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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    PDS Vista

    Score1.2 out of 10
    Enterprise companies (1,001+ employees)
    Vista® is a human resource, benefits, payroll, recruiting, and self-service software. Functional elements include recruitment, staffing, position and training management, compliance, and performance and compensation.N/A

    TriNet

    Score8 out of 10
    N/ATriNet provides small and medium size businesses (SMBs) with full-service HR and payroll solutions tailored by industry. TriNet also offers specialized services through client access to HR representatives for advice and notifications on impactful regulatory changes.N/A
    Pricing
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsLicense pricing is based on the number of full and part-time active employees within bands (e.g. 751-1,000). SaaS pricing is based on PEPM.—
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Considered Both Products
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answer on this topic
    TriNet
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    83%
    Would buy again
    209 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    86%
    Delivers good value for the price
    178 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    88%
    Happy with the feature set
    224 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    77%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    125 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    88%
    Implementation went as expected
    138 Answers
    Features
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Human Resource Management
    Comparison of Human Resource Management features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    1.9
    19 Ratings
    125% below category average
    TriNet
    7.7
    736 Ratings
    6% below category average
    Employee demographic data1.018 Ratings7.9528 Ratings
    Employment history1.019 Ratings7.7559 Ratings
    Job profiles and administration1.015 Ratings7.8528 Ratings
    Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.1.013 Ratings7.7621 Ratings
    Organizational charting3.014 Ratings7.2442 Ratings
    Organization and location management3.017 Ratings7.4470 Ratings
    Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)3.012 Ratings8.1587 Ratings
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    3.2
    19 Ratings
    88% below category average
    TriNet
    8.2
    792 Ratings
    0% above category average
    Pay calculation3.017 Ratings8.5768 Ratings
    Support for external payroll vendors1.010 Ratings8.05 Ratings
    Off-cycle/On-Demand payment4.01 Ratings7.8283 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration1.017 Ratings8.5777 Ratings
    Direct deposit files4.018 Ratings8.7724 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management1.014 Ratings8.4640 Ratings
    Reimbursement management8.25 Ratings7.8397 Ratings
    Leave and Attendance Management
    Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    1.0
    14 Ratings
    157% below category average
    TriNet
    7.5
    522 Ratings
    9% below category average
    Approval workflow1.08 Ratings8.2439 Ratings
    Balance details1.014 Ratings7.2499 Ratings
    Annual carry-forward and encashment1.013 Ratings7.2409 Ratings
    Employee Self Service
    Comparison of Employee Self Service features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    2.0
    18 Ratings
    122% below category average
    TriNet
    8.0
    774 Ratings
    3% below category average
    View and generate pay and benefit information4.017 Ratings8.7753 Ratings
    Update personal information1.015 Ratings8.7768 Ratings
    View company policy documentation3.09 Ratings8.0658 Ratings
    Employee recognition1.06 Ratings6.3239 Ratings
    View job history1.05 Ratings8.1580 Ratings
    Asset Management
    Comparison of Asset Management features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    7.3
    7 Ratings
    10% below category average
    TriNet
    1.0
    1 Ratings
    156% below category average
    Tracking of all physical assets7.37 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    HR Reporting
    Comparison of HR Reporting features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    2.0
    17 Ratings
    117% below category average
    TriNet
    7.3
    651 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Report builder2.015 Ratings7.2563 Ratings
    Pre-built reports2.017 Ratings7.7619 Ratings
    Ability to combine HR data with external data2.014 Ratings6.9320 Ratings
    Onboarding
    Comparison of Onboarding features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    1.0
    2 Ratings
    156% below category average
    TriNet
    7.8
    636 Ratings
    3% below category average
    New hire portal1.02 Ratings7.9635 Ratings
    Manager tracking tools1.01 Ratings7.6401 Ratings
    Performance and Goals
    Comparison of Performance and Goals features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    2.8
    3 Ratings
    97% below category average
    TriNet
    6.5
    124 Ratings
    22% below category average
    Corporate goal setting1.03 Ratings6.4108 Ratings
    Individual goal setting1.03 Ratings6.5120 Ratings
    Performance tracking6.42 Ratings6.7120 Ratings
    Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings6.5106 Ratings
    Performance Management
    Comparison of Performance Management features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    1.0
    5 Ratings
    156% below category average
    TriNet
    6.9
