Rocky and uncertain seems to be the new normal for organisations, from pandemic disruption to talent shortages, supply chain issues to cost inflation and energy prices. Then there’s the rapidly changing fiscal and legislative landscape, which has placed huge demands on payroll teams to be highly agile and adaptable.

Many organisations relying solely on a small in-house payroll team are still struggling to overcome big challenges, from keeping pace with those regulatory changes, to managing the disruption to traditional patterns of working. But to future-proof your business, you may need to fundamentally change how you approach your payroll and HR operations.

One of the most effective ways to do this — and add more value to your organisation in the process — is by using a managed payroll service.

Wondering if it’s time for a change? Here are five signs that you should deploy a managed payroll service.

1. You’re worried about business continuity and resilience

Has the impact of the past few years left you asking yourself, “Are our payroll and HR operations truly resilient?”, or “Are we going to be able to pay our staff on time this month?”

The heightened stress of new and complex legislation, multiple sickness absences, and the rise of remote and hybrid working may have highlighted a resilience weakness within your team that you never thought would become an issue.

You may also be worried that your current setup doesn’t hold the necessary scale, knowledge, and resources to successfully steer your operation through times of business change or disruption in the future.

Partnering with a managed service provider bolsters your business continuity with access to large teams of experts and significant operational scale.

2. Your payroll costs are spiralling fast

Are you wondering why your payroll costs are increasing further with every financial year that goes by? It’s not uncommon to feel this way when running an in-house payroll team.

Whether you’re making regular payroll errors, incurring fines from regulators, having to pay more for your office rent, utilities, technology, or stationery than you first thought, or forking out to cover additional staff overtime due to long, manual and inflexible processes, it all impacts the overall cost control of your payroll operation.

But through the benefits of both economies of scale and labour arbitrage, as well as minimising payroll errors by using superior, automated payroll software, partnering with a managed services provider can improve your overall cost efficiency.

3. You’re experiencing frequent payroll errors and inaccuracies

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that there’s a strong correlation between constant payroll errors – such as overpayments, underpayments, or late payments – and an unhappy workforce.

If you feel that your payroll churns out more inaccuracies than it should, and you’re also noticing a significantly high level of staff turnover or steep drop in employee motivation, productivity, and engagement, it’s a clear sign that payroll improvements need to be made, and fast.

The expert knowledge and powerful process automation that comes with a managed service provider can help to eliminate these errors – leaving you with more motivated and satisfied teams.

4. You’re not working as efficiently as you’d like

Do you find yourself repeating long-winded, manual processes? You’re not alone. According to our research, 65% of organisations say they complete some or all of their payroll processes manually.

However, not only do manual calculations and the use of error-ridden spreadsheets heighten the chance of payment inaccuracies: they also take up a significant amount of valuable time that could be spent on completing other, more important work that directly supports core business objectives.

Partnering with a managed payroll provider means that you benefit from superior operational efficiency, gaining back time to focus on those tasks that need more attention.

5. You’re struggling with compliance

One of the most challenging aspects for payroll and HR teams recently has been rapidly, but accurately, adhering to new, complex legislation. Plus, there are the annual minimum wage increases, the introduction of new pay gap reporting requirements and much more to contend with.

That said, it’s not surprising that in-house teams without the expert legislative knowledge are worried about the costly risks and penalties of non-compliance.

If you’ve previously been impacted by one of these penalties, or are simply struggling with the constant stress and pressure of keeping up with ever-changing regulations, you’ll be sure to feel the benefit of working with a payroll partner for compliance support.

Is it time for a managed payroll service?

At Zellis, we go beyond traditional payroll outsourcing services. Our highly experienced delivery teams use our award-winning payroll software to proactively optimise your processes, generating measurable and meaningful value for your business.

Learn more about our managed payroll services here.

Or, to find out more about our managed payroll and HR services, get in touch today.