Rippling is a cloud-based workforce management platform that combines HR, payroll, IT, identity management, benefits administration, and workflow automation into one system.

It can be used for recruitment, onboarding, payroll, benefits management, offboarding, and many other processes.

But will investing in this really be worthwhile?

Short answer: yes, with a small caveat!

For many growing businesses with global and distributed teams, it can be an excellent option, thanks to its:

• Automation capabilities
• Scalable platform
• Extensive integrations

But its pricing policy and business-oriented options may turn out not to be exactly what businesses are looking for. In this review, we will talk about the key features of Ripple and try to understand if it’s perfect for you or not.

Let’s begin

What is Rippling?

Rippling is a payroll software for managing employees that transforms the sometimes-difficult job of handling people operations into a smooth digital process with intuitive automation. 

With this tool, you can:

• Payroll processing and tax management
• Employee onboarding and offboarding
• Identity and access management
• Benefits administration
• Time and attendance tracking
• Workflow automation
• Employee device management
• App provisioning and user permissions 
• Global workforce and contractor management

One of Rippling’s standout features is its automation system. For example, when a new employee joins the company, businesses can automate multiple tasks through a single workflow, including:

• Creating the employee’s payroll profile
• Granting access to business applications
• Assigning company-issued devices
• Enrolling the employee in benefits programs
• Setting role-based permissions and security policies

As these processes are done automatically on Rippling, this helps increase efficiency and reduce the chances of making a mistake. It can also deliver work equipment to new employees by ensuring they get what they need, such as Google Workspace and Microsoft Office 365. This makes it a nice choice for integrating remote, hybrid, or in-person employees.

The Features of Rippling

The tool combines various workforce management solutions in one package. It allows the companies to handle payroll, IT, HR, and other employee issues from one dashboard. 

Some of the features include:

1: Payroll Management

Through Rippling, it becomes easier to automate payroll management through automatic calculation, automatic tax filing, and payment of employees. This software has been created to minimize different kinds of manual work too. Here are some of Rippling’s payroll capabilities:

• Automatic federal, local, and state tax filing
• Automated payroll processing
• Direct deposit and employee self-service
• Multi-state payroll support
• Global payroll for international employees

2: Employee Onboarding and Offboarding

Rippling also helps with various onboarding and offboarding tasks through automation. Some of the features under this umbrella includes:

• Sending offer letters and onboarding documents
• Creating employee profiles and collecting electronic signatures
• Assigning company-provided devices, like laptops
• Enrolling employees in different benefit-related structures
• Provisioning email and software accounts

Automation of these workflows ensures consistency in the onboarding process while enhancing the security of the exit process for employees.

3: HR Management

Thanks to Rippling, you will also get a centralized HR system for managing the records of your employees. The tool can help with overviewing workforce operations and organizational structures as well. Some of these HR features include:

• Employee database and leave management
• Keeping digital personal records and organizational charts
• Storing employee documents 
• Automating workflows for HR tasks
• Managing performance and policies of the organization

4: Benefits Administration

Through rippling, the process of offering benefits becomes easier for companies as it enables them to handle health care, retirement and other forms of benefits using one single system.

Companies will be able to:

• Enroll their employees into benefit plans
• Manage their health, dental, and vision coverage
• Administer retirement benefits
• Update benefits elections of their employees
• Automatically deduct benefits through payroll

5: Time and Attendance Tracking

The tool comes with a special workforce management feature that helps businesses monitor employee working hours and attendance.

• Employee time tracking
• Attendance tracking
• PTO tracking and approval
• Overtime tracking
• Shifts scheduling (where available)
• Payroll integration

Due to the direct integration of attendance data into payroll, there is little to no need for manual calculation of employee hours.

6: IT and Device Management

Rippling is different from many other traditional HR softwares because it has the ability to manage IT. It helps businesses with:

• Managing company laptops and phones
• Applying security policies remotely
• Installing applications for business
• Setting up user permissions
• Monitoring device inventory
• Cleaning company data from lost and old devices

This solution will be particularly useful for businesses that work with remote or hybrid teams.

7: App Provisioning and Identity Management

The system automatically takes care of user access for many applications within the company, eliminating the need for any manual intervention and enhancing security.

