Integrations - How to Set Up an Altera Payroll Integration

Steps to enable Altera 

In this article, we’ll run through how you can seamlessly integrate your Altera Payroll system to provision and de-provision users on Reward Gateway.

How to enable the Altera Payroll integration

To enable the Altera Payroll integration, log into the Reward Manager portal, go to the Integration tab on the left and search for “Altera Payroll” under the “Explore Integrations” tab. 

Click on the integration icon which will lead you straight to the Initial Setup.

Setting up Altera Payroll for Reward Gateway

Step 1: Initial Setup

Select the import frequency, date format and whether you wish to send Welcome communication to newly added members. We recommend ticking the Welcome e-mail option, as this provides easy first-time access to the platform to new users and allows them to set up a password. 

Step 2: Authorize the Altera Payroll Account

Before Reward Gateway can access your Altera Payroll data, you must authorize Reward Gateway to access your Altera Payroll account. To do this, click the "Authorize" button. 

This will open a modal window where you will need to enter your Altera Payroll Company ID that you use when you log in.

In the next step, you would need to add your User ID and Password that will be used to sync your data.

After you authorize your account see the confirmation message, click ‘Finish Setup’ and then ‘Save’.

You can revoke the access at any given time.

Step 3: Mapping

Before Reward Gateway can sync your Altera Payroll directory, you need to map the fields which are going to be synced. To do this, use the mapping stage of the setup and use the fields displayed. Once ready, click ‘Save’.

By default, Reward Gateway maps the Employee ID to uniquely identify a member. Any other additional mapping fields can be mapped during this stage, however, the Email Address field must be mapped as it is a mandatory field to create an account with Reward Gateway.

Once you are happy with the mapping, you can proceed to the next step.

How to prevent some members e.g. contractors creating accounts

By default, Reward Gateway fetches all active users and we use the employment status to determine if the employee is eligible. If you’d like to segment your imports and send only a specific group of employees, you can choose a field from the dropdown and set a list of allowed values and we will only create accounts for employees having these values present. You can add multiple values by separating them with commas.

Please note that if there are already existing accounts on our side, they will be revoked via the integration if you enable the segmented imports and the employees don’t have the needed values. For example, if you wish to exclude contractors, there should be a specific value by which they are grouped, and that value should not be included in the field above.

How to import custom fields to provide additional user data

We support up to 10 custom fields in addition to the standard ones in the Mapping step. They can be used so the integration fetches different information that is already included in the Altera Payroll accounts.

It is important to emphasize that if the integration is already published and you want to make amendments to the custom fields, you will have to go to the Authorize step, revoke the access, and go through the Authorize step again, then map those fields and publish the integration.

Step 4: Review and Publish

At this stage, you can review the details and if you’re happy, publish the connection. This will make the integration live on the platform and Reward Gateway will start syncing the data based on the frequency selected at the Initial step.

How will you monitor when your Altera Payroll data syncs?

Every time your Altera Payroll data is synced, Reward Gateway sends an email to the user who set up the integration with details on how many accounts it has impacted.

You also have the option of going to the integration Dashboard and selecting the "Import History" option to see a log of all data syncs that have been performed on your platform.

If there were any issues with your data sync, you’ll be able to download a file containing all of the errors.

How will your employees get onboarded once your Altera Payroll data has been synced?

If it's a new employee record that is synced from Altera Payroll, Reward Gateway will create a new account for this employee based on the information mapped and will send them an invitation to join the program. 

If it's an existing employee whose data has already been synced, Reward Gateway will not issue any communication and will update their information to match their Altera Payroll information.

How will the employee data be removed once an employee is removed from your Altera Payroll directory?

Reward Gateway uses the employment status to determine whether a user needs to have their account created, or be marked as a leaver in our system. This means that we will mark everyone whose employment status is inactive as a leaver.

The employee's account will then follow Reward Gateway's standard account close-down procedures.

How can you trigger your membership provisioning imports on demand?

You have the option to trigger the import on-demand from 'Import data now' link in the tools dropdown. This will redirect you to the import page where you can start the process. Once started, a progress bar will be presented and when the upload is completed, you will be able to download any warnings and see the impact on your programme.