    208 Ratings
    15% below category average
    Performance plans1.03 Ratings6.7184 Ratings
    Performance improvement plans1.02 Ratings6.7171 Ratings
    Review status tracking1.03 Ratings6.8168 Ratings
    Review reminders1.04 Ratings7.2179 Ratings
    Multiple review frequency1.03 Ratings7.214 Ratings
    Succession Planning
    Comparison of Succession Planning features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    2.3
    2 Ratings
    110% below category average
    TriNet
    7.3
    99 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Create succession plans/pools3.61 Ratings00 Ratings
    Candidate ranking1.02 Ratings8.21 Ratings
    Candidate search1.02 Ratings7.293 Ratings
    Candidate development3.61 Ratings6.488 Ratings
    Recruiting / ATS
    Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of PDS Vista and TriNet
    Feature
    PDS Vista
    1.4
    4 Ratings
    140% below category average
    TriNet
    7.0
    141 Ratings
    12% below category average
    Job Requisition Management1.04 Ratings6.8110 Ratings
    Company Website Posting1.04 Ratings5.51 Ratings
    Duplicate Candidate Prevention1.92 Ratings9.11 Ratings
    Applicant Tracking1.04 Ratings7.0119 Ratings
    Notifications and Alerts2.02 Ratings7.3129 Ratings
    Publish to Social Media00 Ratings6.892 Ratings
    Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings6.8112 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Small Businesses
    UZIO
    Score9.4 out of 10
    UZIO
    Score9.4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Zoho People
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Zoho People
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Enterprises
    PeopleStrong
    Score10 out of 10
    PeopleStrong
    Score10 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Likelihood to Recommend
    1.0
    (24 ratings)
    7.9
    (810 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.1
    (7 ratings)
    7.3
    (60 ratings)
    Usability
    2.0
    (3 ratings)
    8.0
    (706 ratings)
    Availability
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    8.3
    (23 ratings)
    Performance
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    7.9
    (22 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.2
    (3 ratings)
    7.6
    (787 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.4
    (6 ratings)
    Online Training
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    8.1
    (10 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    9.3
    (32 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.2
    (16 ratings)
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    -
    (0 ratings)
    5.9
    (6 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.4
    (12 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (22 ratings)
    Professional Services
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.5
    (7 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.9
    (20 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.9
    (20 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    PDS VistaTriNet
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    As Vista HRMS is fully customizable to suit your needs, a company should determine if they have a current employee who can do the work themselves otherwise they will need to consider the additional cost of asking PDS to do the customizations for them. There are additional modules that we aren't currently making use of, but each company should learn about the functionality of each of them as some may be more beneficial than others. When gathering your questions, ask all potential users of the system what they would want to see in an HRMS. We did so before selecting Vista HRMS and we got pages and pages of questions and comments and made sure that each item was addressed beforehand and was something that we would be able to incorporate into the system. You have the option of taking the system in house or being a hosted client. Make sure you figure out what resources your IT department has available. If you have a dedicated administrator who will do all the upgrades and enhancements great, otherwise you may need PDS to help out and having PDS host may be a better option
    Read full review
    TriNet
    I truly believe TriNet is the best PEO out there. Our specialist, [...], was top notch and always made me feel special. I appreciate all the features available, not just for my employees but for me, as an HR specialist. The benefits I am now able to offer is why we joined but all the features and ease of use is what will keep us clients moving forward. My only issue was feeling a bit rushed through training. I was told I would get written procedures but they were pretty antiquated.
    Read full review
    Pros
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    • Vista HRMS is very flexible, it does everything we need for HR, benefits and payroll. It’s user-friendly and intuitive to use, when we roll out new self-service items our employees have no problems and require minimal training or documentation.
    • PDS has excellent customer service and support. We get answers to the majority of our questions and problems quickly, within the day that we call. More complex issues that may require PDS’ technical support are usually addressed within a few days. We were upgrading our production servers to Windows 2012 over a weekend and a key person in our organization was on leave. When we checked with PDS to see what cost would be involved if we needed their help, they said it was included in our regular maintenance, no extra cost.
