HR Settings: PTO, Payroll Periods, Reviews & Credentials
Configure how reviews are run, how time off accrues, when people are paid, how overtime and commission work, and which credentials employees must keep. Everything that drives the Employee Portal lives in Settings.
- leave categories: PTO, Sick Leave, Unpaid Leave, FMLA
- 4
- pay-period options, from weekly to monthly
- 4
- rating for every review competency
- 1 to 5
- products and commissions per office, at most
- 200
Set the HR rules once and the Employee Portal follows them.
App Settings is where an administrator configures everything that drives the Employee Portal, from Admin › Configuration › Settings. Six tabs cover how reviews are run, how time off accrues, how pay periods and pay dates work, how overtime and commission are calculated, and which credentials employees must keep. Every office has its own settings, and employees see the effect the next time they open the matching portal tab. ATS Mako records approved hours and sales and exports them for payroll. It is not a payroll processor.
At a glance
- What it does
- Configures review cycles and competencies, PTO and sick leave accrual, pay periods and pay dates, payroll export, overtime and commissions, and credential types for your office.
- Where to find it
- Admin (wrench icon) › Configuration › Settings. The page has a row of tabs, and each tab has its own direct web address (for example ?tab=review-cycles).
- Who can use it
- Users with the Settings permission. Changes to these HR settings need an administrator role.
- What it needs
- A role list and termination reasons first, then the six HR tabs. Every office has its own settings, and employees see changes the next time they open the matching portal tab.
- Good to know
- ATS Mako records approved hours and sales and exports them as CSV or Excel for payroll. It is not a payroll processor.
Why HR cares
- Define PTO, Sick Leave, Unpaid Leave, and FMLA once, each with an on/off switch, and let balances follow tenure tiers.
- Preview before you commit. Live lists show the next pay periods and the next six pay dates.
- Choose the skills every reviewer rates from 1 to 5, then open a review cycle with a name and two dates.
- Track licenses and certifications by type, and see on one screen who holds what and what needs attention.
Why leaders and owners care
- Keep overtime and commission rules in one place: a weekly threshold, a multiplier, and up to 200 products with what is earned and what is paid per sale.
- Apply a policy the same way to everyone. Balances are recalculated from each employee's start date.
- Export approved hours and sales as an Excel workbook or CSV for any pay period or custom range, ready for your payroll process.
- Change a rule without rewriting history. New settings apply to weeks submitted from then on, and past weeks keep their numbers.
Set up in this order.
Each step builds on the one before it, and every setting is per office.
- 1
Roles and Termination Reasons
Make sure the role list and the termination reasons exist. You need them before onboarding employees and before the first termination.
- 2
Timesheets & Comp
Set the overtime rule and the hourly wage, and add your products and commissions.
- 3
PTO/Sick Leave
Switch on the leave types you offer and define how they accrue.
- 4
Payroll & Pay Periods
Choose how pay periods are cut and when people are paid.
- 5
Credentials
Define the licenses and certificates you track.
- 6
Review Competencies, then Review Cycles
Choose what people are rated on, then open a cycle when it is time for reviews.
Define leave once, and balances follow.
There are four categories: PTO, Sick Leave, Unpaid Leave, and FMLA, each with an on/off switch. Switched-off categories disappear from new requests. For categories that accrue, you choose an Accrual Method and define tenure tiers, then press Save Changes.
- Annual lump sum: when an employee reaches a tenure tier they receive that tier's Annual Lump (hours) in one grant, for example 20 hours after 0 months and 40 hours after 12 months.
- Hourly accrual: the employee earns a Rate / Hour Worked (for example 0.025 hours per hour) for the tier they are in, up to an Annual Cap (hours).
- Tiers use Min Tenure (months) and an optional Max Tenure (months), where empty means no upper end. Add Tier adds a row, and the bin removes one.
- Tenure is counted in whole months from the employee's Start Date. Accrual is based on weekdays (Monday to Friday, 8 hours each), not on hours logged on timesheets. Balances are recalculated the next time an employee opens the Time Off tab.
Pay periods, pay dates, and a clean export.
Pay Periods are the dates a paycheck pays for: Weekly, Every 2 weeks, Twice a month, or Monthly, each with its own start rule. Pay Dates are the days employees are paid, which need not match the periods: Every week, Every other week, Twice a month, or Once a month.
- A live list previews the next periods, marks the current one with a Current badge, and shows each period's length in days. A second preview lists the next six pay dates with “In N days”.
- The default is twice a month (1st to 15th and 16th to the last day), paid on the 5th and the 20th. Until you press Save Changes, a banner says the schedule is a starting point.
- Under the schedule, the Payroll Export block takes a pay period (the current period and the six before it) or a Custom range, and downloads Excel or CSV.
- The export holds approved timesheets only, with hours, pay, and commission frozen at the moment the leader approved each week.
Open a cycle, rate on your competencies.
A review cycle is a time window, for example “Q4 2026”, during which leaders and employees submit performance reviews. Competencies are the rows every reviewer rates from 1 to 5, shown as a row of hearts.
- Open a new cycle with a name, a start date, and an end date. Only one cycle can be open at a time, so close the current one first.
