Keep your team happy by using employee lifecycle management software to perfect your HR processes. We cover five tools that can help your business reduce turnover and increase employee satisfaction.

Your people are the key to your company’s success. Happy and engaged employees are more productive and innovative, and they’re less likely to leave.

Considering that it costs anywhere from six months to two years of an employee’s salary to replace them, reducing turnover can significantly benefit your bottom line.

When it comes to finding the right candidate for a job, introducing new team members to your company culture, evaluating their work, and smoothly transitioning employees when they leave, employee lifecycle management software helps you every step of the way. 

With tools that streamline and automate many repetitive HR tasks, the right software can make your HR team and your employees happier. 

If you don’t have the time to read through our research, jump down to our quick comparison table.

Our Top Picks

  1. Best all-in-one employee lifecycle management software

  2. Good for startup to midsize companies that are looking for a comprehensive employee goal and performance software

  3. Good for businesses that use other Zoho products

Why trust us?

Our team of unbiased software reviewers follows strict editorial guidelines, and our methodology is clear and open to everyone.
See our complete methodology

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How To Choose Employee Lifecycle Management Software

Employee lifecycle management software is a must-have for businesses in today’s world. Look for software with the following features to help run your business more effectively and improve your employee experience:

  • Recruitment and onboarding management: From creating job descriptions to onboarding new hires, employee management tools should allow you to manage the recruitment process from beginning to end.
  • Time and attendance tracking: Features for managing employee schedules and tracking time and attendance will increase your team’s productivity and efficiency.
  • Performance management: With performance management tools, you can set goals, track employee performance over time, and offer feedback.
  • Training and development management: Look for software that allows you to design and manage training programs for employees, including creating online courses, tracking employee progress, and certifying completed courses. 
  • Employee communication and engagement: Real-time communication with your employees is a great way to create a strong sense of community and engagement. Some tools build a social feed into their solution so you can recognize your employees for their accomplishments. These features help you build relationships and boost morale.
  • Benefits management: Find software that allows your employees to manage their own benefits. It saves your HR team valuable time, and your employees will appreciate being able to make choices and have greater control over their benefits.

The 5 Best Employee Lifecycle Management Softwares of 2024

  1. Connecteam — Best all-in-one employee lifecycle management software

    woman looking at her laptop with a screenshot of Connecteam's timeline feature

    Connecteam tops our list with its best-in-class employee management features. It’s an all-in-one platform that allows you to streamline all aspects of employee management, improve communication, and increase productivity. Some of the features that make it stand out from other options include: 

    Time and schedule management

    With Connecteam, you can efficiently track and manage your employees’ schedules, work hours, overtime, and time off while ensuring you’re in compliance with labor laws. Managers can create work schedules and assign tasks to specific employees. 

    If your teams are remote, GPS location tracking lets you monitor your employees’ locations, so you know everyone is where they need to be. 

    Automated HR workflows

    You can streamline your business operations with Connecteam’s broad range of employee management tools. You can manage payroll, track expenses, and automate many other HR workflows. 

    A comprehensive employee database stores information such as job titles, employment histories, and contact information. 

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    Training and onboarding 

    Whether you’re onboarding new employees or retraining your existing workforce, you need an efficient talent development program. Connecteam has you covered with tools for creating and delivering training materials such as videos, quizzes, and other interactive content. 

    You can track your employees and their performance to keep them on track to meet their progress goals. 

    Employment engagement tools

    Increase your employees’ satisfaction and boost their morale with Connecteam’s employee engagement tools. You can create employee recognition programs and send surveys to solicit employee feedback. 

    Keep your employees up to date with company news and announcements. Employees can connect with each other and build community through a social feed. 

    Connecteam also offers a free for life plan – Get Started Now!

    Pros

    • All-in-one solution

    • Excellent customer support

    • Free and affordable

    • Simple to implement and use 

    Cons

    • Needs internet or wifi access to work

    Pricing

    Free-for-life plan availablePremium plans start at $29/month for 30 users

    14-day free trial, no credit card required

    Start your free trial
  2. Lattice — Good for startup to midsize companies that are looking for a comprehensive employee goal and performance software

    Screenshot of the Lattice webpage

    Lattice is a cloud-based employee management software that lets you manage productivity and progress. You can identify, set, and track goals and perform check-ins and reviews. Managers can create customized, actionable plans based on each employee’s role and performance. 

    Key Features

    • Customizable, automated workflows
    • Detailed analytics and reporting
    • Compensation review
    • Individualized growth and development plan

    Pros

    • Review reminders
    • Comprehensive goal management

    Cons

    • No chat functionality
    • Difficult navigation

    Pricing

    Starts at $11/user/month Trial: No Free Plan: No

  3. Zoho People — Good for businesses that use other Zoho products

    A screenshot of the Zoho People homepage

    With Zoho People, you can manage HR and benefits from a central platform. Zoho offers a broad range of features such as onboarding, time and attendance trackers, performance management, and a hiring module. Zoho lets your employees provide peer-to-peer reviews, direct report reviews, and even manager reviews. There are five categories of feedback, but you can customize them to better suit your business. 

