BambooHR vs. SumTotal Talent Development

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
BambooHR
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
BambooHR is an on-line human resources solution that provides onboarding, payroll, and benefits management. It also offers automated time-off management and employee self-service.
$250
per month
SumTotal Talent Development
Score 7.7 out of 10
Enterprise companies (1,001+ employees)
The SumTotal Core Platform (formerly elixHR) is a human resource information system (HRIS) integrable with the SumTotal Talent Expansion Suite of software: SumTotal (LMS), and the SumTotal Work workforce management and payroll system. All SumTotal software is now offered and supported by Skillsoft since the October 2014 acquisition.N/A
Pricing
BambooHRSumTotal Talent Development
Editions & Modules
Core
$250
per month
Pro
$250
per month
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
BambooHRSumTotal Talent Development
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesYes
Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
Additional DetailsNo matter what HR looks like at your company, we have the perfect plan for you!
More Pricing Information
Features
BambooHRSumTotal Talent Development
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.1
134 Ratings
3% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
1.9
1 Ratings
122% below category average
Employee demographic data7.7113 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Employment history8.7121 Ratings5.01 Ratings
Job profiles and administration8.4119 Ratings2.01 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.8.2106 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Organizational charting7.3118 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Organization and location management8.1108 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)8.664 Ratings2.01 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.0
86 Ratings
0% below category average
SumTotal Talent Development
3.3
1 Ratings
84% below category average
Pay calculation8.259 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors8.249 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment8.036 Ratings00 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.865 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Direct deposit files8.564 Ratings3.01 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management8.068 Ratings00 Ratings
Reimbursement management6.735 Ratings00 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.9
115 Ratings
10% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
6.7
3 Ratings
19% below category average
Approval workflow9.2113 Ratings8.52 Ratings
Balance details8.9105 Ratings8.53 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment8.494 Ratings3.01 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.6
128 Ratings
6% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
3.0
1 Ratings
92% below category average
View and generate pay and benefit information8.280 Ratings5.01 Ratings
Update personal information9.0127 Ratings2.01 Ratings
View company policy documentation8.7106 Ratings00 Ratings
Employee recognition8.484 Ratings00 Ratings
View job history8.7119 Ratings2.01 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
7.7
51 Ratings
1% below category average
SumTotal Talent Development
-
Ratings
Tracking of all physical assets7.751 Ratings00 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
7.7
103 Ratings
1% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
7.2
3 Ratings
5% below category average
Report builder8.198 Ratings7.03 Ratings
Pre-built reports7.797 Ratings6.52 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data7.470 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.6
106 Ratings
7% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
8.2
2 Ratings
2% above category average
New hire portal8.7101 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Manager tracking tools8.693 Ratings8.52 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.2
65 Ratings
0% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
8.8
1 Ratings
7% above category average
Corporate goal setting8.249 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Individual goal setting8.263 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility8.248 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Performance tracking8.159 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
7.8
71 Ratings
2% below category average
SumTotal Talent Development
8.2
2 Ratings
3% above category average
Performance plans7.563 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Performance improvement plans7.856 Ratings7.52 Ratings
Review status tracking7.965 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Review reminders8.166 Ratings8.52 Ratings
Multiple review frequency7.862 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
7.1
53 Ratings
11% below category average
SumTotal Talent Development
7.0
1 Ratings
13% below category average
Create succession plans/pools5.734 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Candidate ranking7.743 Ratings00 Ratings
Candidate search7.146 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Candidate development7.940 Ratings6.01 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
BambooHR
8.1
87 Ratings
3% above category average
SumTotal Talent Development
7.9
2 Ratings
1% above category average
Job Requisition Management8.063 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Company Website Posting8.369 Ratings7.52 Ratings
Publish to Social Media8.261 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting8.265 Ratings8.52 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention7.459 Ratings6.52 Ratings
