All organisations perform some form of payroll processing every period. This is one of the most critical processes as it primarily handles the remuneration of employees – the most valuable resource for any organisation. As such, timeliness and accuracy are essential! Nevertheless, payroll management is one of the most mundane, time-consuming, and error-prone processes. This is especially true in cases where this is done manually: from data collection to calculation to report creation and submission. Surely, there must be a better method. Well, there is!
Albeit underutilised in Guyana’s public and private sectors, payroll management software solutions make for a great stress reliever but due diligence is necessary to ensure the highest possible reward in terms of time, energy, and cash savings. The perfect payroll software significantly reduces the time it takes to generate your payroll every period by minimising each step to just a few clicks! How does a five-minute payroll creation time sound?
When evaluating the payroll software in the market, there are seven (7) key features and functionalities that characterise the cream of the crop.
1. Simple Onboarding Process
Making the decision to switch from a predominantly manual payroll system or inadequate payroll management software is already complex in itself; the transition process should not add more complexity. When evaluating a payroll software, be sure to work out the requirements and procedure of getting on board with the new system. Areas for consideration may include:
❏ Historical data transfer and conversion
❏ Employee and organisation information capturing
❏ Data entry time
A simple and seamless onboarding process with little to no hiccups along the way is the hallmark of an efficient payroll software. It suggests a commitment by the developers to ensuring a simplified experience for all users.
2. Customisation
The best payroll software offer the perfect blend of standardisation and customisation for a sufficiently personalised experience. Your organisation has its peculiarities which should be accommodated partially or entirely by your payroll system. Many payroll solutions make provisions for user customisation whether it is simply adding the organisation’s logo to reports or having special forms of income or deductions reflected in the right places. Add customisation to your evaluation criteria for selection to avoid incompatibility. Ask the tough questions of the software provider about the idiosyncrasies of your operations before committing.
3. Ease of use
There is hardly anything as frustrating as complicated software — loaded with unfamiliar jargon and unnecessary navigation steps! When window shopping for a payroll solution, gather information on its usability and intuity; read the reviews, request a demo, or even get a free trial if you must, but do not dive into any payroll software without first confirming that it is simple enough to use with little to no training: this saves you time and data entry mistakes!
4. Accessibility
The best payroll management solutions are often cloud-based and allow access from anywhere at any time and have both mobile and desktop versions. Fancy performing payroll-related activities while stuck in traffic on the highway? Or maybe on a beach in the Maldives? Why not? Just ensure that the solution you choose has such flexibility.
5. Automation
This may go without saying but any respectable payroll solution automates: there should be no requirement for the user to repeatedly input recurring information such as deductions, allowances, and standard overtimes. The software of your choice should efficiently handle all recurring aspects of your payroll process unless you indicate otherwise.
6. Statutory Reporting
A key payroll-related function is that of preparing reports for statutory purposes. This captures data on tax and other deductions for periodic submissions to various statutory bodies: in Guyana, these are the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) and Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) which require income-related reports to be submitted monthly and yearly.
7. Support Services
You deserve better than to be left alone even before completely onboarding! When scoping out your payroll options, steer clear of any provider who neglects to provide for your after-sales needs. This can be a red flag as it suggests disinterest in ensuring your organisation gets the best out of the software at all times. Choose a provider who offers ongoing support for you and your team, has provisions for adding or improving any feature upon request, and is committed to continually improving the software to ensure that all of your payroll needs are being adequately met.
Bonus!
Human Resource Management (HRM) and Accounting Integration
HRM, Accounting, and Payroll management are virtually inseparable. Thus, the possibility of integration reduces reconciliation and consolidation issues by simplifying or even automating the transfer of necessary information such as timesheet data, training, and wages paid from one system to another — or even better, between modules of the same application!
Conclusion
When seeking the best payroll management solution for your payroll needs it all comes down to this; simplicity is best, customizability is key, automation is everything, and support is an obligation! If you want to know the benefits of payroll software, read our blog Top Five Benefits of Payroll Automation.
At Techlify, we aim to simplify work life and we are most concerned with the value we provide to our clients. Optimise your digital payroll management by partnering with our payroll software for Guyana !
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