Jisselle Baldwin-Todd, Head of HR at Crate, has a lot of experience building global teams—in fact, she calls it her “bread and butter.” Crate’s top priorities included staffing up its marketing, engineering, and GTM teams across multiple parts of the world, including the UK, US, France, Amsterdam, Trinidad & Tobago, and the Philippines. So Jisselle turned to Deel, a platform she had used at other companies, to help with Crate’s global workforce management, payroll, and, most importantly, comprehensive compliance in more than 100 countries. 

Jisselle soon realized, though, Deel couldn’t actually deliver on that promise—the platform was “super compliant for 40 countries,” but not the 100+ it advertised. She found glaring gaps in regions where she had employees and needed the support, like the Caribbean and Eastern Europe. Jisselle found herself having to rewrite contracts and navigate compliance issues manually, which not only consumed valuable time but also introduced risks that could jeopardize Crate’s operations. She was left with the stress of wondering exactly when she’d uncover the next time Deel had overpromised on compliance she’d need to urgently resolve a problem she thought was being handled for her.

“I felt like I couldn’t trust Deel’s compliance,” Jisselle said. “It felt like asking ChatGPT.”

Crate was also experiencing payroll delays, and Jisselle said getting them resolved was often a headache: “When we reached out, it would take days to hear back.”

She added, “We were on a package that provided us with a dedicated account manager, but my account manager was always MIA.” 

With Deel’s customer support difficult to reach and her account manager only available to schedule in an Eastern European time zone that didn’t overlap with her work hours, Jisselle made the call to switch EOR providers and move Crate’s employees to Rippling.

But once Jisselle notified Deel that she planned to transition to a new EOR, Deel introduced multiple unexpected costs. First, Deel unexpectedly charged Crate over $12,000—without prior communication or authorization—citing PTO and other payments for terminated employees. Jisselle tried repeatedly to get in touch with her account manager or anyone else at Deel’s customer support, account management, or escalation teams, but they largely ignored her concerns. Deel also required a 30-day waiting period for account transitions that pushed Crate into a new billing month during the transition to Rippling. Crate was charged for a full month of EOR fees—$1,200—even though they only “used” Deel for those 2 days, and only because the waiting period forced them to.

“Deel wasn't trying to be helpful,” Jisselle said. At the end of that experience, she was even more hungry for a platform that would be a true partner to Crate.

In Rippling, Crate found an HR partner that helps address their challenges, offers comprehensive global compliance, and streamlines their operations as they continue to grow globally.

Compliance is a major concern for Crate, especially given their international footprint. With Deel, Jisselle found significant compliance gaps. 

“I feel like they should be more honest about how they’re super compliant for 40 countries, but you can hire in 100,” Jisselle said, “so I felt like I couldn't trust their compliance.”

In contrast, Rippling provides a robust compliance framework that gives her confidence.

“I feel safe with Rippling—much more safe compared to Deel,” Jisselle said.

Rippling’s platform offers features like automatic pension enrollments and region-specific compliance tools that are essential for managing Crate’s global workforce. This not only mitigates risks but also reduces the time Jisselle spends on manual compliance checks, allowing her to focus on more strategic, value-adding work for Crate.

Rippling has provided Crate with clear, timely communication and made sure that Jisselle is always in the loop. 

“One thing I love about Rippling is that you guys tell us everything,” she said. “I love that we get a notification for any change that any admin or user makes. I love the due diligence—the acknowledgment—that is one of my favorite things about Rippling.”

This transparency allows Crate to avoid costly mistakes and stay ahead of potential issues. For example, when processing payroll, Rippling provides timely alerts and updates so no critical step can be overlooked—a stark contrast to the experience Jisselle had with Deel, where she often had to chase down information.

I feel safe with Rippling, much more safe compared to Deel.

Jisselle Baldwin-Todd

Head of HR at Crate

Jisselle’s previous experience with Deel’s support was frustrating, with delayed responses and unresolved issues. But with Rippling, she’s found a responsive and effective partner.

“Rippling’s customer support is so on it,” Jisselle said. Whether she needs help navigating the platform or resolving a complex issue, Rippling’s team, led by her account manager, is readily available. Jisselle particularly appreciates the ability to jump on a Zoom call with a support expert at a moment’s notice to walk through an issue if she needs.

Additionally, Rippling’s implementation team played a critical role in Crate’s successful transition to Rippling. Their hands-on approach helped make sure that the transition was smooth and nothing was overlooked—a breath of fresh air after the offboarding fiasco at Deel.

• 10 hours a month saved for all HR and payroll admin work around the world due to few errors and compliance fire drills.
• 21 seconds for customer support to respond to a live chat query at Rippling (See our live support status for yourself).
• Less stress and frustration due to a reliable and readily available account management team. 
• $1,260 cost savings per year on every UK hire.