Introduction
Which HCM software and managed service most effectively support the achievement of our corporate objectives? This is the question that CHROs must answer. Provider-specific terminology, grand marketing promises, and complex contracts create opacity and make the selection process difficult. Provider overviews showing metrics such as revenue or customer numbers are of limited help.
That’s why the LKPU analysis highlights what truly matters to clients: the scope of functionality as well as the level of service and integration offered by each provider. Similar providers are grouped accordingly, and the table is structured by these groups.
This offers a clear and practical starting point for companies seeking orientation — and helps them critically assess their own requirements in order to achieve their business goals.
Legend
- Software – Name of the product
- Company – Brand of the software or service provider
- Software Provider – Checked if the company is the actual provider of the software (as opposed to an ASP or reseller)
- Managed Payroll – Checked if the company provides managed payroll services (as opposed to SaaS only)
- Geography
- Local: Availability limited to one or more DACH countries
- Regional: Extended availability in 10+ European countries
- Global: Extended availability in 100+ countries
- Functionality
- Core HR: Management of employee master data, employee self-service, data analytics and reporting, document management
- Pay: Payroll processing for Germany/Austria/Switzerland
- Time: Time tracking and absence management
- Workforce Scheduling: Shift planning, scheduling, and rotation support, manager and employee self service
- Recruitment & Onboarding: Application portal, job posting and applicant management, digital onboarding journeys
- Talent & Performance: Goal management, performance control and feedback, development and succession planning
- LMS: E-learning and training management
- Customer Size
- Small: ~500 employees, primarily single-country operations
- Medium: ~2,000 employees, operating in around ~10 countries
- Large: Global organizations with significantly broader scale
- Clusters
The overview sorts providers into the following clusters:
- Full-suite providers (with native payroll): Software includes all functionalities, the payroll is native (not a connected software)
- Full-suite providers with payroll integration: Software includes all functionalities, the payroll is a connected software
- Payroll software providers: The software is focused on payroll
- HR software providers (e.g., Learning, Talent, Time Tracking): The software is focused on functionality other than Workforce Planning and Payroll
- Payroll service providers (Outsourcing): The provider is focused on providing a managed service for software
Want to know more?
The present overview of HCM and payroll software and service providers with a focus on the DACH region serves as a guide for companies planning to implement a new HR software system. For many clients, the German-speaking market for HCM and payroll solutions is difficult to navigate. Since providers do not use a standardized vocabulary to describe their software, customers searching for specific functionalities often need to tediously browse through numerous product pages.
In developing the LKPU HCM and Payroll Software and Service Provider Overview, we were guided by the questions identified in LKPU People, Issue 1 (link) as key criteria in the HR software selection process:
- Is the company looking for a full-suite provider or a patchwork solution?
- Should it be delivered by a global or a local HCM provider?
- Is the goal to outsource payroll as a managed service or to use a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution?
Two important questions were deliberately left aside:
- Since the HCM market is increasingly shifting from traditional on-premise solutions to the cloud, we did not differentiate between in-house systems and SaaS models. In fact, on-premise systems were not included in our analysis – even though we anticipate a potential revival of on-premise models due to rising security concerns. One reason for this decision is the announcement by major HCM providers such as SAP and Oracle to phase out their on-premise offerings in the coming years.
- We also did not consider whether implementation is carried out directly by the provider or through a partner. For clients, this aspect is generally irrelevant in the initial evaluation phase. It typically becomes a consideration only after a shortlist of potential solutions has been established.
Methodology
The foundation of this overview is a list of payroll software providers certified by the ITSG. This list was supplemented by research on HCM system providers operating in Germany. In some cases, specialized applications covering specific areas of HCM were also included.
Including all providers offering integrable standalone solutions would have exceeded the scope of this overview. Therefore, we made a selection based on our professional experience.
One example is the time management system ATOSS — while it is neither an HCM nor a payroll service provider, it is so widely used that it regularly appears in our day-to-day work with HCM systems.
Feedback and Disclaimer
This overview of HCM software and service providers in the DACH region is based on publicly available information, market research, and voluntary disclosures by providers. While LKPU strives to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the data, no guarantee can be given for the correctness of all details.
We invite both customers and providers to share feedback, corrections, or updates to help continuously improve the quality and relevance of this overview. Companies that wish to be included in future editions are welcome to contact LKPU at any time.
We would like to express our sincere appreciation to all organizations that contributed this initiative.
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