All employee related information in one master file
Updated March 19, 2015

All employee related information in one master file

Cheryl Atkins | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Software Version

7.02.068

Modules Used

  • Open4 PR and HR

Overall Satisfaction with Epicor HCM

We purchased our Epicor software in fall 2008 and went live with the financials and PR/HR 1/1/2009. When we made our purchase choice the product had not been rebranded at the time so please excuse any reference to Open4 in my review - it is the same software. We run a weekly payroll for the manufacturing facility and a monthly payroll for management. The monthly payroll is confidential but with Epicor HCM that is not an issue. Employees can be marked as confidential in the software and only users with the proper security can access those employee records. To other users it is as if the confidential records do not exist in the database.

We later added the training piece as well as FMLA tracking. The FMLA tracking works very well and allowed us to do away with spreadsheets kept outside the system.

Pros

  • Security is always an issue with payroll/HR software. Security in Epicor HCM is very robust. In our manufacturing facility it is important that supervisors have access to their employee's information and the software allows me to limit access to only the correct department. There is also menu security that will allow me to remove access to features by user and grant access only to what they require to do the job.
  • This software is the repository for many different types of employee information. For example in the past we have tracked skills training by employee in either an Access database or an Excel spreadsheet. We are currently in the process of loading individual employee skill information which will allow us to query the database to pull any information that is not already a canned report in the system.
  • Payroll tax reports are handled by the system seamlessly. In our old system I had to keep confidential employees in a different "company" which meant I had to combine the two companies and do quarterly and year end tax reporting manually. The confidential flag in Epicor HCM allows me to utilize reports directly from the system and also creates the files needed to file online for both my quarterly SUI and W-2 reporting to SSA at year end.

Cons

  • Epicor HCM has both query and report writing functionality. The quantity of information contained in the database is enormous and can sometimes make it difficult to locate the correct fields for writing custom reports. Within the Vantage product there is a data dictionary which displays each table and the information contained therein. It would be very helpful if it also covered the fields within the tables in Open4.
  • Our HR department is more efficient and therefore we are able to provide better customer service to department supervisors by having answers to employee related questions in one employee master file rather than having to search through paper files or look in different spreadsheets.
  • We are able to provide more accurate payroll processing and if we do find that someone forgot to report PTO for one of their employees the system allows a manual check to be cut so the employee can be paid the correct amount in the proper week thereby increasing employee satisfaction.

The single most important factor in our selection was that the software would integrate into our shop floor data collection so we would not have to maintain two employee databases. We are able to set up new employees in Open4 and the shop employee record in Vantage is then populated during that process. There is no duplicate entry to be done.

It is important that the system be used properly and the user interface is an important part of that. Because this system allows the menu to be configured by user it greatly reduces the time it takes to train users in the system. There is no need to skip over menu items that are not used by the particular employee being trained. Their menu only displays the menu items they are required to use.

Tax tables updates are provided timely and can be downloaded and applied without the need for assistance from tech support. An email notification is sent out from Epicor support when an update is available and I can download and apply them at my convenience.

Epicor HCM (discontinued) Feature Ratings

9.0
Employee demographic data
9
Employment history
9
Job profiles and administration
9
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.
9
Organizational charting
Not Rated
Organization and location management
9
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)
9
9.6
Pay calculation
10
Support for external payroll vendors
10
Benefit plan administration
9
Direct deposit files
10
Salary revision and increment management
9
Reimbursement management
Not Rated
9.0
Approval workflow
Not Rated
Balance details
9
Annual carry-forward and encashment
Not Rated
Not Rated
View and generate pay and benefit information
Not Rated
Update personal information
Not Rated
View company policy documentation
Not Rated
Employee recognition
Not Rated
Not Rated
Tracking of all physical assets
Not Rated
9.0
Report builder
9
Pre-built reports
9
Ability to combine HR data with external data
9
Integration with other HR capabilities ()
Not Rated
Performance Management ()
Not Rated
Succession Planning ()
Not Rated
Onboarding ()
Not Rated
Performance and Goals ()
Not Rated
Recruiting / ATS ()
Not Rated

Using Epicor HCM

8 - HR and Finance are the heavy users although we do have first line manufacturing supervisors who have restricted access to their own departmental employee records as well. The security is great so that the supervisors can maintain absence records and disciplinary actions for their own departments.

Epicor HCM Support

I have had to contact support a few times since we have been using the software. I have always gotten very timely responses and have never had a time when they either could not help me or were not responsive.
ProsCons
Quick Resolution
Good followup
Knowledgeable team
Problems get solved
Kept well informed
No escalation required
Immediate help available
Support understands my problem
Support cares about my success
Quick Initial Response
None
Yes - Support is a must for payroll tax table updates. It is also necessary to be able to get an answer to a problem as employees are paid weekly and there is a deadline for processing direct deposit files with the bank.
My regular payroll clerk was out sick and I had an issue with the software and was unable to get the check run process to complete. I logged a support call and within an hour the best support person I have ever dealt with on ANY software (his initials are FD) called me and was able to walk me through the issue. He was at the gate at Fenway Park on his way to watch a Red Sox game but he stopped and took the time to help me work through my issue so I could meet by direct deposit deadline. He has helped me with many questions over time but I consider that one day when I was in a real time crunch to be exceptional service. Thanks again Frank!

Comments

More Reviews of Epicor HCM (discontinued)

  1. Home
  2. HR Management Software
  3. Epicor HCM (discontinued) Reviews
  4. User Review of Epicor HCM (discontinued)