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Comparison · HR

Deputy vs Workyard

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Deputy and Workyard — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Deputy vs Workyard: at a glance

FeatureDeputyWorkyard
SectorHRHR
Velocity score0.06.3
Sparks · 30d01
Top themespermissions, payroll-compliance, workforce-scheduling, access-controlconstruction-tech, workforce-management, ai-time-tracking, field-operations
Last editorial update1mo ago5d ago
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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.

Read the full Deputy trajectory →

What is Workyard?

Workyard builds an AI-powered operations layer for construction crews: Time Assistant, geofence-triggered forms, and Shortcuts

Workyard is a construction workforce management platform that has deployed an AI Time Assistant for correcting timecards via natural language — now available to both admins and managers — and expanded integrations to Acumatica, Sage 100 Contractor, and QuickBooks Online (including time off). Smart Forms gained geofence and task triggers that fire automatically as crew members arrive on site. The Shortcuts feature lets foremen clock entire crews with one tap.

Read the full Workyard trajectory →

Deputy vs Workyard: editorial side-by-side

Deputy logo0.0

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.

W6.3

Workyard builds an AI-powered operations layer for construction crews: Time Assistant, geofence-triggered forms, and Shortcuts

◆ Current state

Workyard is a construction workforce management platform that has deployed an AI Time Assistant for correcting timecards via natural language — now available to both admins and managers — and expanded integrations to Acumatica, Sage 100 Contractor, and QuickBooks Online (including time off). Smart Forms gained geofence and task triggers that fire automatically as crew members arrive on site. The Shortcuts feature lets foremen clock entire crews with one tap.

◆ Where it's heading

The platform is converging on eliminating manual data entry for field operations: the AI Time Assistant handles timecard cleanup, geofence-triggered forms handle compliance, Shortcuts handles crew clock-in, and integration exports handle payroll data transfer. Each new integration (Acumatica, Sage 100, QuickBooks) adds a payroll system that field hours can flow into without re-keying.

◆ Prediction

The Time Assistant will likely gain predictive capabilities — flagging anomalous time entries before payroll runs, not just correcting them after the fact. Expect more ERP integrations targeting mid-market construction companies.

Alternatives to Deputy and Workyard

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 Workyard.

See all Deputy alternatives → · See all Workyard alternatives →

Recent activity from Deputy and Workyard

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 6d agoWorkyardExport Expense Transactions to Sage 100 Contractor for Seamless Accounting
  2. 18d agoWorkyardExport time cards by team
  3. 27d agoWorkyardTime Assistant: Expanded Access & Chat Archiving
  4. 28d agoWorkyardSmart Forms now fire when your crew reaches a geofence or get a task
  5. 1mo agoWorkyardTime Assistant now available for managers
  6. 1mo agoWorkyardClock your whole crew in one tap — Shortcuts is here
  7. 2mo agoDeputyPayDay Super for Deputy Payroll
  8. 3mo agoDeputySensitive Data Permissions for Pay Rates
  9. 4mo agoDeputyCustom Access Levels
  10. 4mo agoDeputyCustom access levels
  11. 5mo agoDeputyFreeze Empty/Open Shift Row in Schedule Employee Views
  12. 5mo agoDeputyOpen/empty shift row can be pinned in schedule views

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Deputy and Workyard?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Workyard 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 Workyard?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Workyard 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 Workyard?

Top Workyard alternatives in HR are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Workyard alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/workyard for the full list with editorial commentary on each.