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What is Connecteam?
Connecteam is a unique employee management platform with communication tools, designed to enhance employee engagement amongst ‘deskless’ teams–organizations where the workforce is out on the road, onsite, or on the shop floor.
As well as offering fantastic collaboration features, Connecteam stands out for its excellent employee scheduling and HR capabilities, which unify the often cumbersome task of workforce management.
In this Connecteam review, we’ll take a closer look at what the platform has to offer, exploring the Connecteam pricing plans, key features, and how it fares against competitors, so you can see if this platform is right for you.
Connecteam Pricing & Plans
Connecteam’s pricing structure can be a little tricky to get your head around at first. Essentially, the platform has broken down its offering into three paid plans-modules that are each sold separately at the below price. These modules are Operations, Communications, and HR & Skills.
If you bought all three modules at the Advanced level, for example, you could easily end up paying well over $150 per month. However, for all Connecteam has to offer, this is still pretty reasonable.
It’s also worth noting that the platform offers an ‘Enterprise’ plan, which you’ll need to contact sales to get a bespoke quote. This customized plan is perfect for organizations that want to use the platform’s full capabilities or have an especially large workforce.
The Small Business Plan | Basic | Advanced | Expert | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Monthly Cost | Free | $ 29 /mo | $ 49 /mo | $ 99 /mo |
Free Trial | ✅ – 14 day free trial | ✅ – 14 day free trial | ✅ – 14 day free trial | ✅ – 14 day free trial |
Users | Up to 10 users | • Free for first 30 users • $0.5 / month for each additional user |
• Free for first 30 users • $1.5 / month for each additional user |
• Free for first 30 users • $3 / month for each additional user |
Talent Management | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
PTO Management | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Expense Management | ❌ (via integration) | ❌ (via integration) | ❌ (via integration) | ❌ (via integration) |
Reporting | Up to 3 standard reports | Standard reporting | Standard reporting | Unlimited custom reports |
Customer Support | 24/7 email and chat support | 24/7 email and chat support | 24/7 email and chat support | 24/7 email and chat support |
Connecteam Overview
Starting price | Free |
---|---|
Best for | Medium-sized businesses with a deskless workforce |
Customer support | 24/7 email and chat support |
App integrations | Xero, Gusto, QuickBooks |
Security & Compliance | SOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001, GDPR and HIPAA compliance |
Payroll | Via integration |
Reporting & analytics | Standard reporting |
Mobile app | ✅ |
Benefits administration | ❌ |
E-signatures | ✅ |
Auto-alerts and reminders | ✅ |
Connecteam Standout Features
We were very impressed by how enjoyable and easy Connecteam is to use. While plenty of employee communication tools are designed for knowledge workers, Connecteam has found a sweet spot in the market by targeting manufacturer, healthcare, and retail sectors, where workers are typically deskless.
To get to grips with the platform’s features, we tested out its features over a month-long period, using the Small Business solution. Here’s a closer look at what Connecteam offers as essential features.
Operations
Connecteam’s Operations module is a powerful solution for remote workforce management that can help operations teams reduce manual paperwork and increase accuracy.
We loved the beautiful, simple dashboard, which gave us a quick, accurate overview of the employee time clock so we could easily see who clocked in, made it easy to manage the team shift scheduling, and build daily checklists for onsite staff to complete.
The employee time clock includes live GPS tracking, which means it tracks where employees clock in so you always know they’re in the correct location.
On top of this, Connecteam’s platform is intelligent; it uses automation and analytics to notify managers and HR leaders if there’s been a late or missed clock-in, and you can see the status of checklist completion in real-time. When it comes to task management, it’s easy to add a sense of accountability. You can include e-signatures with the checklists so your team members feel responsible for completing their tasks.
Plus, Connecteam offers reporting functionality to help you track trends over time. However, we will say that the reporting capabilities aren’t as robust or predictive as providers like ADP or Rippling, which provide more granular, strategic forecasting.
Still, the usability of Connecteam’s solution stands out from the crowd–and medium-sized organizations may not need the in-depth analytics that more expensive HR solutions provide, anyway.
Communications
Connecteam’s Operations module comes into its own when combined with the Communications platform. This chat-based product makes it easy for team members to communicate with each other, no matter where they’re based.
There’s a lot of functionality to the chat application. There are private and team chats for employee communication, or you can engage with the whole company–and the human resources team sets
permissions on who can chat within each group. We like the social media style functionality, which enables team members to like messages, share GIFs, and use emojis.
Beyond chatting, the Communications module also empowers HR teams to quickly and easily share updates. For example, you can schedule company events, where your team says “can” or “can’t attend”, as well as post company news and announcements.
Overall, we were really impressed with this module. It makes workplace communication fun, easy, and human amongst colleagues who don’t get to see each other in person.
HR and Skills
Last but not least, Connecteam also offers HR and Skills modules. With this product, you can automate a host of HR tasks that are otherwise time-intensive, such as employee onboarding, learning and development, and paid time off.
We also really like the rewards and recognition feature, which encourages managers and HR leaders to reward their employees through ‘tokens’ that can then be converted to gift cards. It’s a great way to boost employee engagement across dispersed teams.
Saying this, we have to say that the HR and Skills module isn’t one we would recommend buying as a standalone. While it’s got some great features, Connecteam’s standout capabilities are its time tracking and chat app.
Because of this, we think the HR and Skills module is best used in combination with the Operations and/or Communications module. Also worth noting is that it’s the Skills advanced plan that gives you access to unlimited courses where you can see course completion status and have advanced customization options – meaning to get the big benefits, you’ll have to pay more.
