Iris HR Software vs. UKG Pro

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Iris HR Software
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
Iris HR Software (formerly Octopus HR, acquired by Iris Software Group April 2016) is an HR suite.
$1.50
per month per user
UKG Pro
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
UKG delivers cloud-based HCM solutions including UKG Pro that help businesses simplify payroll computations, accelerate talent acquisition, manage time and attendance, and support proactive, strategic talent management on a global level.N/A
Pricing
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Editions & Modules
Standard
$1.50
per month per user
Plus
$2
per month per user
Pro
$3.50
per month per user
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsPrices are in British Pounds.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Features
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.6
2 Ratings
6% above category average
UKG Pro
7.8
940 Ratings
4% below category average
Employee demographic data9.02 Ratings8.6851 Ratings
Employment history8.01 Ratings8.3877 Ratings
Job profiles and administration10.02 Ratings8.0847 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.9.02 Ratings7.6832 Ratings
Organizational charting8.02 Ratings7.1743 Ratings
Organization and location management8.02 Ratings8.0756 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)8.02 Ratings7.2599 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
7.6
2 Ratings
7% below category average
UKG Pro
8.1
857 Ratings
0% below category average
Pay calculation8.01 Ratings8.3811 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors7.01 Ratings7.8407 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment8.01 Ratings8.2318 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.02 Ratings7.7732 Ratings
Direct deposit files7.01 Ratings8.5799 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management8.02 Ratings8.3659 Ratings
Reimbursement management7.02 Ratings8.057 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.3
2 Ratings
1% above category average
UKG Pro
7.7
662 Ratings
6% below category average
Approval workflow9.02 Ratings7.7587 Ratings
Balance details8.01 Ratings7.8617 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment8.02 Ratings7.7510 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.2
2 Ratings
0% below category average
UKG Pro
8.1
907 Ratings
1% below category average
View and generate pay and benefit information9.02 Ratings8.3875 Ratings
Update personal information9.02 Ratings8.5880 Ratings
View company policy documentation8.02 Ratings8.0649 Ratings
Employee recognition8.02 Ratings7.4340 Ratings
View job history7.01 Ratings8.4861 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
7.0
1 Ratings
13% below category average
UKG Pro
7.6
229 Ratings
5% below category average
Tracking of all physical assets7.01 Ratings7.6229 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
7.3
2 Ratings
3% below category average
UKG Pro
7.1
843 Ratings
6% below category average
Report builder9.02 Ratings7.4819 Ratings
Pre-built reports7.02 Ratings7.3832 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data6.02 Ratings6.7579 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.5
2 Ratings
6% above category average
UKG Pro
7.9
643 Ratings
1% below category average
New hire portal8.02 Ratings8.2636 Ratings
Manager tracking tools9.01 Ratings7.7515 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.2
2 Ratings
2% above category average
UKG Pro
7.5
438 Ratings
7% below category average
Corporate goal setting9.02 Ratings7.4345 Ratings
Individual goal setting9.02 Ratings7.5417 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility7.01 Ratings7.6298 Ratings
Performance tracking8.02 Ratings7.6387 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.4
2 Ratings
6% above category average
UKG Pro
7.5
542 Ratings
5% below category average
Performance plans8.01 Ratings7.6484 Ratings
Performance improvement plans9.02 Ratings7.0381 Ratings
Review status tracking8.02 Ratings7.7498 Ratings
Review reminders9.02 Ratings7.5468 Ratings
Multiple review frequency8.02 Ratings7.6394 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
8.0
2 Ratings
3% above category average
UKG Pro
7.1
235 Ratings
9% below category average
Create succession plans/pools8.02 Ratings6.8189 Ratings
Candidate ranking8.02 Ratings7.3203 Ratings
Candidate search8.02 Ratings7.5206 Ratings
Candidate development8.02 Ratings7.0187 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Iris HR Software
7.8
2 Ratings
2% above category average
UKG Pro
7.5
530 Ratings
2% below category average
Job Requisition Management8.02 Ratings7.5499 Ratings
Company Website Posting7.02 Ratings7.6489 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention8.01 Ratings7.1382 Ratings
Applicant Tracking8.01 Ratings7.7486 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts8.02 Ratings7.7451 Ratings
Publish to Social Media00 Ratings7.2387 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings7.5451 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Small Businesses
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.4 out of 10
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.7 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.7 out of 10
Enterprises
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 9.9 out of 10
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 9.9 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Likelihood to Recommend
8.0
(3 ratings)
8.2
(1078 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.0
(1 ratings)
10.0
(197 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(1 ratings)
8.0
(315 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(76 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(333 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
5.9
(496 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(88 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
8.4
(206 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(87 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
8.5
(78 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
6.8
(68 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(95 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
8.9
(57 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(50 ratings)
User Testimonials
Iris HR SoftwareUKG Pro
Likelihood to Recommend
IRIS Software Group
Our staff is kept updated with more company policies and we are able to track their holiday and sick days much better. The help and support of their contact support are super good. They reply super fast and are very kind. Also, their sales department isn't pushy like other services they are very knowledgeable and kind.
Read full review
UKG
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.
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Pros
IRIS Software Group
  • 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.
Read full review
UKG
  • 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.
Read full review
Cons
IRIS Software Group
  • initial scope/setup support (outside of template)
  • Contacting support can be difficult
  • case sensitive username for end users (email addresses have to match exactly)
Read full review
UKG
  • 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.
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Likelihood to Renew
IRIS Software Group
Employees don't complain about it! If anything they've commented on how nice of a tool it is to have.
Read full review
UKG
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.
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Usability
IRIS Software Group
Iris HR Software is a stable and fairly intuitive product which has had a positive impact on our organisation. We have had some support issues but generally feel we've had a positive experience and our personnel and finance teams have benefitted from this process structure. Whilst contacting the correct Iris HR Software support channel has been our biggest issue once we have established contact our tickets have been raised and resolved promptly.
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UKG
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.
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Reliability and Availability
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
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
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Performance
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
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.
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Support Rating
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
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
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In-Person Training
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
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.
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Online Training
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
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.
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Implementation Rating
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
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.
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Alternatives Considered
IRIS Software Group
I would say the pricing is good but it could be better. Also, the customer service is amazing they do such a great job and you can tell they know what they are doing. Visually it is very easy to use and looks very professional. It is a quick set up and they do their best to give you what you want and need.
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UKG
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.
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Scalability
IRIS Software Group
No answers on this topic
UKG
Read full review
Return on Investment
IRIS Software Group
  • Our staff is super happy with the service
  • Huge improvement
  • Looks quite professional
Read full review
UKG
  • 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.
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ScreenShots

UKG Pro Screenshots

Screenshot of included workforce analytics.Screenshot of the payroll gateway.