Q&A with David Spark, Content Marketer and Producer, Managing Editor at Spark Media Solutions

Media 7 | May 12, 2023

Marthin De Beer, who has worked in a vast array of industries and enterprises, strongly believes in value-based leadership and finds his greatest satisfaction in guiding teams to solve difficult problems. Keep reading to learn more about his thoughts on personal financial management and the innovative fiduciary solutions offered by his organization BrightPlan.

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Media 7 | August 29, 2023

Stella H Kim holds the position of a recognized member on the Forbes HR Council, and she also serves as the Chief Marketing Officer (Global VP) at HRCap, Inc., which is renowned as the largest Asian global executive search firm globally. Read on to know her thougts about the analysis on streamlining processes, and fostering employee engagement.

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Media7 | March 2, 2023

Jordan Rinaldo is a marketing executive and digital strategist, passionate about helping organizations grow through targeted and creative multi-channel marketing, content creation, storytelling, demand generation, and lead generation. He has an extensive background in eCommerce and technology, sales, account management, growth marketing, and leadership. Read further to discover his perspective on thought leadership within the HR sector.

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Payroll

Check | January 25, 2024

Novo, the powerfully simple® financial solutions platform for small businesses, announced Novo Payroll. Working with Check, the leading payroll infrastructure company that pioneered the ability for platforms to embed payroll into their products, Novo has launched a payroll solution that is fully integrated into Novo’s platform of small business banking, budgeting, and working capital solutions, enabling small businesses to manage their finances from a single platform. “Traditional small business payroll solutions consist of standalone applications characterized by high fees, burdensome cash-on-hand requirements, and either clunky or non-existent integrations between payroll and business bank accounts,” said Michael Rangel, founder and CEO of Novo. “In collaboration with Check, we built a payroll solution that simplifies and speeds up the process of paying small business employees." Novo leveraged Check’s embedded payroll API to build Novo Payroll. With coverage in all 50 states, Novo Payroll streamlines the entire payroll process, from calculating wages to facilitating direct deposits and managing tax withholdings. This provides businesses with a comprehensive payroll solution that not only reduces administrative burdens but also ensures accuracy and compliance with regulatory standards. Novo has conducted a beta of Novo Payroll, and will make the product available to Novo’s more than 200,000 small business customers in the coming weeks. Key features of Novo Payroll include Affordable, flat-rate pricing: Unlike other payroll platforms where individuals have to pay extra for a range of features, Novo offers all of its essential features — including state and tax filings, end of year reports, and more — at $35 per month plus a small fee per worker. Working capital for payroll: Small businesses who may need additional funds for a payroll cycle can apply for Novo Funding, a fast and flexible way to access working capital that’s available exclusively to Novo customers. Once approved for Novo Funding, customers can use the capital in minutes. Next day payments: With Novo Payroll, recipients can opt in to receive their paychecks the day after payroll is processed at no additional charge. Instead of needing the necessary payroll funds days in advance, small business owners simply need to have funds available the day of payroll processing. Built-in accounting and budgeting tools: Since Novo Payroll is fully embedded into the Novo platform, customers can seamlessly set aside funds for payroll, taxes, savings, and more using Novo Reserves. Single- and multi-state payroll: Novo Payroll automates state tax filings for small businesses that have employees in a single state, as well as in multiple states. Human-powered customer service: Novo Payroll customers have access to a range of resources to assist with payroll questions, including the option to call a Novo Payroll expert. “We founded Check with the goal of making payroll easier for as many small businesses as possible. By partnering with Novo, we’re able to reach an even broader set of businesses, giving them the tools they need to save time and money on what is all-too-often a cumbersome task,” said Andrew Brown, co-founder and CEO of Check. “Novo has already burnished its credentials as a leading provider of financial services for small businesses. By embedding Check’s payroll, Novo is able to provide a one-stop-shop for small business financial needs.” Novo Payroll is the latest in a series of products Novo has built for its small business financial solutions platform. Recently, Novo announced a range of updates to Novo Invoices, the company’s free invoicing application that small businesses have used to receive more than $500 million in payments. Novo also announced Novo Funding, offering small businesses a fast and flexible way to access working capital. About Novo Novo Platform, Inc. (“Novo”) is the powerfully simple financial platform for small businesses. About Check Check is the leading payroll platform that pioneered the ability for companies to differentiate and open up new revenue streams by embedding payroll into their platforms. Historically, complex regulatory structures stagnated payroll innovation, making it harder for businesses to create their own payroll offerings. By building on Check’s best in class infrastructure, flexible API, and deep expertise, platforms can launch profitable payroll businesses much faster, and with little overhead or administrative burden. Since Check’s public launch in January 2021, leading vertical SaaS companies and large scale workforce management horizontal platforms have built successful payroll businesses on its infrastructure. Check’s partners collectively serve more than 250,000 businesses and over 4 million employees. Check is backed by Stripe, Thrive Capital, Index Ventures, and Bedrock.