Connecteam Integrations
While many HR providers, such as Sage HR and BambooHR, integrate with chat apps like Slack and Microsoft Teams, Connecteam doesn’t offer any collaboration integrations.
It’s easy to understand why. The platform has all the essential features you need in-app for collaboration, so simply don’t need to connect with third-party collaboration tools.
What Connecteam does offer is a bunch of payroll integrations with the likes of Gusto, Xero, Paychex, and QuickBooks. We were really glad to see these integrations because Connecteam lacks payroll functionality natively.
However, when combined with your payroll provider of choice, Connecteam elevates to become a complete HR and operations solution, spanning team collaboration, employee engagement, and payroll.
Connecteam Customer Reviews
We think Connecteam is an excellent platform for deskless organizations, but that’s just our take. We also wanted to see what long-term users thought of the platform, so we took to review sites like TrustPilot to gather third-party feedback.
User review from TrustPilot.com
On most review sites, customers praised Connecteam for its ease of use, and internal communication tools, emphasizing that the platform has boosted team efficiency and productivity while reducing manual paperwork.
The main downside was the lack of reporting functionality, which, as we’ve noted, is a little basic compared to the likes of Sage and Rippling. Still, with an overall score of 4.9 out of 5, clearly Connecteam is doing something right.
Connecteam vs Top Alternatives
As part of our Connecteam review, we compare and analyze the platform with three of the main competitors. We’ve reviewed the software solutions based on task management, their customer service team, employee scheduling tools, operational efficiency, and overall HR management.
Connecteam | QuickBooks Time | Paycor | Rippling | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Best for | Medium-sized organizations with a deskless workforce | QuickBooks customers | Medium-sized organizations with a desk-based workforce | Multinational organizations |
Starting Price | Free | $30 / month | Bespoke | Custom pricing |
Free Trial | ✅ – 14 days | ✅ – 30 days | ✅ – 1 month | ❌ |
Standout Features | • Beautifully simple • Collaboration, operations and HR in one app |
• Predictive reports • Scheduling features |
• End-to-end HR capabilities • Predictive insights |
• Supports multiple pay rates • Modular pricing |
Reporting | Custom reporting | Custom reporting | Custom reporting | Custom reporting |
Mobile App | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Connecteam vs QuickBooks Time
Connecteam and QuickBooks Time both offer powerful employee scheduling and time-tracking capabilities. QuickBooks customers might prefer to integrate with QuickBooks Time so that all of their data remains in one application. However, it’s worth noting that QuickBooks and Connecteam also integrate.
Plus, Connecteam’s interface is much more modern, clean, and user-friendly than QuickBooks’. On top of that, the collaboration and HR features make the platform more comprehensive than QuickBooks’ Time offering.
Learn more in our QuickBooks review.
Connecteam vs Paycor
Like Connecteam, Paycor offers a wealth of employee engagement, time tracking, and HR features. Paycor’s offering is slightly more extensive than Connecteam too, with features like payroll, employee goal setting, and benefits all included in the platform.
However, having tested both platforms, we think they target slightly different audiences. Paycor is perfect for larger organizations that predominantly employ knowledge workers, while Connecteam is a great choice for companies with a deskless workforce.
Learn more in our Paycor review.
Connecteam vs Rippling
Rippling also targets a different audience to Connecteam. This robust, modular app can become an organization’s end-to-end finance, IT, and HR solution. In particular, Rippling is designed for organizations with large numbers of employees across different countries, which is why it offers multiple currency payroll.
Connecteam, on the other hand, is perfect for US-based organizations with employees working across different sites. While the app isn’t as powerful as Rippling, it doesn’t need to be. It’s aimed at smaller organizations with a dispersed workforce, not multinational enterprises.
Learn more in our Rippling review.
Verdict – is Connecteam Worth it?
Overall, we think Connecteam would be a great asset to organizations with a dispersed workforce. The intuitive, thoughtful app makes it effortless for HR leaders and managers to better manage non-desk employees, instill a sense of company culture, and gain deep visibility and control over important areas like scheduling, onboarding, and time and attendance.
How We Test HR & Talent Management Software
When we review HR and payroll software, we look at the following criteria every time:
- Pricing: When we look at pricing, we go beyond the surface to analyze long-term affordability and the value proposition of each provider.
- Features: Our exploration of features considers factors like speed, user-friendliness, and competitor features.
- Integrations: Modern HR software should seamlessly integrate with other business-critical apps. So, we evaluate the range of integrations available within each platform.
- Automation: We look at the range of automations on offer, as well as how easy they are to set up and use.
- Ease-of-use: We conduct tests from the perspective of someone new to HR software to gauge the platform’s usability.
- Third-Party Reviews: By leveraging insights from reputable sources, we aim to provide a comprehensive and unbiased overview of each HR platform.
How to Choose the Best HR Software
Selecting an HR software platform is a critical decision for any business. It’s essential to ensure you’ve thoroughly evaluated your options before making a commitment. Here are the key considerations to keep in mind:
Look beyond the initial costs advertised. Watch out for hidden fees buried in the fine print, as they can significantly impact your budget. Take note of any additional features that may come with extra charges, as they could unexpectedly inflate the overall price.
Ensure the platform you choose includes all the necessary features you need.
Choose a platform that can grow alongside your business. It should seamlessly scale up to accommodate your expanding workforce.
Opt for a platform with an intuitive interface that reduces the learning curve for administrators and employees alike.
Prioritize platforms with robust integration capabilities, either through APIs or pre-built connectors. This allows you to leverage your existing tech stack while enhancing the functionality of your HR software.
Consider the quality of customer support offered by each platform. Evaluate the available support channels, response times, and the expertise of the support team.