Proliant Reviews – Pricing, Pros/Cons, and User Feedback

Proliant provides tailored HR and payroll solutions for industries with large hourly workforces, like hospitality, manufacturing, and skilled nursing. With features like DailyPay and tip pooling, plus robust tax support and customer-focused service, Proliant offers a specialized, cost-effective HRIS.

Brett Ungashick
OutSail HRIS Advisor
September 16, 2024
user looking at computer with Proliant logo

Proliant is a smaller HR and payroll solution provider known for its focus on industries with hourly workforces, such as hospitality, manufacturing, and skilled nursing. With a customer-centric service model, Proliant offers tailored features to meet the unique needs of these industries. In this review, we’ll explore the key features, strengths, and considerations when evaluating Proliant for your organization.

Overview of Proliant

Founded with a focus on supporting hourly workers, Proliant has built a reputation in industries like hospitality, restaurants, manufacturing, skilled nursing, and nonprofits. The platform offers specific features that cater to these verticals, including DailyPay, which allows employees to receive their wages daily, and tip pooling support, a feature often challenging for other HRIS platforms to manage.

Proliant is smaller than many of its mid-market peers, which allows them to provide personalized customer service. Every client is assigned an implementation manager, and Proliant has 10 regional offices to ensure support across all time zones. In addition, Proliant’s origins as an accounting firm enable them to provide robust tax services, including detailed knowledge of state and local tax regulations.

The Strengths of Proliant

1. Focused on Hourly Workforces

Proliant’s customer base is concentrated in industries with large hourly workforces, making it an excellent choice for companies in hospitality, manufacturing, restaurants, and skilled nursing. The platform includes features like DailyPay, allowing employees to access wages on a daily basis, and tip pooling, which is often a difficult feature for other HRIS solutions to manage.

2. Strong Tax Support

With its origins in an accounting firm, Proliant offers granular tax services with detailed knowledge of state and local tax regulations. This allows businesses to navigate complex tax environments with confidence, especially in industries with multi-state or multi-jurisdictional tax needs.

3. Customer-Centric Service Model

As a smaller company, Proliant focuses heavily on customer service, offering a higher level of personalized support than many larger competitors. Each client is assigned an implementation manager, and with regional offices across the country, clients receive support in their time zone, making Proliant a strong choice for businesses that value hands-on assistance during and after implementation.

4. Integration with Leading Accounting Systems

Proliant offers integration capabilities with popular accounting systems, including a preferred integration with Sage Intacct. This integration allows businesses to streamline their financial and HR processes, reducing manual entry and increasing accuracy in payroll and tax reporting.

Learn More: Compare Proliant and other leading HRIS platforms on OutSail's marketplace

Points to Consider with Proliant

1. Disjointed User Experience Due to Multiple Databases

Proliant’s system has been developed through a combination of internal development and external licensing, which means that its different modules are not fully unified at the database level. For example, recruiting, performance, and benefits modules are provided by third-party solutions, which can lead to a disjointed user experience when moving from one module to another.

2. Challenges with Reporting

Due to its fragmented architecture, building holistic reports within Proliant can be more difficult than with fully unified platforms. Some users have reported issues with the platform’s custom reporting tool, particularly when attempting to pull data across different modules, making it challenging for businesses that rely heavily on detailed, integrated reporting.

3. Limited Innovation and Feature Development

As a smaller company with minimal financial backing, Proliant may struggle to keep pace with larger competitors in terms of adding new features and functionality. Businesses that need a rapidly evolving HR platform with frequent updates and cutting-edge features may find Proliant’s pace of innovation slower than expected.

4. Potential Acquisition Target

Smaller tech companies like Proliant are often considered potential acquisition targets, especially in a competitive HRIS market. This could lead to changes in the platform’s future direction, support model, or pricing structure, which may be a concern for businesses looking for long-term stability.

Pricing Structure

Proliant operates on a per-employee-per-month (PEPM) pricing model, with costs typically ranging between $15 and $21 PEPM, depending on the size of the organization and the modules selected. This makes Proliant a cost-effective solution for companies in industries with large hourly workforces that need specialized features like DailyPay and tip pooling.

Deciding if Proliant is Right for Your Business

When evaluating Proliant as your HRIS provider, it’s important to weigh its strengths and potential challenges to determine how well it aligns with your business’s specific needs.

Leveraging Strengths:

  • Tailored for Hourly Workforces: Proliant offers features like DailyPay and tip pooling that are highly beneficial for companies with large hourly workforces in industries like hospitality and manufacturing.
  • Strong Tax Support: With a deep understanding of state and local tax laws, Proliant provides robust tax services that help businesses manage complex tax compliance.
  • Customer-Centric Approach: Proliant’s smaller size allows them to provide a more hands-on customer service experience, with an implementation manager assigned to every client and support available in every time zone.

Addressing Challenges:

  • Disjointed User Experience: The lack of a unified database across all modules can result in a disjointed user experience, particularly when navigating between recruiting, performance, and benefits features.
  • Limited Reporting Capabilities: Businesses that need detailed, cross-module reporting may find Proliant’s fragmented system challenging, as custom reports can be difficult to generate.
  • Slower Feature Development: Due to limited financial resources, Proliant may not be able to develop new features as quickly as larger competitors, which could impact long-term scalability and innovation.

Conclusion

Proliant offers a highly focused HR and payroll solution for industries with large hourly workforces, providing features like DailyPay, tip pooling, and strong tax services. Their customer-centric service model and regional support make them an excellent choice for businesses that need personalized attention and support. However, the system’s fragmented architecture and challenges with reporting may be a concern for businesses that rely heavily on integrated data and seamless user experiences.

For businesses in industries like hospitality, manufacturing, or skilled nursing that need specialized hourly workforce features, Proliant provides a tailored, cost-effective solution with strong tax and payroll support. However, companies seeking a fully unified platform or rapid feature development may want to explore other options.

FAQs

  1. What are the core strengths of Proliant?
    Proliant excels in supporting industries with large hourly workforces, offering features like DailyPay and tip pooling. They also provide strong tax services and have a customer-centric support model with regional offices for time zone-specific assistance.
  2. What are the challenges of Proliant?
    Proliant’s system is not fully unified at the database level, which can result in a disjointed user experience and difficulties in generating cross-module reports. Additionally, their limited financial backing may slow down feature development.
  3. What is the pricing structure for Proliant?
    Proliant typically costs between $15-21 per employee per month (PEPM), offering a cost-effective solution for businesses with large hourly workforces that need specialized features.
  4. Who is Proliant best suited for?
    Proliant is ideal for companies in industries like hospitality, manufacturing, and skilled nursing that need specialized payroll and tax services for hourly workers. It may not be the best fit for businesses seeking a fully unified platform or rapid innovation.
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Meet the Author

Brett Ungashick
OutSail HRIS Advisor
Brett Ungashick, the friendly face behind OutSail, started his career at LinkedIn, selling HR software. This experience sparked an idea, leading him to create OutSail in 2018. Based in Denver, OutSail simplifies the HR software selection process, and Brett's hands-on approach has already helped over 1,000 companies, including SalesLoft, Hudl and DoorDash. He's a go-to guy for all things HR Tech, supporting companies in every industry and across 20+ countries. When he's not demystifying HR tech, you'll find Brett enjoying a round of golf or skiing down Colorado's slopes, always happy to chat about work or play.

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