Ascentis vs Criterion HCM
Last Updated:Our analysts compared Ascentis vs Criterion HCM based on data from our 400+ point analysis of HR Management Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.
Product Basics
Ascentis offers HCM services to companies of all industries via its cloud-based suite. Its five modules include time and attendance, payroll, HR and benefits, talent, and recruiting. Users can choose to pick individual functionalities or the entire package of services, depending upon their needs.
It facilitates process automation for several complex business processes and transactions, reduces the probability of errors, offers real-time analytics, eliminates manual work, and helps talent managers and organizations cater to their human resources and talent management requirements. It also provides ease-of-use through an interface that can be accessed anytime, anywhere on a desktop, tablet or smartphone.
Criterion is a talent management and HCM solution that provides administration for medium-size businesses. It helps the entire executive team, managers and employees alike manage the entire employee lifecycle. With a digital infrastructure that includes HTML 5 and a REST API, it’s scalable and offers multiple automation options. It manages recruiting, acquisition, online learning, performance reviews, time and attendance, payroll and other HR matters across the company.
$16/Employee, Monthly
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Product Insights
- Optimized Team Performance: Gather information and feedback for each employee, from all sources. Uncover talent and top-performing employees as well as facilitate planning that results in optimized team performance.
- Quality Applicants: Showcase an employer brand when seeking new employees to encourage the maximum number of quality applicants.
- Efficient Employee Onboarding: Eliminate duplicate data entry and leverage the cost saving benefits of switching to an online application process instead of an offline process. Cut costs, make onboarding more efficient and reliable, and gain complete access to data 24/7.
- Regulatory Compliance: Stay compliant with all essential employment regulations such as FMLA, FLSA, and other local and state laws that require consistency and vigilance.
- Real-Time Payroll Processing: Ensure accurate, efficient payroll processing and audits. Run payroll processing anytime, from any place, as many times as required.
- No Tax-Related Penalties: Remove the stress of incurring accidental late filing penalties by ensuring timely payroll deposits and filing.
- Complete Customization: Tailor the system in ways that best suit company needs, enabling maximum usage and functionality.
- Automated Benefits Administration: Save time and reduce manual effort by automating benefits management, administration and employee enrollment processes.
- Data-Driven Decisions: Compare metric goals with data insights to make data-driven decisions that lead to improved overall performance. Leverage more than 300 templates for standard reports or customize reports to suit organizational requirements.
- Real-Time Self Learning: Cultivate and encourage self-learning and employee development through training resources that are available in real time.
- Enhanced Employee Experience: Users can access upcoming schedules, select open shifts, view and request leaves, check paycheck history and statements, punch in and punch out, find co-workers, receive important notifications and alerts, and much more.
- On-the-Go Access for Managers: Stay on top of tasks from anywhere. Manage employee schedules, check notifications for employee requests, and approve or reject leaves and expense reports from the user-friendly mobile app.
- Reduces Errors: Increases the security, accuracy and speed of employee and staff data. These increased precisions make it easier to make smart decisions based on actionable insights.
- Saves Time and Money: Automates and streamlines HCM and talent management processes such as compensation, benefits, tracking applicants and performance management. This increased efficiency saves administrators time and sanity. By eliminating manual data entry, it improves the workflow, making it easier for employees to use the platform. Through the system, it’s possible to have more control over the cost of benefits. The platform is also scalable so users can accommodate sudden company growth.
- More Informed Management: Provides reporting, data manageable and other tools that allow leadership to make more informed decisions. From there, it’s easier to communicate with staff to ensure everyone is on the same page.
- Better Talent Lifecycle: Helps with the entire process including acquisitions, screening, setting up interviews, onboarding, performance management and succession management and more.
- Time and Attendance: Offers several functions such as leave management, time tracking, employee scheduling, advanced scheduling, a mobile app and compliance.
- Employee Scheduling: Provides management automation for several key aspects like split shift intervals, leave balances, overtime, expenses and total work hours.