- Open now shows the dates and how many leader and self reviews have arrived, with View reviews and Close cycle. History lists every cycle, and Reopen brings a closed one back if no other is open.
- View reviews shows the leader average and self average, the average by competency, and every review, which you can expand to read the comments.
- For competencies, press New to add one, Change Order to drag them into order, and use the switch to switch one off. A new office starts with Quality of Work, Reliability / Attendance, Communication, and Teamwork.
One overtime rule, and products that pay commission.
Set the weekly overtime rule and the office hourly wage at the top, then add the products your team sells, with what each sale earns the office and what it pays the employee.
- Overtime Threshold is 1 to 168 hours a week, and Overtime Multiplier is 1 to 5, for example 1.5. Overtime Hourly Wage is shown for reference, and actual overtime pay uses each employee's own hourly rate times the multiplier.
- Hourly Wage ($ per hour) is the office rate given to an employee when Hourly Wage is ticked on their Comp tab.
- Each product is a campaign or client plus a product. Enter Commission earned (optional) and Commission paid per sale (required), and ATS Mako calculates the Adjusted gross per sale (earned minus paid, shown in red if negative).
- Tick products on each seller's Comp tab so they appear on that person's timesheet and on the Sales Reports. New settings apply to weeks submitted from then on.
See who holds what, and what is about to expire.
You define the credential types here, employees add their own in the Employee Portal, and this screen shows who holds what and what is about to expire.
- Summary tiles show credential types, employees covered, credentials on file, how many are valid, how many expire in 30 days, and how many are expired, with the number of missing documents.
- The Needs attention list puts the most urgent first, such as “Expires in 2 days”. Click one to see its holders.
- Each type card shows an Active switch, a “Document required” or “No document needed” chip, the alert days (default 30, 14, and 7), and a color bar of valid, expiring soon, and expired credentials.
- Add Credential Type asks for a name, whether a document upload is required, and the alert days. A type that employees already hold cannot be deleted, so deactivate it instead.
What each tab changes.
Each HR tab drives a specific part of the Employee Portal or the payroll export.
| Setting | What you set | Where it shows up |
|---|---|---|
| Review Cycles | A named window with start and end dates | Reviews tab: a banner with the cycle name and dates, and the Submit Self-Review button |
| Review Competencies | The skills every reviewer rates from 1 to 5 | Every review rates each competency your office configured |
| PTO/Sick Leave | Categories, accrual method, and tenure tiers | Time Off tab: balance cards and the categories offered on new requests |
| Payroll & Pay Periods | Pay periods, pay dates, and the payroll export | The office-side previews and the Excel or CSV export for payroll |
| Timesheets & Comp | Weekly overtime rule, hourly wage, products, and commissions | Timesheets tab: overtime tiles and, for ticked products, a Sales section |
| Credentials | Credential types, document rule, and alert days | Credentials tab: the types employees can choose when they add a credential |
What the export contains.
Pick a Pay Period (the current period and the six before it) or a Custom range, choose what the CSV should hold, and press Export Excel or Export CSV.
| File | Contents |
|---|---|
| Excel workbook (.xlsx) | Three sheets: Summary (one row per employee with a total), Hours (each approved week), and Sales (each product sold, with quantity, commission per sale, and totals). |
| CSV: Hours | One row per employee and week: Employee Name, Week Start, Week End, Regular Hours, Overtime Hours, Regular Pay, Overtime Pay, Total Pay, Commission Rate (%), Commission Flat Amount ($), Hourly Wage ($). |
| CSV: Sales | Employee Name, Campaign / Client, Product, Quantity, Commission per Sale ($), Total Commission ($). |
| CSV: Summary | Employee Name, Regular Hours, Overtime Hours, Hours Pay ($), Units Sold, Sales Commission ($), Total Pay With Commission ($). |
Everything in HR Settings.
Review cycles and competencies
Open a named review window with start and end dates, see how many leader and self reviews have arrived, and close it when the window ends. Choose the competencies every reviewer rates from 1 to 5.
PTO and sick leave accrual
Four categories (PTO, Sick Leave, Unpaid Leave, and FMLA), each with an on/off switch. Accrue as an annual lump sum or hourly, with tenure tiers that decide who gets what.
Pay periods and pay dates
Cut pay periods weekly, every 2 weeks, twice a month, or monthly, and set when employees are paid. Live previews list the next periods and the next six pay dates.
Payroll export
Pick a pay period or a custom range and download an Excel workbook or a CSV of approved hours and sales, ready for your payroll process.
Overtime, products, and commissions
Set a weekly overtime threshold and multiplier and an office hourly wage. Add up to 200 products with what your office earns and what the employee is paid per sale.
Credential types
Define the licenses and certificates you track, whether a document is required, and the alert days. A summary and a Needs attention list show who holds what and what is about to expire.
Built so exports match what was approved.
Settings change going forward. What a leader already approved stays as approved.
Past weeks keep their numbers
New overtime and wage settings apply to weeks submitted from then on. Weeks already submitted keep their numbers, and exports use the figures frozen at approval.