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HR Practice

Pipefy | January 15, 2024

Pipefy, the global industry leader in AI-driven process automation, announced the launch of Pipefy AI for HR, with customizable chatbots that are available to help employees, 24/7. Pipefy AI for HR delivers instant and centralized access to policies, forms, data, and other information frequently requested from HR teams. Pipefy AI for HR gives employees a single portal in which they can not only find the information and documents they need, but also submit requests, such as for vacation time or reimbursements. Employees can use the chatbot to ask questions about PTO, research open roles within the company, or reference company policies. The chatbot is available in any language and accessible on any device. For HR teams, Pipefy for AI means more face time with employees, better SLA attainment, and more time to focus on HR strategy. Pipefy AI helps HR teams make data-driven decisions by providing fast access to data, process insights, and crucial metrics such as attrition and employee satisfaction. For example, HR professionals can ask Pipefy AI questions such as “What are the top factors contributing to turnover in the sales department?” “Pipefy AI for HR is all about helping HR teams deliver exceptional employee experiences,” said Alessio Alionco, CEO of Pipefy. “It does this by improving response times and giving employees more autonomy. Beyond this, Pipefy AI gives HR professionals more time for the 1:1 contact and strategic planning that truly make a difference for employees and the company as a whole. From a process automation perspective, this AI tool works like a virtual assistant, automating workflows, handling routine tasks, answering common questions, and routing incoming requests.” Alionco added, “Generative AI solutions such as ours are ideal to help HR professionals streamline their workload and improve employee experiences – and their adoption is accelerating. In fact, according to Gartner, 81% of HR leaders have explored or implemented artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to improve process efficiency within their organizations.” In a recent Pipefy survey, 79% of business and IT leaders said that they expect the combination of artificial intelligence and process automation – such as Pipefy AI – to increase efficiency by at least 25%. Importantly, Pipefy AI for HR delivers industry-leading security features and certifications, to help make sure that teams are safe, secure and in compliance. About Pipefy Pipefy delivers a leading business process automation platform that increases team productivity and efficiency, centralizes data, and standardizes processes for teams in IT, Finance, HR, Customer Operations and more. Through its no-code process automation and AI framework, Pipefy helps businesses achieve operational efficiency and optimal productivity for every team in every department. Among its many recognitions, Pipefy was named to the Deloitte Technology Fast 500™, a ranking of the 500 fastest-growing companies in North America in November, 2022.

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Employee Benefits

Employee Navigator | January 10, 2024

Employee Navigator, one of the nation's leading benefits and HR solutions for brokers, and MGIS, a national insurance manager offering specialized insurance programs for doctors, have announced a new partnership to bring leading-edge HR and benefits technology integrations to doctor group practices. The new partnership builds on MGIS's relationship with Reliance Matrix, a leading benefits and absence provider, and its unique Employee Navigator integration. "We believe the partnership with Employee Navigator will transform the employer and employee benefits experience," said Jeff Brunken, President of MGIS. "Through our relationship with Employee Navigator, our mutual clients will benefit from the technology-enabled efficiencies and ease of business that are so important in today's insurance marketplace. These integrations will help to drive participant engagement and client retention for our benefit brokers." Through the Employee Navigator relationship, MGIS clients will benefit from a dedicated support team that will help brokers build out a full-service enrollment experience and provide additional case management support, at no additional cost. As always, MGIS account managers also provide white-glove, specialized account management and billing support, all critical features for brokers and administrators. "MGIS has a long history of offering the highest quality insurance program for doctors. We're confident that our customers will receive an enhanced benefits experience through MGIS and Employee Navigator," said George Reese, CEO of Employee Navigator. "This partnership provides seamless, integrated benefits administration and will lead to a positive enrollment experience for brokers, employers and participants." In 2023 MGIS announced its exclusive partnership with Reliance Matrix, a national leader in benefits solutions and absence management. Together, MGIS and Reliance Matrix serve doctors in all practice settings and medical specialties. An Employee Navigator carrier partner since 2022, Reliance Matrix more than doubled the number of benefit plans and employer clients enrolled and managed on the Employee Navigator platform in 2023, through more than 150 unique broker partners. "Employee Navigator has played a big part in our overall success in the small and midsize employer market, thanks in part to our unique streamlined billing solution available on the platform," said Paula Hanson, AVP Benefit Technology Solutions for Reliance Matrix. "Our proprietary process raised the bar on service and convenience and continues to win fans among brokers and clients." Marketed through independent brokers and agents, benefit solutions include Disability Guard for Doctors™, a unique long-term disability product blending the highly valued policy provisions of an individual product with the guaranteed issue and simplified administration of a group long-term disability plan, as well as short-term disability, group life and Accidental Death & Dismemberment plans. MGIS also supports a High Limits Disability Insurance program, offering an increased level of protection for high earners, providing more robust and holistic protection for doctors above and beyond any group long-term disability and individual disability coverage. For those groups offering the high limits program, this specialized product will also be available on Employee Navigator as part of an integrated, holistic enrollment experience. About MGIS MGIS is a leading national insurance program manager experienced in building and managing specialized insurance programs for doctors. MGIS partners with highly rated insurers and focuses on disability and life insurance for practices of all sizes, types, and medical specialties. Insurance policies managed by MGIS are backed by the underwriting companies of Reliance Matrix and Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's, and are marketed exclusively through select brokers and insurance advisers. MGIS services are provided by MGIS affiliated companies: The MGIS Companies, Inc., Medical Group Insurance Services, Inc., and MGIS Underwriting Managers, Inc. About Employee Navigator Employee Navigator is a rapidly growing benefits and HR software company integrated with over 400+ of the nation's leading insurance carriers, payroll companies, and TPA's. Its platform delivers brokers and employers a truly connected digital experience, streamlining the management of everything from online enrollment and onboarding to ACA reporting, time off tracking, and more. The company currently works with more than 5,000 brokers, providing benefits administration and HR products to over 175,000 companies and 14+ million employees and dependents.

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