Apex HCM

“Handles everything from one to 500+ staff

Pros

I have noticed that Apex HCM handles everything from a single employee payroll up through managing payroll for organizations with more than 500 staff. Plus I can customize payroll settings to meet virtually any requirement.

Cons

It is fast and simple for payroll tasks but the built-in timekeeping module has given us some trouble. On the bright side, I am excited about the new Swipeclock integration. Now that IRIS owns both Apex HCM and Swipeclock, I think the combined capabilities of the two companies are really promising.

“Easy and fast adoption for all

Pros

When we started using Apex in 2023, we were immediately struck by how easy it was for our employers, employees and staff to pick up. Training went smoothly and the interface feels very user friendly which made adoption fast. Migrating and converting our existing clients was handled in a way that felt both simple and thorough, so there were not any major bumps. Their data team has been exceptional honestly the best we've worked with and the pricing felt very reasonable for what we received. Because it includes timekeeping, HR support and applicant tracking alongside payroll, it really functions as a complete HCM solution for the clients we serve. We are also optimistic about the future now that Apex is part of the IRIS family as the extra resources and expertise IRIS brings have already started to elevate the product and the services we can provide to both current and prospective clients.

Cons

For us, the biggest challenge with it was its native timekeeping and accrual management as it did not fully meet our needs at first. That said, I am relieved because the upcoming integration with Swipeclock timekeeping now also under the IRIS umbrella looks like it will resolve that gap. The single weakness we ran into appears to be addressed and with Swipeclock tied into Apex HCM, we expect the platform to offer a world-class timekeeping solution alongside its other strengths.

“Nothing liked, product failed as promised

Pros

Honestly there was absolutely nothing about this product that I liked as it didn't do what we were told it would and the biggest issue was that it failed to perform electronic submission of our quarterly reports. Only after we were already committed did we learn that separate registration was required with every jurisdiction such as Federal, State and Local before electronic filing was possible. By the time we discovered that requirement the deadlines had passed and their support offered no real help during the process. Their so-called onboarding was just as bad and felt pointless, since it took over a year to get us supposedly set up before these critical shortcomings were revealed.

Cons

The reviews they post follow a pattern. Such as they market a product that doesn not work as promised which became painfully clear to us. Then they remind us we signed a 3+ year contract and insist we keep paying for a service we cannot use, no matter how it performs. We lost multiple clients across tax, bookkeeping and payroll because their sales pitch oversold capabilities that never materialized yet we are still stuck paying for the contract. We only tried using the system for one quarter after paying for it for a year, then spending $7,000 on their training, before realizing it didn't work as promised. The total cost to our firm in fees and lost clients has exceeded $100,000. I would not wish this on anyone, not even a competitor. It is also clear they are a UK-based company. U.S. customer support is limited and, in our experience, highly unreliable. So do yourself a favor and steer clear. You are better off paying higher rates to a trusted provider like QBO or another reliable service than risking your clients and losing them over this product.