In 2018, 401GO set out to build a platform that would make 401(k) plans accessible to all businesses. Their proprietary system lets employers set up a plan in as little as 15 minutes and outsource all of the administrative work, from enrollment to end-of-year reporting.

From the beginning, the 401GO team knew payroll integrations would be pivotal to their success. And while the company has an impressive engineering team, leadership wanted to ensure they were pursuing every avenue of expanding their integration network. So they turned to Finch.

Today, 401GO uses a combination of internal development resources and Finch-powered 401(k) payroll integrations to pull sponsor data and automate payroll processing to provide the ultimate employer experience. 

Empowering 401(k) sponsors through data

Without HR professionals dedicated to the complexities of plan administration, retirement plans have long been out of reach for many small businesses. 401GO launched in 2019 with a mission to change that narrative by taking on all of the administrative burden for their customers. 

“The idea that you can automate a process for a business owner is amazing,” said Jared Porter, co-founder and COO. “Our platform allows them to do all the things that you’d normally have an HR professional do. They’re meeting all the criteria for a 401(k) plan, but they’re not having to hire another employee to do it.”

That automation is why Jared and the rest of the team at 401GO knew they’d need payroll integrations. To take the administrative responsibility off their customers’ plates, they’d need reliable, automatic access to employment data. 

“The data that we're getting is so important to 401(k) administration,” Jared said. “It’s what allows us to send out notifications, enroll employees as they become eligible, and complete end-of-year reporting so the company, without even realizing it, is the best fiduciary. We’re leveraging payroll integrations to do that.”

Custom API payroll integrations > SFTP

From the beginning, API-powered payroll integrations were at the forefront of 401GO’s strategy. The team views other integration methods like SFTP as functional but far from ideal.

“The problem with SFTP is that it’s like you’re using half a car,” Jared explained. “Business owners don't understand that we’re going to have to accommodate for the other side of the car that’s missing.

“But with an API, you’re removing so much of the overhead and complexity, and it’s consistent. The updates are immediate. Everything is happening in a way that no human could do. And SFTP, as a file exchange of data, is really hard to scale.”

"With an API, you’re removing so much of the overhead and complexity, and it’s consistent. The updates are immediate. ... And SFTP, as a file exchange of data, is really hard to scale.”

In some cases, 401GO’s operations team performs the work on the employer’s behalf as part of their True360™ service; but API integrations can automate much of that process, freeing up internal resources to focus on supporting customers and taking on new accounts.

“The most straightforward thing is the data transfer, the idea that what's in the payroll system is now reflected in the 401(k) system. It’s not mind blowing, but the fact that data from payroll is being moved in real time into our platform so the plan is in compliance — that’s really valuable,” Jared said. 

Leveraging Finch to expand 401GO’s provider network

401GO has already built plenty of integrations in-house through its talented development team. But the payroll market is infamous for being fragmented, with nearly 6,000 systems in the US alone — and not all of them will allow retirement providers like 401GO to access their APIs. 

Gusto proved to be one such provider. With such a large volume of integration requests, Gusto couldn’t accommodate a direct partnership with 401GO, but they suggested an alternative: Finch. 

Related: Finch partners with Gusto to unlock the next wave of innovation in HR Tech

Once 401GO built to the Finch API, the company was able to access a pre-built integration with Gusto that allows its customers to authorize access to their payroll data in as little as 30 seconds. And since the Finch integration only needs to be configured once, 401GO can now expand their access to any of Finch’s 200+ supported HRIS and payroll providers without negotiating individual partnerships or building new integrations from scratch.

“A lot of our integrations with payroll companies are customized, so there's not one thing on our side that can connect them all. But having an aggregator like Finch is amazing, because we can connect into any one system that Finch is connected to. Then as Finch expands those relationships and its network of providers, that makes it a lot easier for us and a little more affordable to connect with more payroll providers,” Jared said. 