    Zoho also provides an extensive selection of metrics to tie to learning and development. You can base your employee ratings on reviews from multiple people and connect employee performance to pay. 

    Key Features

    • Customizable management module
    • Integrates with other Zoho tools
    • People analytics reporting
    • Manage employee travel

    Pros

    • Free plan
    • Customizable

    Cons

    • No payroll module
    • Limited time and attendance functionality

    Pricing

    Starts at $1.25/user/month Trial: Yes — 30-day Free Plan: Yes

  4. HiBob (bob) — Good for companies with between 50 and 350 employees who will use other HR software to fill the gaps

    Screenshot of the Bob webpage

    HiBob was created to put the employee experience at the center of employee management. Its modules include employee onboarding, time and attendance, performance, compensation, employee engagement, and employee files. Its analytical reports provide an overview of employee health for key stakeholders. 

    Key Features

    • Automated workflows and document management
    • Manage benefits
    • Actionable insights and KPIs
    • Multiple integrations, including Slack and Teams

    Pros

    • Open API for custom integrations
    • Modern user interface that appeals to young audience

    Cons

    • No payroll or benefits administration
    • No free trial or free version

    Pricing

    Contact vendor for price Trial: No Free Plan: No

  5. Eddy — Good for companies with U.S.-based remote workers

    Available on

    • Web
    • Windows
    • Mac
    Screenshot of the Eddy webpage

    Eddy is an all-in-one platform built to streamline HR processes and improve the employee experience. It has a drag-and-drop candidate pipeline to streamline recruiting and hiring. You can also create customizable workflows and send automated messages and reminders based on where your employees are in the process. 

    Key Features

    • Applicant tracking
    • Automated messaging
    • Employee database
    • Self-service portal

    Pros

    • Good customer support
    • Free trial

    Cons

    • No ability to review pay stubs
    • Clunky navigation between employee profiles

    Pricing

    Starts at $49/month + $8/user/month Trial: No Free Plan: No

Compare the Best Employee Lifecycle Management Softwares

Topic Start for free
Reviews
4.8
4.5
4.4
4.6
4.6
Pricing
Starts at just $29/month for the first 30 users
Starts at $11/user/month
Starts at $1.25/user/month
Contact vendor for price
Starts at $49/month + $8/user/month
Free Trial
yes
14-day
no
yes
30-day
no
no
Free Plan
yes
Free Up to 10 users
no
yes
no
no
Use cases
Best all-in-one employee lifecycle management software
Good for startup to midsize companies that are looking for a comprehensive employee goal and performance software
Good for businesses that use other Zoho products
Good for companies with between 50 and 350 employees who will use other HR software to fill the gaps
Good for companies with U.S.-based remote workers
Available on
Web, Windows, Mac

What Is Employee Lifecycle Management Software?

Employee lifecycle management software helps businesses manage all stages of an employee’s time with you, from their recruitment and onboarding to ongoing job performance and engagement. When an employee leaves your team, the software manages their offboarding too.

This type of software makes HR tasks easier and improves employee experiences. Your team has the power to steer their own career development, and doing so can increase their happiness and involvement at work.

With self-service access to their benefits, training, performance goals, and reviews, your employees can track their own progress so they know exactly what’s expected of them and which steps they can take to advance. 

How Does Employee Lifecycle Management Software Work?

Employee lifecycle management software provides tools that make it easier to manage all phases of the employee lifecycle. These include: 

Recruitment

You can use software to craft compelling job listings and post them to multiple job boards. Some platforms let you screen resumes and schedule interviews with just a few clicks. 

Onboarding

Once you’ve hired an employee, you can use software to manage the onboarding process by setting up checklists and automated workflow for typical tasks. These include setting up email, submitting paperwork, completing training, and participating in orientation sessions. 

Performance Management

Set and track performance goals and conduct regular evaluations all in one place. Many solutions include options for employees to provide feedback as well, which you can use to drive improvement initiatives.

Training and Development 

In today’s era of rapid tech development, your employees need to evolve their skills to keep pace. Providing a talent development program for your employees means your workforce keeps their skills updated, and they continue to grow. The right software gives you the tools to efficiently design and deliver useful training programs.

Offboarding

Despite the fact that an employee is leaving, it’s still important to provide a positive experience. This is both to protect your company’s reputation and to leave the door open for good employees to return in the future. When your employees leave your company, automated offboarding workflows can keep things running smoothly to the end. You can add tasks such as returning company equipment, participating in exit interviews, and removing access to company software. 

The Benefits of Employee Lifecycle Management Software

The employee lifecycle includes all of an employee’s interactions with your company. At every touchstone, you have the opportunity to provide a positive experience for your employees. When you do this, you’ll increase the likelihood that your employees will engage with their work and invest in your company.

