Ever Gauzy
Ever Gauzy adds full payroll and leave management modules, integrates Ever Async workspaces — expanding from project tool to HR suite
Comparison · HR
Deputy vs PeopleForce
A side-by-side editorial comparison of Deputy and PeopleForce — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Deputy vs PeopleForce: at a glance
What is Deputy?
Deputy is hardening pay-data permissions while Australian super rules claim release slots.
Deputy's recent work splits between access control and Australian payroll compliance. A rebuilt access-level system in late April introduced custom roles with finer-grained control over what people can see and do, followed in June by permissions that restrict visibility of pay rates and labour costs. July's release adapted Deputy Payroll to PayDay Super, the Australian employer reporting requirement. Scheduling picked up one visible change: the open/empty shift row can be pinned while managers scroll.
What is PeopleForce?
PeopleForce expands to frontline workers with a mobile app that skips the corporate mailbox.
PeopleForce is an HR platform for SMEs and mid-market companies shipping steadily across leave management, payroll integrations, performance reviews, electronic signatures, and compliance tooling. The product covers the core HR lifecycle — nothing is conspicuously missing — and recent releases have been incremental expansions rather than architectural changes. EU compliance features suggest a focused effort on European enterprise buyers.
Deputy vs PeopleForce: editorial side-by-side
Deputy
0.0HR
Deputy is hardening pay-data permissions while Australian super rules claim release slots.
◆ Current state
Deputy's recent work splits between access control and Australian payroll compliance. A rebuilt access-level system in late April introduced custom roles with finer-grained control over what people can see and do, followed in June by permissions that restrict visibility of pay rates and labour costs. July's release adapted Deputy Payroll to PayDay Super, the Australian employer reporting requirement. Scheduling picked up one visible change: the open/empty shift row can be pinned while managers scroll.
◆ Where it's heading
Permissions are the throughline — custom roles first, then sensitive pay data placed behind them — which is the shape of a product answering harder questions from larger, multi-site customers. Compliance work anchors Deputy to the Australian market its payroll product serves, and that regulatory calendar will keep taking release capacity. Scheduling itself, the core surface, is getting refinement rather than rethinking. The feed also carries the same release twice under slightly different titles, so apparent cadence runs ahead of actual shipping.
◆ Prediction
Expect further permission scoping across cost and pay surfaces, and follow-up work as PayDay Super reporting beds in. The entries show nothing about roadmap outside Australia and scheduling.
PeopleForce expands to frontline workers with a mobile app that skips the corporate mailbox.
◆ Current state
PeopleForce is an HR platform for SMEs and mid-market companies shipping steadily across leave management, payroll integrations, performance reviews, electronic signatures, and compliance tooling. The product covers the core HR lifecycle — nothing is conspicuously missing — and recent releases have been incremental expansions rather than architectural changes. EU compliance features suggest a focused effort on European enterprise buyers.
◆ Where it's heading
The redesigned mobile app targeting frontline employees — phone-number sign-in, no corporate email required — is the clearest directional signal: PeopleForce is moving beyond desk-based HR workflows toward the broader distributed workforce. Combined with payroll system integrations (Optima, enova365) and EU Pay Transparency support, the product is building a compliance-plus-coverage argument for buyers with mixed workforces.
◆ Prediction
Shift scheduling and on-site time tracking are the logical next extensions of the frontline mobile push. EU compliance tooling will likely deepen as the Pay Transparency Directive reporting deadlines tighten through 2026 and 2027.
Alternatives to Deputy and PeopleForce
Other HR products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Deputy or PeopleForce.
Employment Hero
Employment Hero is flooding the AI-in-HR content channel while its AI Recruitment Agent quietly goes live.
HavaHR
HavaHR ships a one-step MCP install, putting Malaysia payroll data inside any AI agent.
TriNet
TriNet is automating HR data flows with steady integration additions — Salesforce, Voya, and Slack — reducing manual updates for SMB customers.
Ashby
Ashby adds native WhatsApp messaging as its recruiting communication stack goes omnichannel.
Tanda
Tanda ships a dense cluster of payroll accuracy and reporting improvements aimed at Australian compliance depth.
See all Deputy alternatives → · See all PeopleForce alternatives →
Recent activity from Deputy and PeopleForce
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 8d agoPeopleForceHR for every employee: meet the redesigned PeopleForce mobile app ⚡
- 22d agoPeopleForceHow to calculate overtime automatically: night, weekend and holiday rates in one system
- 2mo agoDeputyPayDay Super for Deputy Payroll
- 3mo agoDeputySensitive Data Permissions for Pay Rates
- 4mo agoDeputyCustom Access Levels
- 4mo agoDeputyCustom access levels
- 5mo agoDeputyFreeze Empty/Open Shift Row in Schedule Employee Views
- 5mo agoDeputyOpen/empty shift row can be pinned in schedule views
- 8mo agoPeopleForceA fresh feel for PeopleForce: UX updates you’ll notice
- 9mo agoPeopleForceGet ready for the EU Pay Transparency Directive with PeopleForce
- 11mo agoPeopleForcePerformance review and goal-setting improvements for year-end
- 1y agoPeopleForceTurn daily HR requests into a smart process with our Request Forms
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Deputy and PeopleForce?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. PeopleForce is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is Deputy better than PeopleForce?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. PeopleForce is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other HR products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to Deputy?
Top Deputy alternatives in HR are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Deputy alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/deputy for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to PeopleForce?
Top PeopleForce alternatives in HR are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "PeopleForce alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/peopleforce for the full list with editorial commentary on each.