Finance teams often find themselves wearing multiple hats. And while it’s great to multitask, payroll admin can often get in the way of more strategic work, says Page Kirk’s Payroll manager Jo Poulter. Is it time to consider the possibility of outsourcing?
In SMEs, it’s always easy to get distracted by those ‘must-do’ tasks at the expense of the bigger-picture, added-value activity. In my experience, payroll is a classic example of where time can get swallowed up, simply because it’s a task that HAS to be done and is highly time-sensitive.
But imagine for a moment that you were able to wash your hands of the regular admin and didn’t feel that you were hostage to the looming deadlines. Just think of the freedom you’d have to allocate new tasks to the team: ones that were actually going to make a difference to the long-term success of the business.
To be fair, if you have strong internal expertise, particularly complex payrolls or very strict data governance requirements, you may prefer to keep everything in-house. If that doesn’t apply to you though, think about what you might be avoiding through an outsourced arrangement:
And when you look it at like that, the arguments for outsourcing through a business like Page Kirk become pretty compelling. Here’s how I’d break it down:
You’ll be freeing up your finance staff for higher-value workGet them focusing on cash-flow forecasting, budgeting and financial planning and analysis. Maybe they can work in closer partnership with operational teams, improve financial controls or support growth initiatives. In essence, they become more strategic, rather than just administrative.
You might be able to reduce key-person riskIf one particular member of your team becomes the linchpin of your payroll operation, what happens if they resign? What if they’re on long-term sick leave, take an extended break or retire? At that point, payroll can actually become an operational risk for you. An outsourced provider typically has multiple trained staff and documented processes, making everything less reliant on one individual.
You’ll be able to keep up with payroll legislationThings change with increasing regularity. Your outsourced payroll supplier will invest in:
There is much less likelihood of a costly mistake.
You’ll be able to improve payroll accuracyBecause an outsourced provider is focused on payroll in a way that you’re not, they’ll almost certainly have more robust checking procedures in place, specialist software and more experienced staff. Of course, no system is completely error-free, but you’re likely to minimise the chance of things going wrong.
You’ll have more predictable payroll costsAt first glance, this seems counterintuitive, as you know your salary bills and the amount of time your people tend to allocate to payroll. Salaries are, however, only one important element in payroll costs. People tend to forget about a range of other factors which can start to add up, including:
You take these uncertainties out of the equation by passing payroll over to an experienced supplier.
You’ll have the confidence that comes from improved data security with payrollReputable payroll providers will invest heavily in encryption, access controls and audit trails. What’s more, they should be able to offer reassurance over secure data transfer and compliance with data protection laws. This means a lot in terms of peace of mind.
If you make the move now to outsourcing your payroll, you may find yourself in a better position to grow as a business. And as you do grow – and probably increase your headcount – you won’t have to worry about the payroll process becoming more time-consuming and complex either. Why not give us a call to discuss your options by phoning 0115 955 5500 or emailing enquiries@pagekirk.co.uk?
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