The verdict in three sentences
For an independent staffing agency in Toronto placing 150 temporary workers a week, weekly payroll is the bottleneck: paper or photo timesheets, overtime and shift premiums keyed in by hand, vacation pay and public holiday pay to recalculate. Specialist vendors cost 300 to 900 CAD a month and handle payroll and CRA remittances well; a custom timesheet and assignment app (60,000 to 150,000 CAD with a Canadian agency) saves around 2 days of payroll processing a month. Kolonell builds this kind of medium-complexity application for 4,000,000 to 7,000,000 FCFA (6,100 to 10,670 EUR).
The assignment cycle and its friction points
Temporary help agencies in Ontario are tightly regulated under the Employment Standards Act: written assignment information must be given to the worker, vacation pay is typically 4 % of wages (6 % after five years), overtime applies after 44 hours a week, and WSIB coverage must be in place. Mistakes cost money in corrections and in worker trust.
| Stage | Common practice without a dedicated tool | Risk | With the app |
|---|---|---|---|
| Client order and matching | Phone, spreadsheet | Wrong profile sent | Order form, search by skills and availability |
| Assignment information and client agreement | Generated in payroll software, paper signature | Late or missing documents | Electronic signature on smartphone |
| Weekly timesheet | Paper sheet, photo sent by text | Illegible hours, missed premiums | Mobile entry, client approval in one click |
| Premiums (night, Sunday, overtime after 44 h) | Manual re-keying | Payroll errors, complaints | Rules per client set once |
| Export to payroll and invoicing | Double entry | 1 to 3 % discrepancies | Automatic export to payroll software |
| Pay advances | Requests by phone | Admin load | Online request, automatic cap |
Vendor, custom or both: the 2026 numbers
| Option | Upfront cost | Recurring cost | What you gain | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Specialist staffing software | 2,000 to 10,000 CAD setup | 300 to 900 CAD a month | Compliant payroll, remittances, invoicing | Mobile experience often weak for workers and clients |
| Custom app, Canadian agency | 60,000 to 150,000 CAD | 600 to 1,500 CAD a month support | Timesheets, assignments, client portal your way | Must stay connected to payroll |
| Custom app by Kolonell | 4,000,000 to 7,000,000 FCFA (6,100 to 10,670 EUR) | Maintenance 75,000 FCFA a month (Standard) | Same scope, delivered in 10 to 14 weeks | Payroll and remittances stay with the vendor |
| Generic time-clock tool | 0 to 2,000 CAD | 4 to 10 CAD per user per month | Simple clock-in | No staffing premium rules |
| Paper status quo | 0 CAD | 2 extra payroll days a month | None | Errors and worker churn |
Our recommendation is the combination: the vendor remains the payroll and remittance engine, the custom app handles everything on the ground (workers, clients, hours, signatures) and pushes clean data into payroll.
Mini case study
Hypothetical illustration: Daniel, owner of an independent staffing agency in Toronto focused on warehousing and light industrial work, places 150 workers a week with 35 client companies. Two coordinators spend 6 days a month keying timesheets and preparing payroll.
- Time saved: 2 days a month each, so 4 days or 28 hours a month, about 336 hours a year.
- Valued at 38 CAD per loaded hour: 12,770 CAD a year.
- Payroll errors avoided: cutting discrepancies from 2 % to 0.5 % on a payroll of about 400,000 CAD a month avoids roughly 6,000 CAD a month in corrections and overpayments, so 72,000 CAD a year as an order of magnitude.
- Kolonell option at 5,500,000 FCFA (about 8,380 EUR) plus 75,000 FCFA a month: payback in 2 to 3 months.
- Canadian agency option at 100,000 CAD: payback in just over a year.
FAQ
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Does the app replace our payroll software?
No. Payroll, CRA remittances and records of employment stay in your specialist software. The app prepares approved timesheets and exports them, removing 80 to 90 % of double entry.
Do workers have to install an app?
Not necessarily: an installable web app on their phone is enough, with SMS login. Adoption usually exceeds 85 % within 4 weeks if the first pay advance goes through the tool.
Can the client approve hours directly?
Yes. The supervisor at the client company receives a link every Friday and approves in one click. Approved timesheets reach payroll on Monday, which also speeds up invoicing by 2 to 4 days.
How long to get started?
Allow 10 to 14 weeks for a V1 with timesheets, assignment signatures and a client portal, including a 3-week pilot with 2 or 3 clients.
What maintenance should we plan?
The Standard plan at 75,000 FCFA a month covers security updates and premium rule changes. The Premium plan at 120,000 FCFA adds priority monitoring during payroll runs.
Let's scope your project. Send us your weekly worker volume, your current payroll software and your main sources of errors: we quote your timesheet and assignment app between 4,000,000 and 7,000,000 FCFA, delivered in 10 to 14 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.