- Advanced Scheduling: Helps schedule workflows and optimize all scheduling processes end to end. Evaluates unique rules and requirements within an organization and then auto-generates schedule recommendations based on that information.
- Payroll: Payroll processing occurs in real time, offering maximized accuracy, compliance, control and flexibility.
- HR and Benefits: Provides functionalities such as benefits management, HR compliance, HR solution customization, employee self-service, reporting and more.
- Talent Management: Customizable and user-friendly module. Capabilities include succession planning, compensation planning, performance management, learning management, check-ins, 360-degree assessments and real-time feedback.
- Recruiting: Acts as a dynamic career portal, helps with social media outreach, enables efficient onboarding and improves workflow management for HR-related functions.
- Ascentis Mobile Application: Two types of access are available — one for employees and another for managers and supervisors. Based on their role, users can share messages, update and access information, and perform other activities, all through a smartphone or a tablet.
- Talent Management: Manages talent acquisition, onboarding, employee record creation and sends messages through one central database. It targets different points in the employee life cycle to aid in tracking applications, onboarding, performance management, learning management, communication, increasing engagement and more.
- Recruiting: Helps identify candidates, sort applications, screen potential hires, track interview processes and manage references, facilitate job postings and background checks. It also provides an online career portal to increase the number and variety of candidates. Through this, recruiters cut down on time and effort.
- Learning Management: Provides courses for employees and sends notifications for pass or fail status. It also manages certifications allowing managers to track progress and ensure compliance.
- Performance Management: Users can create scales to rate performance, set time periods for review, assign competencies and use standard or customized templates that allow for feedback from various different employees.
- HR: Manages attendance, benefits, compliance, communications, enrollments, payroll, and other HR tasks with one complete database. It facilitates strategic planning, streamlining workflows and other important administrative tasks. All data and important information is centralized, organized and more easily accessible.
- Data Management: Administrators have data for contacting employees, compensation, complying with the Equal Employment Opportunity, employment status, performance reviews and more. It automatically sends essential documents and reports through fax, email or online.
- Open Enrollment: Allows all staff to select and sign up for benefits. Provides email benefit letters, tracking and automatically transmits deduction to payroll systems to reduce errors.
- Self-Service for Staff: Lets employees track time, manage their PTO, get information on their payroll and more. Managers can approve PTO, write up employees and do reviews for performance. All staff can post and share information to increase collaboration and engagement.
- Mobile Capabilities: Enables workers to enter and track their time on the go. With a secure login, it tracks worker details, enters start and finish times, manages vacation and can register employee location.
- Reporting: Pulls information on emergency contacts, worker birthdays, training costs, overages, compensation planning and EEO details. The report is printable and can be customized for other needs.
- Time and Attendance: Provides scheduling, labor tracking and other attendance features for on-site or remote staff. It has one-click integration with payroll systems and provides verification for staffing with badge, biometric and PIN options.
- Payroll: Processes payment and deals with filing taxes, calculates payroll and integrates with time clocks. Administrators can print checks, download ACH files, file taxes electronically, track expense and entry information en masse into the system. In terms of taxes, it calculates local, state and federal taxes and aids in returns.
Product Ranking
#13
among all
HR Management Software
#624
among all
HR Management Software
User Sentiment Summary
626 reviews
14 reviews
Ascentis has a 'good' User Satisfaction Rating of 77% when considering 626 user reviews from 4 recognized software review sites.
Criterion HCM has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 89% when considering 14 user reviews from 3 recognized software review sites.
4.0 (251)
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4.2 (51)
4.29 (7)
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4.8 (5)
2.0 (1)
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3.7 (323)
4.3 (2)
Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews
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Ascentis provides à la carte solutions for human capital and workforce management. It can be a good pick for companies that are looking for software that has an intuitive interface, seamless integration between payroll and HR, PTO, benefits calculation and responsive customer service. However, several reviews mentioned reporting is inaccurate, challenging and cumbersome. There are also issues with duplicate data, and implementation is time-consuming. It can be a good choice depending on company needs and priorities.
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