At Guideline, we want to make it simple for you to manage your company’s 401(k) plan. That’s why we’ve partnered with top payroll providers and offer two levels of integrations: 360˚ fully integrated and 180˚ third-party sync.
For accounts that use one of these payroll providers, Guideline will be able to collect payroll details to process contributions, set up deferral rates with your payroll provider, and manage your employee roster.
If your company uses a payroll provider that does not offer an integration or sync, you can still sponsor a Guideline plan using our self-service offering.
360˚ fully integrated payroll connections
When you connect your 360˚ payroll provider with Guideline, we will receive your employees’ information automatically, so we can manage the day-to-day administration of your plan.
When your payroll account is integrated, information updated in our platform or in your payroll provider’s portal will automatically be sent on a nightly basis.
Here are several features of having a 360˚ payroll integration:
Employee deferral elections made in Guideline will automatically sync to your payroll system.
Your plan’s roster for new or dismissed employees will automatically update in Guideline based on employee census records found in your payroll provider’s portal.
Payroll reports will automatically be sent to Guideline without any additional work on your part.
Off-cycle payrolls outside your normal payroll schedule are captured and processed in Guideline without the need to notify us.
180˚ sync payroll connections
Our 180˚ payroll providers sync your transaction and employee details with payroll. While we can perform the same functions as with our 360˚ payroll sync integrations, we require third-party administrator access to your payroll account to do so.
Please note that unlike 360˚ payroll syncs, information will not be transferred through a nightly sync. Instead, you can expect the following:
Employee contribution rate changes will occur about 1-2 business days after the employee makes an election in their dashboards.
Roster changes for new or dismissed employees will occur every 2 weeks. If employees’ details update in between this cycle, you can manually manage your Guideline roster by accessing the Roster tab in your administrator dashboard.
Information shared through payroll connections
Because we rely on information you provide to your payroll provider, please confirm the information entered is complete and accurate.
The information we receive from your payroll provider includes, but is not limited, to the following employee details:
Full name
Email address
Date of hire
Salary
Employment status
With this information, we will:
Send enrollment materials to eligible employees
Onboard employees
Communicate important plan information
Conduct annual compliance testing
Once an employee claims their Guideline account, updates made to their contact details in your payroll provider may not connect to Guideline. Instead, employees should update their contact information in their participant dashboards under Account Settings.
What happens if you change payroll providers
Guideline must have up-to-date payroll information to ensure smooth administration of your plan. If your company intends to switch its payroll software, it’s important to let us know as soon as possible to avoid administrative disruptions to your 401(k) plan.
We request that you submit a payroll change request at least 4-6 weeks before making the transition to your new payroll system.