About Galt

Galt is a staffing nonprofit committed to expanding employment opportunities for people with disabilities. They’ve operated for 26 years and currently manage 700+ employees across multiple states. Galt’s payroll process is central to its operations—but it became a major source of inefficiency and risk.

For many of Galt’s employees, work is more than just a paycheck—it’s a path to independence and inclusion. The organization ensures that individuals with disabilities can participate in the workforce, often overcoming barriers that traditional employment models fail to address. For this mission to succeed, payroll has to work seamlessly. Their employees rely on timely, accurate pay to support themselves, and because many don’t have experience navigating payroll complexities, errors can create confusion and unnecessary stress.

“We’re a staffing agency nonprofit, which is kind of unusual,” shared Elizabeth Shrader, Finance Director at Galt. “Payroll is our core function. If we can’t get that right, we can’t fulfill our mission.”

The Challenge: Payroll Errors, Compliance Risks, and Lost Productivity

Galt uses Bullhorn to manage their staffing operations and prioritized a payroll solution with a Bullhorn integration. They initially implemented one that was recommended by their Bullhorn salesperson, but as Elizabeth shared, “the system failed at nearly every level.”

• Payroll errors – Overtime miscalculations, incorrect tax liabilities, and frequent direct deposit failures created ongoing disruptions.
• Manual processing burden – The finance team spent 75% of their time manually fixing errors and dealing with manual payroll tax and accounting processes, leading to an estimated $100,000 in lost productivity annually.
• Tax compliance issues – Inaccurate tax payments led to IRS and state penalties and regulatory risks.
• Lack of reliable support – Their previous provider’s team “either didn’t understand taxes, payroll at all, or didn’t understand why their platform wasn’t working at all.”
• Security risks – Payroll required downloading and uploading sensitive text files, creating a potential data breach hazard.

“I’ve been doing payroll for 20 years, and I’ve never seen anything as bad as this,” Shrader recalled. “It was catastrophic.”

The issues were compounding – at one point the payroll errors and manual processes caused them to overpay a worker by $80,000. Instead of focusing on their mission, Galt’s finance team was spending all their time troubleshooting a broken payroll system.

The Solution: Finding Zeal at a Critical Moment

Galt got a new Executive Director who saw the struggles of the team and the impact on the company and asked a crucial question: “When are we going to decide not to continue working with our current provider?”

Initially, Galt explored other providers, but none could fully meet their needs. Some lacked the functionality and reliability they required, while others weren’t willing to take on the challenge of a complex year-end transition. Zeal stood out as the only provider that could deliver on both—seamless payroll functionality and hands-on support to ensure a smooth migration.

“We saw immediately that Zeal’s team actually understood payroll,” said Shrader. “They weren’t just salespeople making promises—they knew the product, and they knew how payroll and taxes should actually work.”

Implementation: A High-Stakes Year-End Transition

Galt needed to complete the transition to Zeal before the year-end tax deadline to avoid manually handling W-2s for 900 employees. Zeal stepped in and:

Despite the high stakes and limited timeframe, Zeal successfully launched Galt’s payroll system in time for year-end, preventing weeks of manual effort and further payroll disasters and allowing the team to focus on their real mission—growing employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

The Results: A Payroll System That Works

Since switching to Zeal, Galt has experienced dramatic improvements:

• $100,000+ in productivity savings – Payroll processing is now automated and reliable, eliminating the 75% of time previously spent fixing errors. 
• No more penalties – Taxes are now filed accurately and on time. 
• Zero direct deposit failures – Employees receive correct payments without disruption.
• Scalable system for future growth – Zeal is continuously evolving based on Galt’s feedback.

“I was spending most of my workweek just trying to prevent payroll disasters,” Shrader admitted. “Now, payroll runs smoothly, and my team can focus on actual finance work. It’s a huge relief.”

The Impact: A Future-Proof Payroll System

Galt now has a payroll partner that grows with them.

“With Zeal, every time we have an issue, the team is responsive, listens, and actively works on solutions. That’s what makes the difference.”

Galt’s finance team isn’t stuck fixing payroll—they’re focused on building a better future. Payroll has gone from a costly liability to a scalable, efficient system that supports their long-term vision. With resources no longer tied up in troubleshooting, Galt is focused on growing their mission and expanding into new regions.