    • The PDS User’s Conference is an excellent learning opportunity for training on everything Vista does, including using Crystal Reports for custom reporting. You also get to meet and talk to the executive and development staff and have direct input into the future product development.
    Read full review
    TriNet
    • Customer support is great when working with Amy Hoffman. She's always very quick to respond and helpful. I'd say she's the thing that makes me want to stay with TriNet the most.
    • The webinars are very helpful. I utilize those frequently and our CFO has signed up for some as well.
    • The expense management system has been very helpful. There are a couple issues with it, but it's leaps better than what the company was doing before this system through TriNet.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    • Typical of any system built for the unknown requirements of hundreds or thousands of customers with varying needs, PDS sometimes doesn't fit our processes precisely out of the box. However, this con is far outweighed by the ability to configure and customize the system.
    • The most significant pet peeve of our users is the necessity for so many clicks to navigate between different areas or the system or to review applicants. These items are being addressed based on feedback from the user community in an upcoming release.
    Read full review
    TriNet
    • The online interface for the annual benefits strategy is difficult to navigate and not intuitive.
    • Sometimes the payroll processing division provides explanations that are not very clear or accessible to non-HR professionals.
    • The cost of the service is at the higher end of the market offerings.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    I feel so invested in Vista HRMS that I don't really want to try other options. I know we as an organization are not using this product to it's full potential and that is just due to us lacking the resources to be able to invest the time into breaking it apart and making it work to the best ability for us. The system works great as is, but there are a lot of implementations we can put into place to help us out even more. For example, we would love to start using Workflow to create more efficiencies. I personally have a very good relationship with our hosted vendor who supports Vista HRMS and can help me with any issues and concerns, this is a big part of the reason that I would renew with this product and continue to be an advocate for Vista HRMS.
    Read full review
    TriNet
    e are currently seeing a massive shift in HR tech, with rapid strides being made in the integration of AI and Machine Learning models. These advancements allow for:Predictive analytics for workforce planning.Automated, intelligent chatbots for instant employee support.Smart data synthesis that provides actionable insights rather than just raw numbers.TriNet appears to be lagging in these areas, missing opportunities to leverage AI to reduce administrative overhead and improve data accuracy
    Read full review
    Usability
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    In my line of work, PDS Vista doesn't fit. I recruit and manager talent pipelines, as well as all onboarding aspects of 11 companies. I spend more hours getting data configured and searching for information within this software than I spend with my candidates. Theres an abundance duplication, and there isn't a single stream of information shared across screens. I have to input the SAME details into several screens for them to match up. Nothing is intuitive, and its certainly not end user friendly
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    TriNet
    The platform is highly intuitive and user-friendly, making it easy to navigate for both admins and employees when handling everyday tasks like payroll processing, benefits enrollment, and HR reporting. The flexibility in HR and payroll features does not require a need for extensive training. The mobile app stands out as amazing, with a great interface that enables quick access to employee related items
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answers on this topic
    TriNet
    We had an issue with application errors - took TriNet 5 months to fix it, mean while we had someone manually tracking and keeping up with many requests and questions about the application error which affected time off. When we were all registering for Benefits during open enrollment there were lots of bugs that caused issues with registering for benefits or being able to see what benefits were available
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answers on this topic
    TriNet
    For the most part pages load quickly. Working for a software company we understand performance is everything, even a few seconds delay can feel like a lifetime, that being said, we ran into a few times where pages didn't load, information didn't load correctly, and an influx in users (like open enrollment) cause things to slow down
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    PDS has excellent customer service and support. We get answers to the
    majority of our questions and problems quickly, within the day that we
    call. More complex issues that may require PDS’ technical support are
    usually addressed within a few days
    Read full review
    TriNet
    The support overall is very good. There seems to be a good number of customer support staff and they are knowledgeable and pleasant to deal with and it almost all cases are able to resolve the question or issue very quickly. My only complaint would be having to wait in some cases as I'm based in the UK and the correct department may not be open 24 hours.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answers on this topic
    TriNet
    it's been awhile, but I recall them being helpful. I got through a lot of it and when I needed help, they can walk me through it over the phone. It's also pretty user friendly in general at a platform. I don't really know what else to type, but they came and helped me in person and also when there was something new, they came and talked to me. They have not done that since with the new model that I hate
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    The resources and online tools that PDS provide are extremely thorough and helpful in our training and learning.