Applicant Tracking8.277 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts8.680 Ratings8.52 Ratings
Best Alternatives
BambooHRSumTotal Talent Development
Small Businesses
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.1 out of 10
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.6 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.6 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.2 out of 10
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.2 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
BambooHRSumTotal Talent Development
Likelihood to Recommend
8.8
(138 ratings)
7.5
(9 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.2
(12 ratings)
6.0
(5 ratings)
Usability
8.6
(65 ratings)
2.0
(2 ratings)
Availability
9.3
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.7
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
8.5
(59 ratings)
3.0
(2 ratings)
Online Training
9.2
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.9
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
8.6
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
8.3
(3 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.6
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.9
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Professional Services
9.2
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.9
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.1
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
BambooHRSumTotal Talent Development
Likelihood to Recommend
BambooHR
I think it is well suited for organizations that are doing large-scale hiring and have large teams to keep track of. It might be less necessary for smaller teams. However, I think most orgs can benefit from Bamboo HR because it makes staying organized accessible.
Read full review
SumTotal
Very good for learning and development and training of employees. For Applicant tracking, recuirement, onboarding, and enablement, I prefer SAP SuccessFactors or Skillate. I also found that the SumTotal app is not very friendly on android and crashes sometimes and it is not optimized for mobile. Hence I end up never using it.
Read full review
Pros
BambooHR
  • The Applicant Tracking System is pretty good. Has a couple flaws but over all it's a really great module.
  • The HR management system works really well and we love how much we can customize things we need.
  • The Reporting feature is one of my favorite things about BambooHR. I can create any report I want and I love that.
Read full review
SumTotal
  • Assign complete learning plans to users so they don't have to spend time searching for courses.
  • Export learner's transcripts so managers can easily see their employee's progress.
  • Embed Social Media feeds that are relevant to their business.
Read full review
Cons
BambooHR
  • The performance feature is a little clunky and not adjustable, so I would love to have more customizable options.
  • When a candidate signs an offer letter, it would be great if it could show up under the documents tab. Right now, it gets a little buried.
Read full review
SumTotal
  • Reporting
  • Mass importing of manual checks to be issued in California
  • Ability to fund pay cards immediately
  • Perform gross-up calculations within the payroll system automatically
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
BambooHR
There's nothing wrong with this platform. I would recommend it to any business starting with more than 10 employees. I will continue to use the program for as long as I need to, hoping they continue being tremendous and finding other ways to incorporate more technology.
Read full review
SumTotal
I have transitioned from a position who supported the product to a position where I use the product. I continue to be impressed with the robustness of the product and how efficient it is. It is a user friendly software that can be used to navigate and accomplish tasks to meet organizational requirements.
Read full review
Usability
BambooHR
Overall, the system is quite easy to navigate and use. This was a major reason we went with BambooHR over others. Our C-suite wanted to be sure that they could see every person at our company using the majority of the system without too much assistance. BambooHR does this quite well, and they seem to strongly emphasize it whenever I meet with a product manager.
Read full review
SumTotal
I do not find SumTotal to be intuitive. I feel we need to adjust our needs to meet the functionality available in the tool.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
BambooHR
Yes, there is a huge team in the back of the online platform or it looks like it because I have never been left without an answer when I have a question or waiting from a response on my chat .... There must be a huge team, this is so great and I always seem to have someone that is very knowledgeable too. So many times in the past I had to leave with customer service that would connect you with someone else because of the expertise, here everyone seems to be some kind of an expert in the HR function.
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Performance
BambooHR
I love BambooHR. Reports are easy to run and download and it usually covers any types of requests I get from the management team. You get excel or .csv downloads/reports and it is fast and simple, not too crowded so it is easy to read through. We don't integrate the tool yet but again, soon we will. we just did not had the time to utilize it yet but that's the plan.
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
BambooHR