"Having an aggregator like Finch is amazing, because we can connect into any one system that Finch is connected to. Then as Finch expands those relationships and its network of providers, that makes it a lot easier for us and a little more affordable to connect with more payroll providers.”

Finch integrations can also be launched faster. The 401GO development team can build an integration in about 3 months, but that’s followed by a year-long monitoring and testing period. Finch allows the team to skip this step because their connection to the Finch API has already been proven, and because there’s a support team available to resolve issues that may arise on the payroll provider’s end. 

Since launching its Gusto integration, 401GO has also used Finch to integrate with Intuit Quickbooks — empowering automatic data collection and processing for 3x more customers. 

401GO still builds its own 1:1 integrations with payroll providers, but views Finch as a powerful tool in its arsenal as the company continues to grow and bring on customers with other payroll platforms. 

“It’s like retirement — you don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” Jared said. “Finch gives you options, and it allows you to go in different directions as needed.”

Addition Wealth is a financial wellness company that makes personalized financial expertise more inclusive and accessible. To do this, Addition partners with forward-thinking companies to support employees and individuals to work through personal finance decisions. 

As part of the offering, individuals get access to a digital platform that brings together information from their employer, including benefits information, alongside an individual’s own personal finance accounts to give a holistic overview of what is offered by their company and what an individual already has. In the platform, Addition Wealth also offers individuals a recommended set of actions, including courses on personal finance topics, digital tools, content, checklists, and webinars. Individuals also have the option to speak with fully vetted financial advisors by booking an online virtual meeting.

Because Addition Wealth tailors its offering based on the employer or client they are working with, they needed a way to efficiently manage select employee data—so they turned to Finch. Today, the company leverages Finch to integrate with several HRIS and payroll providers to enhance their customers’ experience by seamlessly bringing in relevant data into the platform.

Democratizing access to quality financial advice

Addition Wealth works with employers by delivering tailored programs that help decrease employee stress, drive higher candidate acceptance rates, and increase overall employee retention. With its personalized approach, Addition can help any employee understand their unique financial situations and navigate through tough decisions, whether they are buying their first home, paying down debt, or planning for retirement.

“Our mission is to enable people to make the most of their money and bring personalized financial expertise to the masses,” said Amy Chou, Chief Product Officer. “It's extremely hard, unless you're already wealthy, to get access to high-quality financial advice. We help the average person get high-quality answers to their financial questions so they can live a healthier financial life.”

As an employer-sponsored benefit, Addition Wealth’s financial wellness platform provides individuals with the tools, resources, and insights they need to be financially healthy based on their own personal circumstances. Each digital platform experience is tailored to the company and the benefits they offer, from equity to student loan assistance. 

“A lot of employees aren’t taking full advantage of their benefits. Employers want their employees to use the benefits they’re given, and to value them,” Amy explained. “When employees understand the true value of their benefits, they’re more likely to stay with the company and be happy in their role.”

Reliable, consistent, comprehensive data delivery

Addition Wealth needs access to specific data to provide tailored insights to employees receiving access to their platform– for example, employee directories and salary information. Traditional methods of accessing that data like manually sending files or leveraging SFTP connections work, but it means that Addition Wealth may not have access to the most up to date information.

Finch’s API integrations, on the other hand, provide daily or on-demand data syncs. That means that if an employee’s data changes—say, for example, they get a raise or change their retirement plan contribution—Addition Wealth is able to immediately reflect the updates on their dashboard.

“We love the idea of being able to get real-time feedback on these very important pieces of information, versus having to wait for the monthly update. That’s what motivated us to work with Finch,” Amy said. 

“We love the idea of being able to get real-time feedback on these very important pieces of information, versus having to wait for the monthly update. That’s what motivated us to work with Finch."

Saying goodbye to SFTP headaches and manual intervention

Addition Wealth works with companies of all sizes—from early-stage startups to enterprise businesses. Managing small file transfers is one thing, but sending enormous data sets typically requires an SFTP integration, which can be a cumbersome, complicated process that involves a lot of back-and-forth. 