The features included in app provisioning and identity management are:

• User accounts created automatically
• Single Sign-On (SSO)
• Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
• Role-Based Access Control
• Permission Management
• Account Deactivation during Offboarding

This enables companies to provide appropriate levels of access to employees.

8: Integrations

Rippling has hundreds of integrations that will enable companies to link their HR, payroll, accounting, communication, and productivity applications.

Some of the most common categories of integration include:

• Accounting application
• Customer relationship management application
• Communication application
• Productivity application
• Identity provider application
• Recruitment application
• Expense management application

This enables teams to enter data manually and maintain information across different business applications.

Advantages of Using Rippling

Rippling is not simply an HR or payroll tool. The most important feature about the tool is its ability to merge HR, payroll, IT, and employee management in a single system. 

Companies will no longer need multiple systems to hire an employee, set up their laptops, and issue them a salary slip. All this can be done through one single dashboard.

1: It Eliminates Manual Work

Automation is one of the best features of Rippling. There are many activities that require the involvement of HR, Payroll, and IT staff; these can all be performed automatically.

For example, when a new employee joins the company, Rippling can:

• Generate an employee record
• Put them on the payroll
• Provide documentation for electronic signature
• Allocate software and email
• Sign up for employee benefits
• Establish role-based permissions

Instead of completing these tasks one-by-one, your team can automate the process, save time, and reduce manual errors.

2: Everything Lives in One Place

As your business grows, the information of your employees will often get scattered across different platforms. Payroll data may be stored in one system, IT access managed somewhere else, and HR records are in another place.

Rippling solves this by centralizing workforce management. Both the HR team and payroll personnel use the same set of employee details, and, thus, can view everything from one place.

3: It’s Scalable

The best thing about Rippling is that it is modular. You do not have to buy everything at once. As your organization grows, you can gradually buy new features to accommodate your needs. 

For example, if a small company starts off by using the payroll and HR functions but decides later on to include the following features:

• Benefits administration 
• Time Tracking 
• Device Management 
• Identity & Access Management 
• Global Payroll 
• Expense Management

Rippling: The Pricings

Unlike many payroll and HR software providers, Rippling does not publish fixed pricing plans on its website. Instead, they use a custom, modular pricing model. So, the final cost of the product will depend on the size of your business and the integrations you are choosing.

1: How Does Rippling’s Pricing Work?

Rippling’s pricing is based on five different factors –

• Number of employees in your company
• Products/modules that you choose
• Whether you need US payroll, international payroll, or contractor management
• Add-ons and integrations
• Support needs

Since each company has unique requirements, you will have to ask for a customized quote from Rippling to get your exact cost.

2: Is Rippling Worth the Price?

Rippling’s pricing may not be as transparent compared to its competitors which disclose fixed pricing packages, it could also work to their advantage especially if they cater to companies that require particular products only. The following firms may find Rippling’s services worth it:

• Growing startup companies
• Medium-sized business organizations
• Remote or global companies
• Businesses requiring HR, Payroll and IT Management in a single platform

In contrast, companies in search of an easy payroll system or desiring transparency in pricing may want to look elsewhere.

Rippling Pros and Cons: At a Glance

Like any other platform, Rippling has its pros and cons. Its biggest advantage is bringing HR, IT, payroll, etc into one place while the modular pricing can be an issue for many companies.

The Bottom Line

Our top choice is Rippling for … 

• Companies seeking all-in-one HR software with a core focus on automation, capable of seamlessly integrating with their current business software, benefits, and apps. 
• Midsize businesses looking to streamline their HR processes, from onboarding to offboarding and everything in between, in order to save time and maintain accuracy. 
• Businesses seek the versatility of a highly customizable HR software platform with a wide range of reporting options. 

We advise against using Rippling for … 

• Small businesses with low volume of repetitive HR tasks such as recruitment, orientation, resource distribution, benefits administration, and employee exits. 
• Small and midsize businesses require extensive customer service assistance for managing and updating their operations-related tools and software. 

So, before you consider using Rippling, we’d ask you to evaluate your company as closely as possible. Also, talk to an expert and ask them if they think using the tool will do good for you.

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