All add-ons of UKG Pro integrate seamlessly making it a powerful software program
• UKG Pro is very configurable to meet the specific needs of companies
• It is easy to use and navigate
• The mobile app is loved by all employees and provides on-demand access
• The Ultimate Community is amazing!! On-demand information on all products and how they are used. Connect with other companies that use UKG Pro and learn from each other.
• The Learning Centre is also amazing!! Learning right at your fingertips anytime, anywhere.

Incentivized

• HRdirect performed an upgrade in 2019 and that's where things went awry.
• You could no longer drill down through the calendar to see the details - i.e. Doctor's appointment, illness, childcare issues, vacation, etc.
• Previous year PTO requests were not archived and you now had to scroll through hundreds of PTO requests to see the most current.
• Previous PTO requests were listed oldest to most current, resulting in much frustration trying to locate specific ones.
• The print option was not longer functional.
• The online help request form was no longer accessible.

Incentivized

• Onboarding and recruiting need an environment that is more stable and dependable.
• Core Benefits could be enhanced to allow OE and LE events via the mobile app.
• Service and support need to be increased; days and weeks now, when we first went live, it was minutes and hours.
• Adapting all version of time management into one or two versions, at no cost to the customer would allow the resources from UTA, UTM and WFM Classic to be directed to future enhancements and would allow support services to be increased for the 2 remaining platforms.

Incentivized

As previously described, there are too many unresolved issues.

Incentivized

We have been a customer since 2015, we have gone to market and find that UKG Pro product is both user friendly for administrators as well as the employee. The qualify of support and service of UKG team is valued and we trust the product.

Incentivized

It gets the job done, but not with a few deep sighs. Once you know where stuff lives, it's manageable, but the first learning curve is steep, some menus feel buried. However, it's consistent, reliable and doesn't crash on me, which counts for a lot. With a little UI glow up it could push into a 9 zone.

Incentivized

For the most part UltiPro has been reliable, but it could definitely be better. There have been several notable server issues where we were unable to access the product or unable to utilize some of the features. Customer support is usually quick to respond to questions about these issues, but they do not proactively reach out to customers whose environments have been effected by outages

Normally UKG Pro loads quickly. We had been having major issues with reports running in a timely manner but recently they broke out our virtual server to another instance where is wasn't sharing resources and that seems to have helped reporting run more efficiently.

Incentivized

Due to the fact that we were patient for more than 6 months with no resolution in sight, we decided to end our relationship with HRdirect for PTO tracking. 3/20/2020: We have purchased the Harassment Training Module. Excellent product with great value for the money.

Incentivized

The quality of UKG Support is related directly to the UKG rep. who handles the issue. In some cases you get someone who really is good at supporting the product and others may not have as much experience and it shows

Incentivized

I've been to a few in-person (hands on) training sessions and it is very similar to the online classes. You have the same reference material to look back on after the training. So regardless of in person training or online you really get the same thing.

Incentivized

Most of the online training was very generic (to be expected) but we had specific requirements for configuration that could have been better addressed with more individual sessions earlier on from our project team. However, we did finally begin booking training sessions with our implementation team which were recorded, and so provided additional information for how to correctly configure and test the system.

Incentivized

Make sure you have all of your tax account information with all the states you are registered in available and that you are knowledgeable about the filing status, frequency, etc. We had some unique challenges with our state unemployment tax set up that I was not aware of and needed to be addressed prior to going live. Working with the state unemployment office can be a challenge.

Incentivized

We used ADP WFN prior to switching to UKG. We interviewed three different payroll companies to see what our options were. UKG stood out and aligned with our company values. The sales team was very helpful and asked questions about what we were currently doing and how they could assist with simplifying things. I personally had a side meeting with them to see if there were options for a process that we manually process and if UKG could actually eliminate the process. We came to the conclusion that we weren't able to get it 100%, but we could pull 80% of what we needed from UKG, and then we would only need to manipulate 20% of the information. It was also determined from that meeting that we wouldn't need to pay extra to have a special report built. The customer service is what we were sold on. The other companies that we looked at didn't give us the confidence that their customer service would be any better than what we previously had.

Incentivized

The UltiPro HRMS platform offers Flexibility & Accessibility. We are able to add a component company to our existing profile with ease. UltiPro provides a step-by-step guide to component company implementation. The process was flawless! the HRMS homepage is customizable. We place a large amount of data on our HRMS homepage for employees to view and print, regardless of their location, as long as they have internet access. The Human Resources Department no longer prints and distribute Employee Handbooks, Policies & Procedures, and Group Health SPDs, as this information is available on HRMS.

Incentivized

• Initially, HRdirect was proving to be an excellent tool, and we were getting a quick turnaround on small issues. However, the upgrade messed things up on our accessibility, with no resolution in sight.
• Harassment training module is excellent.

Incentivized

• Personally as a veteran user of UKG Pro, in past employers I have seen many amazing increases in employee engagement and ROI.
• With QuVa, we are still very new to the UKG Pro platform and are just now beginning to get out of the implementation phase where we can start measuring the change. I will be looking for changes in Overtime spending to reduce as a result of more informative and actionable dashboards for managers to monitor overtime and timeclock abuses in real time. I am also expecting employees to engage more with new features being pushed out to the mobile app.

Incentivized