“For some of our customers due to their size, it can be difficult to batch files. It may take a long time, so it’s just easier to plug into something that already exists,” Amy said. 

Even the smoothest SFTP integration process can present a big hurdle for large employers; but there’s also a lot that can go wrong along the way: failed sends, NIGO errors, and corrupted files, to name a few. 

Customers that onboard using a Finch integration can authorize Addition Wealth to access the data in their HRIS and payroll system through Finch Connect, which takes only a few minutes to complete. The connection is continuous, meaning Addition Wealth can simply pull the data they need, when they need it.

Simplified data mapping saves hours of manual work

To take things a step further, Finch saves Addition Wealth time by standardizing all of the data through a unified API. 

Regardless of the HRIS or payroll provider that the employer uses, data pulled through Finch is always in the same format. In other words, data is mapped across different providers’ various field names to a single, consistent field name.

“Because Finch’s API standardizes the data, it’s a pretty easy 1:1 mapping versus needing to figure out what each client calls the same field, where some may call it ‘Salary’ and another ‘Salary Field 1,’” Amy explained. “That’s something we’d otherwise need to write into the code for each client, but we don’t have those issues with Finch because it’s all the same field—it’s just called ‘Salary.’”

Finch and Addition Wealth: Growing together

Amy noted that HRIS and payroll integrations provide value before a customer has even signed on with Addition Wealth. 

“Finch is a benefit in the sales process,” she said. “When prospective customers ask if we can integrate with their HRIS, Finch enables us to very easily say yes. People like having that option.”

“Finch is a benefit in the sales process. When prospective customers ask if we can integrate with their HRIS, Finch enables us to very easily say yes."

As both Addition Wealth and Finch continue to grow and expand their product offerings, Amy said she looks forward to leveraging even deeper real-time insights for employees.

“We’re pretty excited, as Finch continues to expand its capabilities, to bring in more nuanced information about employee benefits and estimate their collective value for the individual employee,” she said. “Integrations make things easier for end users—the more integrations, the better. It's just about finding the integrations that work best for the use case.”

Exhale is a financial wellness platform that delivers a comprehensive suite of employer-sponsored benefits ranging from earned wage access to interest-free advances and smart savings tools with rewards.

With a focus on hourly workers in industries like services, transportation, and retail, Exhale needed a way to pull current and historical pay statements to get a holistic view of each employee and their variable earnings. Before launching the product, they sought out a unified API provider that could give them direct integrations to multiple payroll systems.

Today, Finch’s payroll integrations save the Exhale team 40 hours per week and allow employees to access their benefits two weeks faster.

Financial wellness benefits for every employee

Exhale was created to help employers who were struggling to navigate the administrative and regulatory complexities of giving their employees cash advances. A well-intentioned advance to help an employee pay for a flat tire or medical bill can put undue risk on the employer if not administered appropriately. At the same time, many financially stressed employees are hesitant to ask for help directly, which can make them more likely to turn to payday lenders or rack up credit card debt. 

The platform makes it easier for employers to support their workforce with financial wellness benefits that keep employees financially healthy while helping them build a safety net. 

“We found that people need different things at different times. The goal of the product is to help alleviate cash flow problems for people,” said Giaco Corsiglia, Exhale’s Lead Engineer. 

Exhale’s “Perks” include Earned Wage Access (EWA), interest-free cash advances that can be paid back from an employee’s paycheck, and saving tools that reward employees for contributing  for a certain period of time or hitting designated benchmarks.

On the employer side, Exhale helps reduce turnover, fosters employee loyalty, and boosts productivity by mitigating financial stress among employees. 

“It's a super cost-effective way to drive retention and employee loyalty in a way that is actually doing right by your employees,” Corsiglia said. 

Getting established with time-saving automation

To deliver on their product vision, the Exhale team knew they’d need visibility into each employee’s expected take-home pay and the ability to route funds from payroll—whether that be to the employee’s bank account, an Exhale Save account, or back to themselves in the form of repayment for cash advances. All this would require integrations to potentially hundreds of different payroll systems—or significant manual work from employers.