Employee lifecycle management software can help you manage your workforce more efficiently with the following benefits: 

Streamlined Recruitment Process

By handling many of the tasks associated with recruiting new hires, employee lifecycle management software can make it easier for you to fill open roles. The software can automate tasks such as posting jobs, collecting resumes, screening candidates, and scheduling interviews. As an added benefit, you reduce bias in the hiring process by building in objective requirements for candidate evaluation.

Better Onboarding Experience

Although your company puts its best foot forward in the recruitment phase, the onboarding process is when employees get their first experience of what it’s like to work for you. You want to make a good impression from the start by making the onboarding process easy and efficient. Nobody wants to spend hours completing repetitive paperwork. 

You can create a customized onboarding workflow for each employee. Your HR team can then use the software to track a new hire’s progress, and if they notice something is missing, they can send a quick reminder. Similarly, employees can check in using your employee lifecycle management solution instead of sitting around wondering if they’ve completed all of their onboarding tasks. Empowering your employees will motivate them from their first day.

Improved Performance Management 

You can set clear performance goals for your employees and track their progress toward meeting them. This lessens frustrations, as employees may get irritated if they don’t understand what’s expected of them.

Managers can use your system to document goals and provide feedback. It doesn’t have to be a formal assessment, either. Leaders can send a simple text message to acknowledge a team member’s hard work and offer words of encouragement.

Easier Talent Development 

Your business can’t thrive without a talent development program. Every day, new technology is reinventing work. New developments make jobs easier — sometimes so easy they become obsolete. Most of the time, though, your employees just need a refresher to keep their skills current or learn new ones.

Providing the training they need will show your employees you value them and want them to succeed. With this vote of confidence, they are more likely to be invested in your company and engaged in their work. As an added bonus, you’re developing an adaptable, forward-thinking team.

Increased Employee Engagement 

There are many ways you can improve employee engagement. Asking what they think, recognizing their contributions, and creating a positive work community are just a few examples. 

Use your software to let your employees give the thumbs up or thumbs down to proposed changes. Create an employee recognition program where they can earn gift cards for going above and beyond. Set up communication channels so employees can encourage and support each other. The options for making your business a great place to work are practically limitless.

Honest Feedback

If your employees want to keep their jobs, they’re going to be reluctant to give you negative feedback. However, if you want to increase employee retention, you need to know their honest thoughts, good and bad.  

Sending regular employee surveys, including anonymous surveys, helps employees feel comfortable providing critiques. You also need to create a culture that encourages regular feedback. By asking employees for their opinions on matters big and small, they’ll believe you really want to know. 

Compliance Management

Employee lifecycle management software collects employee data so you can comply with employment laws and regulations. You need to keep records of wages and hours worked, among others. Your software can make this easy by giving you a central location for storing time-tracking and payroll data. 

How Much Does Employee Lifecycle Management Software Cost?

Most employee lifecycle management software is sold on a subscription model that charges you based on how many employees you have. It also frequently costs more for advanced features or support. Many companies offer tiered plans for basic, standard, or advanced functions. You can pay anywhere from $4 to $30 per user per month. 

Connecteam offers a more competitive pricing option as well as more advanced features. Their small business plan is 100% free for up to 10 users and provides full access to all hubs. If you need to step up, the basic plan is $29 monthly for up to 30 users. No matter what your business needs are, you only pay for what you need when you need it. It’s a solution that scales up with your business. 

FAQs

What is employee lifecycle management?

Employee lifecycle management includes everything involved in managing an employee’s journey with your company. This covers activities associated with recruiting and hiring employees, training them to effectively perform their jobs, reviewing their job performance, and, ultimately, transitioning their roles as they leave your company. 

What are the stages of the employee lifecycle?

The employee lifecycle starts when an employee first becomes aware of your company as a potential employer and continues until they leave your company. These stages include: 

  • Recruitment
  • Onboarding
  • Development
  • Retention
  • Offboarding and exit

What does HR do in the employee lifecycle?

The HR department plays a major role in the employee lifecycle. They’re responsible for finding and recruiting talented employees and making sure your company culture and values are top of mind. 

They handle onboarding employees and making sure you meet all legal requirements. Once employees are hired, HR oversees their training and keeps track of performance reviews. While your employees are working for you, they handle their benefits. 

When your employees leave — whether they quit, get fired, or retire — HR handles offboarding and makes sure the separation is as smooth as possible. From an employee’s first day to their last, the HR department is involved every step of the way. 

The Bottom Line On Best Employee Lifecycle Management Software

Employee lifecycle management software is designed to improve all aspects of your business. It benefits the employee experience in many ways. It also streamlines HR processes to increase efficiency from recruitment to retirement. 

By automating workflows, this software can make your HR team’s job easier. Your employees have better experiences because you’re giving them greater access to their information and allowing them to make requests directly through the platform rather than through HR.

Connecteams’s user-friendly and customizable employee lifecycle management solution provides a range of features such as employee onboarding, time tracking, performance management, and benefits administration. Connecteam was built to make work better for everyone on your team.