When I started using BambooHR as a main manager 4 months ago, it had a good thing with that chat that responded very quickly and helped to fix easy and quick issues. Sadly, it stopped working and now we need to send an email every time we want to solve a problem, even when it is a small one, and it takes almost a day (sometimes more) to give a proper answer.
Read full review
SumTotal
We have our own IT support to assist in SumTotal issues, however, we have had to log in cases directly. Support is mediocre at best.
Read full review
In-Person Training
BambooHR
I didn't have in-person training besides teaching my managers how to use the program. However, I couldn't omit this question (maybe a system glitch).
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Online Training
BambooHR
As far as I can recall, everything went well with doing it online and got questions answered. Was thankful to work with a dummy file to get used to some practices prior to getting our own domain within bamboo to then place our personnel information in the system, this helped a lot!
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
BambooHR
We implemented bambooHR in Fall, 2023 then implemented Payroll 1/1/24. A vital piece of information was not known or missed in that we are exempt from State Unemployment Tax and have a Reimbursement Set-up, so bambooHR did not send Payroll Reports to the State. Those reports need to be sent regardless if we are exempt or not.
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
BambooHR
BambooHR was already in place when I started. BambooHR has much better intuitive navigation than any of the other systems but not as much customizability as something like Workday
Read full review
SumTotal
When I came to my company, they had been using a "light" LMS called Articulate. It was cheap and bare bones; i.e. not a lot of features, really just a platform to launch eLearning from and not real interface for student to utilize. When I began to overhaul the training department, this was one of the first things I changed. Articulate would only run courses built in their software, and the software was not 508 compliant. In addition, we had no ability to create learning plans, house transcripts, customize the interface, or manage the students. I made the choice to select and LMS that was a true LMS with all of the features that were critical to our clients' needs. Thus far, SumTotal has been able to support all of our needs, except one; mobile learning that is media rich
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
BambooHR
Since my organization has dropped with employees, I always find ways to reduce costs. I thought there would be a cheaper option, but I was glad that my package included a lot for the price, and downgrading would cost more. The rep could have let me downgraded and taken me to a higher package. I am thankful that didn't happen.
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Scalability
BambooHR
There is so much you can do with this platform, it is incredible and so welcoming. We don't utilize it 100% yet just because we are growing and the HR team has not been able to concentrate on other areas offered to us but but we will soon. Which is also why we got the product, specifically because what BambooHR can do to help us meet our growing business needs.
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Professional Services
BambooHR
VERY professional!
Read full review
SumTotal
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
BambooHR
  • Self Service is great to free up time for Admin.
  • Self-Service/ Tracked PTO and sick days are easy to use and track very well. This frees up Admin time and is transparent for all employees.
  • Easy to use Job postings with very trackable sourcing reports.
  • Easy to use. Easy to onboard and user friendly interface. Requires minimal training.
Read full review
SumTotal
  • Clean front-end user interface for easier course catalog management.
  • Reporting has been more difficult than previous LMS.
  • Audience building has more variables making it more difficult to manage.
  • Slower overall client turnaround due to admin side interface.
Read full review
ScreenShots

BambooHR Screenshots

Screenshot of BambooHR's Reporting

SumTotal Talent Development Screenshots

Screenshot of SumTotal Learning Management: Deliver the learning your organization needs including skilling/upskilling/reskilling, career planning & development. All delivered with our engaging learner experience across all modalities (desktop, tablet & mobile) and in the flow of workScreenshot of SumTotal Onboarding: Foster learning before day one with our robust onboarding solution. Build culture, complete necessary paperwork and begin the path to productivity for all your new and returning employees.Screenshot of SumTotal Performance: Performance management that meets the needs of today’s forward-thinking organizations. Align the goals and performance of your entire workforce with those of the broader organization for better business outcomes.Screenshot of SumTotal Succession: Make succession planning an organizational strength. SumTotal allows you to better understand your workforce now and better plan for your future with our intuitive succession planning tools.Screenshot of SumTotal Recruiting: A modern recruiting solution that delivers a powerful candidate experience, recruiter productivity, job matching and internal mobility.Screenshot of SumTotal Compensation: SumTotal makes compensation planning easier and less time consuming. Build a pay for performance culture that meets your organizations goals and objectives while keeping you competitive in the ever-changing marketplace.