Exhale chose to work with Finch for its industry-leading coverage of payroll systems and data granularity. As Corsiglia put it, the team was confident that their product roadmap wouldn’t be hindered by limitations of Finch’s API. 

“Payroll is just so fragmented, and we didn’t want to limit our client pool by picking one payroll software to integrate with,” Corsiglia explained. “Without Finch, we would have had to build API integrations with 100 different payroll systems in-house or we would have had to say no to a bunch of our early clients.”

"Without Finch, we would have had to build API integrations with 100 different payroll systems in-house or we would have had to say no to a bunch of our early clients."

Exhale still supports manual operations for some employers, but the resource-intensive process takes an hour each week per each employer. By leveraging automation through their payroll integrations, Exhale estimates they’ve saved about 40 hours per week for their Operations team.

“Our manual version works, and we make it as painless for our customers as possible, but it's always preferable to just say, ‘Oh, you sign in to payroll, and then you just never worry about it again.’”

‘Set it and forget it’

Employers, especially those in fast-paced service industries, have enough on their plate; so it’s important to Exhale that their product is as easy to use as possible. 

With integrations to each employer’s payroll system, Exhale is able to  pull organization and payroll data automatically to enroll employees as they’re hired, unenroll employees after a termination, and receive new and historical pay data without manual file uploads. Once the initial connection is made, employers don’t have to think about administering the benefits; an automatic invitation system allows employees to sign up for Exhale’s Perks whenever they want.

“With our integrations, we can offer these benefits automatically, and setting up Exhale is sort of set-it-and-forget-it,” Corsiglia said. “If employers had to be duplicating records manually between payroll and Exhale, not only would it be error-prone, it would just be time consuming. Our goal is to give employers less to worry about, not more.”

Plus, with access to historical pay data through Finch, Exhale can offer all of their Perks to employees on the same day the payroll connection is verified—up to 2 weeks faster than if Exhale had to wait for data from the next pay cycle. 

Unlocking new value and insights with payroll data

Because most people using Exhale are hourly employees, take-home pay can fluctuate significantly with each pay period. To get a holistic view of each employee’s financial situation and determine what they can safely afford to borrow, Exhale needs access to historical data. 

Rather than relying on the employer to send pay data dating back months or delaying employees’ access to their financial benefits, Exhale is able to pull that information directly from the payroll system at any time. 

“Take Earned Wage Access for example. We have to know how much you've earned to give you a portion of your pay ahead of time. We also have to know what your earnings typically are, so we can give you an amount that you can safely pay back,” Corsiglia said. “By pulling that data out of payroll via Finch, we can get tons of historical pay data for our users. They sign up for Exhale, and it's like, ‘Oh, here you go. You can have $100 today because we know what your paycheck is going to be.’”

Nikki Collister, Product Content Lead at Exhale, added that historical payroll data allows the product to surface insights for employers that they might not be able to glean from their payroll system alone, like average income levels across different business locations or average tenure. 

“The payroll integrations we have through Finch have helped us to understand our impact on each of these clients and show how Exhale has delivered value over time,” she said. “It not only helps us provide better benefits, but it helps the employers better understand their business and their employees.”

“[Finch] not only helps us provide better benefits, but it helps the employers better understand their business and their employees.”

Unlocking innovation with payroll integrations

In the coming months and years, Exhale plans to expand their suite of financial wellness solutions with Finch’s payroll integrations. The latest product the company is working on addresses one of the biggest reasons employees request advances from Exhale today: rent payment. This solution—which will allow Exhale to facilitate on-time rent payments that employees then pay back in smaller increments from their paycheck—is another way of providing extra breathing room for those living paycheck-to-paycheck or looking to better manage their budget.  

“We’ll continue to grow our suite, and some of that growth will require deeper integrations with payroll,” Corsiglia said. “Our goal is to become the home for all of the financial benefits you might offer your employees.”