How to Choose the Right Payroll Outsourcing Vendor to suit your Requirements
We were recently quoted in an article on Human Resources Director about the things that business owners should consider when thinking about payroll outsourcing and choosing a vendor.
Looking to free up your team’s time for more strategic and value-adding work? It might be time to consider outsourcing your payroll function. After years of lagging behind the US and Europe – where payroll outsourcing has been a mature market for some time – BPO analyst firm NelsonHall predicted in 2016 that the payroll outsourcing sector in Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at twice the rate of the total global market, valuing it at $1.2bn by 2020.
Zac Ma, Sales Director, HRO, SEA at Links International, told HRD that more and more organisations, especially in Asia, are beginning to recognise the importance of utilising their HR resources as a strategic business partner and are starting to see value in outsourcing administrative tasks like payroll. “They are also beginning to realise that very often there are actually tangible ROI benefits to it,” he said.
Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, Scott Thomson, chief operating officer, Links International, explained to HRD that the payroll outsourcing provider must be up to date with legislative changes. “This should be pretty much standard today,” he said. “Most service providers will have the resources to keep up to date with any changes and to communicate that to clients.”
Ma said it’s important to understand whether the vendor is delivering payroll service as its core service or whether it’s a complementary offering. “This makes a difference simply because expertise is required. Use the analogy of going to a shirt tailoring shop to get custom shoes – the quality of advice and service might be questionable.”
Find payroll software
Overview
If you decide to run payroll yourself, you need payroll software to report to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
HMRC-recognised software
HMRC tests payroll software to check it can report PAYE information online and in real time (RTI).
You can choose from free payroll software (if you have fewer than 10 employees) and paid-for software that has been tested and recognised by HMRC.
You should consider which features you need. For example, some software will not let you:
produce payslips
record pension deductions
make pension payments
pay different people over different periods (for example both weekly and monthly)
send an Employer Payment Summary (EPS) report or Earlier Year Update (EYU) to HMRC
How To Choose The Best Payroll Service For Your Business
If there is anything that can be more painful than going through the monotonous and tiresome process of payroll management, it is to mess up with it. Even if you manage to keep the mistakes to minimum, doing your payroll in-house can still cost you. The valuable time and efforts you spend on calculating the money that you have to give away could instead be spent on making money! This is the reason why so many SMEs are turning to outsourced payroll services.
The apparently simple process of getting your employees paid is actually a complex procedure. It is much more than keeping track of their work days and preparing a few checks. It can be overwhelming for small business owners who are not well acquainted with accounting and payroll processing.
Why Payroll Outsourcing Is a Wise Choice For Small Businesses?
The dilemma of whether to keep payroll in-house or go for payroll system outsourcing can be really confusing. “If a small business owner has a good background in accounting and is willing to research all the laws, remember all the deadlines, and has a very simple payroll, then they could consider doing the payroll themselves,” said Clare Wherley, CPA and co-founder of accounting firm Lassus-Wherley.
How to Choose The Best Payroll Service: What to Look For?
The reason to outsource payroll is strong and reasonable. Payroll consultant India or payroll services India vary in cost, however their pricing structure is quite standard. Most of the online payroll services charge their clients a monthly flat rate, based on the services used and number of employees.
According to Ken Darrow, editor of Payroll for Dummies, and group marketing manager at Intuit Payroll, “There’s three things that payroll should do for you. It pays employees on time, it pays your payroll taxes on time, and it actually files your payroll tax forms on time. You want to do all three of those to be compliant with the law, and you also better do the last two or you’ll get fined.”
How to Select Payroll Software for Your Small Business
Are you pulling out your hair over payroll? Doing your own payroll, even for just one employee, has many pitfalls for the small business owner. There’s a lot to know, and keeping up with many federal, state, and local payroll tax regulations is a pain. In addition, you have deadlines to meet, for payments and reports to all these agencies
Payroll is your business responsibility. Having a payroll service doesn’t relieve you (the business owner) from the responsibility for paying employees, withholding, reporting, and paying federal and state tax agencies. No matter who you hire, your business is ultimately at fault if something isn’t done or isn’t done correctly.
What Are Payroll Services?
There are two kinds of payroll services: online services and (for lack of a better term) personal services. The online services may be apps or online-based. The personal services are a business owned by an individual who may do payroll online or who may be local.
How Much Does an Online Payroll Service Cost?
The first thing business owners ask when looking for a payroll service is: “How much does it cost?” While cost is important, other factors are just as important.
Setup, training, and dashboard: The system should be easy to set up. You should have a dashboard to guide you through processes and to allow you to check on activities like filings and paycheck deposits. Training should be simple, with good videos to help you work through the various processes. What level of payroll knowledge do they assume you have? Most business owners have little knowledge, so your service should provide detailed basic knowledge of payroll terms, paychecks, and filings
Outsourcing Payroll: The Pro’s and Con’s
Outsourcing Payroll: The Pro’s and Con’s
Payroll commonly refers to a company’s records of its employees’ salaries and wages, bonuses, and withheld taxes. It is a specialised function that requires specialised and trained staff. For decades, it was seen as a simple accounting function but it is no longer the case. It is now a specialist occupation on its own
What is employer’s duty when it comes to payroll?
The business of employing people in the UK is regulated by government legislation designed to protect employees. Under these legislations, employers are entitled to provide a regular financial reward for their work. This amount is specified in their contract of employment.
The government department that is in charge of collection of taxes is Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The job of paying employees is handled by the payroll department of a company and you, as a payroll administrator will need a range of skills and knowledge to do the job rightly. You must be aware of the need to get things done on time and to do them correctly and accurately.
Employees are entitled to receive their pay on or before the due date. You must always meet the deadline. Failure to pay your staff on time could cause financial difficulties for the employee, undermine their confidence in their employer and thus demoralise them at work.
There are also deadlines for making payments to HMRC, the courts, pension providers and other external bodies. Failure to pay these on time may result in financial penalties and high-interest charges.