If you’ve been in business for a while, you could be using a payroll system that’s outdated. If upgrading seems daunting, time-consuming, and costly, you may actually cost your company more money by not making the switch to an updated, more compatible program.
For instance, imagine the headaches caused by one mistake or printing error. You’ve suddenly got the costs of paper, ink, and postage to reissue checks — not to mention the staff hours to fix it. It all adds up.
But this isn’t the only reason upgrading your outdated payroll system is a good idea.
5 Ways Outdated Payroll Processes Hurt Your Company
Here are our reasons why your current solution might be more costly than you think.
Lowers Staff Morale
At the very heart of payroll is your staff. By continuing to use an outdated payroll system, you sacrifice staff morale. Why?
- Your payments may not be accurate.
- Outdated systems don’t run as fast.
- Outdated payroll solutions don’t always work with today’s tech.
And for these reasons, payroll may not always be on time. Today’s top talent has several avenues to find new positions – if you’re not compensating your employees timely and correctly, you could lose them to a competitor.
Increases Chance of Compliance Issues
Yesterday’s payroll solutions basically perform the number crunching. They don’t provide tax guidance or remain updated with new tax laws and regulations. Updated payroll systems can ensure your numbers are right and compliant — even if you have locations around the world. Payroll mistakes are easy to make, especially if you have to dedicate time you don’t really have to staying on top of compliance laws. And payroll mistakes are expensive.
For instance, remember the recent U.S. equitable pay laws? These laws don’t just cover equitable pay — they also reference how to maintain your payroll records and for how long. These records must include items such as:
- Wages.
- Job descriptions.
- Compensation amounts.
- Reasons for amounts.
Staying on top of compliance risks reduces your potential legal liabilities.
Unsure where you may not be in compliance? Ask one of our specialists.
Slows Processing Time
For a moment, consider the processing speed of today’s computers. They’re exponentially fast, especially when compared with the Commodores of the ’80s. Now think about your current payroll solution. How fast is it? How much faster could it be? Are you saving money by sticking to an outdated payroll process, or could you actually save more by upgrading? What if you completely eliminated payroll processing in your company and partnered with a PEO like America’s Back Office instead?
Your payroll process is one of the most critical spokes of your company wheel. It should be handled by a team that can perform quickly and correctly. Expediting your payroll process has the added bonuses of boosting employee morale and saving your company money.
Is Less Efficient
While an updated payroll process can save you time and money, an outdated one is often more costly than you think — and not just monetarily. It’s so inefficient, the lag could spill over into other areas of your business.
With a paper-based system, for instance, your payroll team must transfer information several times — from a timesheet to a spreadsheet to a final record. At each step, these figures must be triple checked. Humans are not infallible — having all these extra steps means a great potential for errors. And this isn’t counting the time you spend filing paper documents.
This is a real expense when you factor in the time your staff takes to transfer data, check for errors, correct errors, and manually file documents.
And if you only offer paper checks, imagine the payroll headaches. What if an employee is sick on payday and can’t pick it up? What if the checks are printed incorrectly? What if there’s a fire that destroys all your paper records?
There aren’t many reasons left not to transfer to a digital or online payroll process. Technology isn’t flawless, though. You still need an updated payroll process that seamlessly communicates with other applications and the talented staff to operate it.
Stifles Your Growth
It’s likely that your business is a bit more advanced today than it was when you first started it. As you grow, all aspects of your company must also grow and adapt. The same procedures you used when you only had a few employees won’t cut it once you’ve scaled up and have several employees in multiple states.
In addition to costing you time and money, another issue could appear — stifled growth.
Exhausting precious resources on inefficient methods — and fixing the mistakes that are bound to happen — limits you from reaching your company’s full potential. Rather than continuing to scale, you’ll always be trying just to stay afloat.
That’s why many growing companies choose to revamp their payroll processes and invest in outside HR assistance.
Looking for a partner that will grow with you? Reach out to us today.
How America’s Back Office Can Help
There are several reasons why partnering with America’s Back Office could be just the boost your company needs, such as:
A PEO offers payroll process services in addition to a host of other services, such as access to retirement and health benefits.
The knowledge needed to take care of all tasks surrounding payroll processing, such as tax document submission, deposits, and filings.
It can be cost effective even if you have just 10 employees on staff.
Many business owners take payroll processing for granted, but it’s the one aspect of your company that literally affects every single employee. If it’s not done properly, you could make mistakes, increase liabilities, and potentially lose your best assets — your top staff members. Payroll done right is flawless and effective. It ensures your team is happy and your company avoids legal issues.
If your payroll isn’t as seamless as you’d like, it’s probably time to adjust your payroll process now. You’ll save both time and money. You can invest these savings right back into your company, dramatically impacting your revenue over time. See how America’s Back Office can update your payroll process and even streamline your HR operations overall.
Your business is important — choosing the right partner is just as important.