    Read full review
    TriNet
    Since this was already implemented. I have another employee briefly train me. Then Trinet rep gave me some training as needed for things that came up. For one payroll preview report I figured it could be done, but I had asked the rep to be sure. One important training was when there was an employee leaving the company.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    Ask lots of questions, ensure you fully understand the functionality (particularly history records) and train, train, train the users for correct and complete utilization of the system.
    Read full review
    TriNet
    not applicable as I implementation was done 5 years ago and have no recollection of the details of the process. Above it says to skip question if not involved in the process but it will not allow me to skip it as it states explanation requitred thus making this process extremely frustrating.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    I've used Peoplesoft HCM in the past. The products have some similarities, but they are marketed to different sized companies, so it's a bit of apples to oranges. Peoplesoft was very complex and challenging to manage and support. Vista HRMS should require fewer technical resources and still provide robust features for HR and Payroll. We selected Vista HRMS because it met the majority of our requirements and was priced to enable us to purchase and implement it within our budget. Also, it's an integrated system (although not truly one system when you count Vista Time) which is an improvement over our current state.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    TriNet
    I liked Rippling's software better than TriNet. However, the pricing on employee benefits was through the roof, and they don't offer many selections/options. If it was a software only decision, I would go with Rippling (the 2.0 version of Zenefits which TriNet offers). However, the software isn't a major need, compared to smooth payroll and benefits that I get from TriNet (and great service). I'm happy at TriNet long term as long as the health insurance rates aren't exhorbinant.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answers on this topic
    TriNet
    Very reasonable vs other competitors - worked out a good deal.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answers on this topic
    TriNet
    We are a small company, do we use it across departments and sites? Yes, we are all remote working, so there are as many sites as there are people. We also have our entire staff using TriNet, so every department from Accounting, Admin, HR, Development, QA, and Management are all using this. Can't say for sure how great the scalability is as we are only about 30 employees
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Professional Services
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    No answers on this topic
    TriNet
    Incredible professional resources are available.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Personnel Data Systems (PDS)
    • Positive impact would definitely be self-service for both employees and managers to view and update selected data.
    • Through some analytics our managers are able to track turnover for their site/department by many criteria (length of service, reason, etc) and can view a number of other analytical reports such as headcount and demographics which help them to make informed decisions about their department.
    Read full review
    TriNet
    • Stay within HR Compliance - when the new laws about Salary change came into effect I received an email on impacted employees and how to address.
    • More involvement in employee benefits. With greater benefit selection more employees were able to find plans that suited their needs.
    • The TimeClock took a little time to get used to. It is still a little frustrating at times for hourly employees to be able to track how many hours they actually have for the week/pay-period. The off the clock meals count towards "hours" and employees have to subtract that out to be able to see what they need for the rest of the week.
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    PDS Vista Screenshots

    Screenshot of employee data, which is the heart of a corporate knowledge base. Within Vista, an organized database of employees, applicants, jobs, and positions can be created and maintained. The product’s flexibility allows users to structure corporate data as simply or as complicated as business needs require.Screenshot of Vista Payroll, which is designed to strike the perfect balance between power and simplicity. It is designed to process large volumes of data within tight time constraints, whether U.S., Canadian, or Caribbean.

Vista Payroll is focused on its main tasks of calculating pay, creating paychecks, producing payroll registers, and federal, state, local, and provincial tax reports.Screenshot of the included Vista Benefits features, which can include unlimited plans and coverage levels, automated benefits eligibility, auto-housekeeping of valuations and premiums.Screenshot of Vista Recruiting, which presents critical applicant information in an efficient manner for both human resources professionals and hiring managers, alike.

Vista Recruiting gives HR departments command over the entire hiring process for each department in every location while more easily tracking and controlling costs, improving applicant management, strengthening relationships with applicants, and reducing paperwork for the HR team.