Olan Mills Maximizes Efficiencies With Ultimate Software's UltiPro Workforce Management
Since transitioning from a mainframe system to UltiPro in June 1999, Olan Mills has:
- reduced its payroll department headcount by more than 70%
- migrated corporate office employees to a paperless payroll, reducing the company's paper, storage, and mailing expenses
- used the Web to automate its annual open enrollment process
Olan Mills's payroll and HR departments manage a workforce that fluctuates dramatically each year in response to seasonal demands. Before UltiPro, staff had to input payroll information manually, a very time-intensive operation. During and directly following peak seasons like the Christmas holidays, administrative staff manually keyed in new hires, rehires, and terminations. UltiPro's easy-to-use, robust payroll engine and enterprise integration tools have allowed Olan Mills to automate many of those processes, reducing data entry requirements and helping the company scale back on administrative headcount.
"UltiPro helps us accomplish a lot with a fairly lean staff," said Sharon James, Olan Mills's payroll manager. "Since we started using UltiPro to streamline our processes, Olan Mills has been able to reduce my department's manpower budget significantly. Add up the salary and benefits associated with those jobs, and I'd say that UltiPro had a very positive effect on the bottom line."
Olan Mills has experienced an additional cost savings by transitioning its corporate office staff to a paperless payroll environment and online benefits enrollment. Now they can view their direct deposit advices, payroll deductions, and tax information online without requiring printed pay stubs, placing concerned phone calls to HR, or sending payroll questions via e-mails. Companies that use UltiPro's employee self-service can empower their workforce to view and update their addresses, beneficiaries, direct deposit choices, and benefit selections. Olan Mills conducted its first online open enrollment with its production plant staff last spring.
"We set up kiosks for our plant employees so they could access their benefits information through the UltiPro portal and make needed changes during the workday," said Lisa Clayton, employee benefits administrator for Olan Mills. "It eliminated a great deal of paperwork and duplicate data entry, and we expect even more time savings as we expand its use in the future."
UltiPro eBenefits Enrollment enables employees to use the Web to review, elect, and submit their benefit choices at home or in the office without meeting with a benefits practitioner. Using eBenefits Enrollment, employees can view and compare current benefits with the costs of new benefits and make elections for the coming year.
"I am pleased that Olan Mills has been able to streamline its employee- related processes and leverage the Web," said Greg Swick, senior vice president of sales for Ultimate Software. "The company is a great example of how businesses can use technology to improve the bottom line."
About Ultimate Software
Ultimate Software, a leading provider of Web-based payroll and workforce
management solutions, markets award-winning UltiPro as licensed software, as a
hosted application through Intersourcing, and as a co-branded offering to
Business Service Providers (BSPs) under the "Powered by UltiPro" brand. The
Company employs approximately 450 professionals who are united in their
commitment to developing trendsetting solutions and delivering quality
service. Ultimate Software customers represent diverse industries and include
such organizations as Benihana Restaurants, The Container Store, Elizabeth
Arden, The Florida Marlins Baseball Team, The New York Yankees Baseball Team,
Omni Hotels, Ruth's Chris Steak House, SkyWest Airlines, and Trammell Crow
Residential. More information on Ultimate Software's products and services can
be found at http://www.ultimatesoftware.com.
UltiPro and Intersourcing are registered trademarks of The Ultimate Software Group, Inc. All other trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners.
Source: The Ultimate Software Group, Inc.