Fifty years ago, companies were using physical tools to manage their human resources documentation. Today, running an optometry practice on a plethora of scattered sticky notes, bulging folders, and buried computer files isn’t sustainable.
If your HR management is still stuck in the 1970s (or 80s, or 90s, or 2000s), there’s a better way to manage your team members — from optometrists to the optician who fit frames to faces to your front desk team. If you’re ready to incorporate digital, timestamped, paperless HR solutions into your practice, now’s the time! The last decade has seen the introduction of cloud-based, user-friendly software that streamlines HR for optometry practices. There are many available, but we’ve chosen 7 HR management solutions that truly stand out from the crowd.
Why Invest in Digital HR Tools for Optometry Practices?
The best digital HR tools for optometrists come with the following features:
- Time and attendance tracking, including wage and hour compliance.
- Performance and task management for absences, overtime, certifications, etc.
- Data security, including regulated and compliant document storage.
- Federal and state document automation for new hire paperwork, taxes, etc.
- Automated time-stamping, e-signatures, notifications, and alerts.
- Automated payroll.
- Customized employee handbooks tailored to your practice's size, goals, and culture.
- On-demand, personalized HR support and advice.
HR for Health
HR for Health is the all-in-one human resources, timekeeping, payroll, and 401(k) solution specifically designed for optometrists or their team members tasked with HR responsibilities.
HR for Health is 100% focused on the needs of dental, veterinary, and optometry practices - unlike many other hr companies. The most immediate benefit to using HR for Health is its diverse functionality: with HR for Health, your practice is suddenly no longer paying and managing logins for 3, 4, or 5+ office software programs. It rolls HR, timekeeping, payroll, 401(k), employee performance, and more into a single program. Customers also receive access to the "HR for Health Resource Library with forms, templates, how-tos, and videos for common HR questions.
The cloud-based HR for Health is easy to use and maintain. Practices can save HR documentation in electronic employee files, run payroll, track PTO, and much more. You'll receive real-time alerts when a team member is tardy or your optician works overtime, so you'll never be surprised when you run payroll again. Industry-specific employee handbooks and law update notifications, keep you current on legal issues unique to the optometry world, ensuring compliance with state and federal laws. This also helps insulate you against litigation. Plus, these handbooks (and annual updates) are included with HR for Health.
Simply priced, easy to use, and designed for use by the non-HR professional; HR for Health provides exactly what an optometrist practices needs for HR.
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CEDR
Arizona-based CEDR Solutions specializes in employee handbooks and HR services for the healthcare sector, including digital document storage, PTO and time tracking, and payroll.
They also offer legal guidance, an HR concierge service, and complimentary HIPAA training for customers who invest in their HR solutions. Access to an online community also adds value — although, since CEDR doesn’t moderate their forums, this can become a potential pitfall of misinformation.
CEDR has an interesting hook in that you can receive “free lifetime access to HR Vault.” However, there’s no clear pricing available on their website for upgrading to their software and additional services. While the HR Vault is useful for documentation storage, it lacks any other HR features, such as an employee guide or payroll, which makes it less useful for optometrists looking for an all-in-one HR solution.
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Bent Erikson & Associates
Bent Ericksen & Associates (BEA) assists business owners with human resources, employment compliance, and employee management.
They offer a comprehensive HR software tool, personality testing for potential job candidates, and background checks. They also provide an HR manual review service where their consultants tell you what’s outdated or inconsistent so that you can update accordingly.
Pricing for the HR Director platform begins at $3,495/year, with additional add-ons available. While a robust solution, for smaller practices, the features and fee schedule can be overkill. Plus, some features such as policy manual review, included in other products (such as HR for Health) is an additional charge.
BambooHR
BambooHR is a cloud-based HR platform that’s easy-to-use and securely accessible from both a desktop or mobile device. It allows employees to calculate their time off, review their benefits, see training opportunities, and check performance goals. The platform makes it simple for managers to approve employee requests and review applications for hire. It enables them to do performance assessments, leave comments on employee goals, and record notes about team members.
Pricing for the app is not available on their website. Time-tracking, payroll, and performance management are all add-on options, so expect to pay extra for those HR essentials. BambooHR is also built for HR professionals and can be overly complex for optometrists or office managers who manage HR because they need to.
Bambee
Bambee offers affordable employee management solutions. Optometrists who can't afford in-house HR professionals can access a dedicated HR manager starting at $99 a month. The consultants are based in the United States and can work with government departments on your behalf.
Practice managers and their employees can reach Bambee specialists by phone, email, or real-time chat.
When optometrists sign up with Bambee, their manager performs a full HR audit to check for compliance with federal and state laws. Managers also help with drafting job descriptions, performing background checks, onboarding new employees, and coaching on-location managers through stressful terminations.
Bambee serves many industries, so it’s not specific to healthcare or optometry practices.
Gusto
Gusto is another affordable payroll solution for small practices, with pricing starting at just $45 a month. Their platform makes it easy for optometrists to pay, insure, and onboard team members.
One stand-out feature of this platform is Gusto Wallet. It allows employees to manage their money effectively, provides them with a debit VISA card, and offers instant access to emergency cash, which gets repaid from their next paycheck.
Gusto's website includes a number of handy calculators, including a salary comparison tool and a burn rate spreadsheet to help you figure out whether you'll run out of cash.
Gusto leads with payroll messaging and HR is an add-on. So while a good option for payroll, HR functionality for employee retention, performance management, and onboarding is limited. Additionally, many HR features are add-ons.
Justworks
Justworks is specifically designed to help small businesses. They offer a simple software solution and expert support for many aspects of HR, including payroll, benefits, and compliance.
One of their goals is to make tax season less stressful. To help with this, they report and remit your federal, state, and local payroll taxes, and send W-2s and 1099s to employees and contractors.
Something that makes their service unusual is access to 24/7 support from a human. You can contact them by phone, email, chat, Slack, or SMS.
One disadvantage of Justworks is that it provides standard HR solutions but doesn’t offer HR auditing tools.
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ADP
ADP provides HR and payroll solutions for optometrists of all sizes.
They have an edge over the competition in terms of employee management. FORTUNE Magazine has listed ADP as one of the “World’s Most Admired Companies®” for 14 consecutive years. In 2018, ADP was recognized by LinkedIn as one of the top 50 companies that Americans want to work at.
Their website features a COVID-19 Toolkit and a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Toolkit. It also includes a marketplace where you can compare, try, and purchase HR apps. ADP also offers completely outsourced HR services -- they’ll do it for you.
Unfortunately, it’s difficult to tell if ADP will suit your optometry practice because it doesn't disclose its prices online. ADP also has its roots in payroll processing and its lower-tier offerings are extremely basic when it comes to HR.
HR for Optometry Practices is Getting Easier All the Time
Automated solutions help optometry practices get on top of payroll and other aspects of employee management without spending a ton of money. Invest some time in seeing what’s available to you. Engaging with an HR professional could make your practice more efficient and effective than ever.
HR for Health provides optometry practices like yours the best-automated solutions to take the headache out of HR. Schedule a demo so you can see the benefits of using HR for Healthcare’s services to your advantage.
About HR for Health
HR for Health is an all-in-one HR software solution dedicated to helping the dental, optometry, and veterinary industries. Our human resources platform features all the tools practice owners need to manage payroll, timekeeping, 401(k), and more with total integration and ease.
Whether you’re looking for HR support for a small business or you’re a large group dental practice, HR for Health has the solution to fit your practice and budget. Reach out to a HR for Health account representative to learn more, today: Book Time Here