The export is approved-only
A week still waiting for a leader does not appear in a payroll file. Only approved timesheets are exported.
Commission shows what the employee earns
The commission in the export and in the portal is what the employee earns, never what the office earns.
Only whole weeks are exported
A week is exported only when the whole Monday-to-Sunday week lies inside the period you choose, so an export never holds a partial week.
Changes need an administrator
Users with the Settings permission can open the page, and changes to these HR settings need an administrator role.
Closing and deleting keep history
Closing a review cycle stops new reviews and deletes nothing. Deleting a product removes it from every Comp tab, but past sales keep their name and amounts.
Rules and limits at a glance.
The numbers and options behind each HR setting.
Then set up each employee.
Once the settings exist, give each employee portal access, tick their compensation on the Comp tab, and assign leaders.
- Review cycles
- One open at a time. Close the current one before opening a new one. Reopen works only when no other cycle is open.
- Review rating
- 1 to 5 for each competency. Comments up to 2,000 characters.
- Leave categories
- Four: PTO, Sick Leave, Unpaid Leave, and FMLA, each with an on/off switch.
- Accrual methods
- Annual lump sum or hourly accrual, with tenure tiers counted in whole months from the start date.
- Time-off hours
- Weekdays (Monday to Friday) × 8 hours. No half days.
- Pay-period options
- Weekly, Every 2 weeks, Twice a month, or Monthly. Default: twice a month (1st to 15th and 16th to the last day).
- Pay-date options
- Every week, Every other week, Twice a month, or Once a month, using a weekday or day numbers (1st to 28th or the last day). Default: the 5th and the 20th.
- Exported weeks
- Monday to Sunday weeks, and only when the whole week is inside the chosen period. Use a Custom range for a week that straddles two periods.
- Export formats
- An Excel workbook (Summary, Hours, and Sales sheets) or a CSV (Hours, Sales, or Summary).
- Overtime
- A weekly threshold of 1 to 168 hours and a multiplier of 1 to 5. There is no daily overtime.
- Products
- Up to 200 per office.
- Credential reminders
- Alert days are saved with each type (default 30, 14, and 7). Expiry shows through badges, tiles, and the Needs attention list, and no reminder emails are sent.
From busywork to a hiring engine.
The old way
- Keep leave policies in a handbook and work out balances by hand.
- Build pay periods and pay dates on a calendar, then rebuild the hours for every export.
- Run review rounds through email and shared documents.
With ATS Mako
- Switch on the leave types you offer, set tenure tiers, and balances follow each start date.
- Pick how pay periods are cut and when people are paid, see live previews, and export approved hours for any period.
- Open a review cycle with one form, collect reviews in the portal, and read every review in one window.
Related features
HR Settings FAQ
In what order should I set these up?
Start with Roles and Termination Reasons, so they exist before you onboard employees or terminate anyone. Then set Timesheets & Comp, PTO/Sick Leave, Payroll & Pay Periods, and Credentials. Choose Review Competencies, then open a Review Cycle when it is time for reviews. Finally, for each employee, give portal access, tick compensation on the Comp tab, and assign leaders.
How does PTO accrue?
For categories that accrue, choose an Accrual Method. With an annual lump sum, an employee who reaches a tenure tier receives that tier's hours in one grant, for example 20 hours after 0 months and 40 hours after 12 months. With hourly accrual, the employee earns a rate per hour worked (for example 0.025 hours per hour) for their tier, up to an annual cap. Tenure is counted in whole months from the Start Date, and accrual is based on weekdays (Monday to Friday, 8 hours each), not on hours logged on timesheets.
What is the difference between pay periods and pay dates?
Pay periods are the dates a paycheck pays for: Weekly, Every 2 weeks, Twice a month, or Monthly. Pay dates are the days employees are paid, which need not match the periods: Every week, Every other week, Twice a month, or Once a month. The default is twice a month (1st to 15th and 16th to the last day), paid on the 5th and the 20th. Until you press Save Changes, a banner says the schedule is a starting point.
Which weeks appear in the payroll export?
Timesheets always run Monday to Sunday, and a week is exported only when the whole week lies inside the chosen period. With twice-a-month periods, a week that straddles the 15th and 16th or the end of the month belongs to neither period, so export it with a Custom range that covers it. The export contains approved timesheets only.
Does ATS Mako run payroll?
No. ATS Mako is not a payroll processor. It records approved hours, sales, and commission, and gives you an Excel workbook or CSV of them for your payroll process. The figures are the ones frozen when the leader approved each week, and the commission shown is what the employee earns, never what the office earns.
How do overtime and commission work?
Overtime is weekly only. Hours above the Overtime Threshold (1 to 168 hours a week) are paid at the employee's own hourly rate times the Overtime Multiplier (1 to 5, for example 1.5). There is no daily overtime. For commission, each product has Commission earned (optional) and Commission paid per sale (required), and ATS Mako calculates the Adjusted gross per sale. New settings apply to weeks submitted from then on.
Do credential expiry reminders go out by email?
No. Expiry shows through badges, summary tiles, and the Needs attention list. Alert days are saved with each credential type (the defaults are 30, 14, and 7), but no reminder emails are sent from them.
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