Payroll best practices

We all love payday, but it takes a lot of work to get it done. Payrollers have had a particularly testing year as we've seen unprecedented changes affecting both payroll legislation and processes. We have previously written about the important factors to consider when choosing a payroll provider. As we celebrate National Payroll Week, we thought it would be the perfect occasion to talk about payroll best practices to help employers increase payroll accuracy. 

In this article, we look at payroll best practices and explain how to implement them. 

What are payroll best practices? 

We all know that payroll accuracy is essential to both the employer and employees, but what are the best practices payrollers follow to ensure accuracy happens? Payroll best practices are the processes accepted as the most accurate and efficient ways of running payroll. The foundation of best practices will likely be legislation set by the likes of HMRC, the Pensions Regulator and the General Data Protection Regulations. Companies then build on top of that through trial and error within their own processes, internal company policies, and by sharing experiences with other teams and organisations.

What are the benefits of following best practices?

Now that we have a little understanding of the best practices, we want to find out the benefits of using such processes. When effective processes are in place, it will increase accuracy when running payroll and encourage collaboration between different teams such as HR, payroll, and finance. 

Payroll is a constant source of learning; as we mentioned previously, best practices can often arise from trial and error as many processes are put in place after an error has occurred. It is a foundation for effective processes and builds company policy around the legislation that they must follow. Every good payroller understands the importance of keeping up to date with legislation and regulations, but what are other examples of best practices to keep in mind when running payroll?

What are some examples of best practices and how to implement them?

Choosing payroll providers, be it outsourced, in-house, or a hybrid solution like PayFit, it’s essential to have a source of payroll knowledge. When choosing software for payroll, there are some things to keep in mind. Whilst it is not a legal obligation, it’s important that HMRC approves it and that the software automates at least the basics such as real-time information (RTI), calculations and pension submissions. In addition to this, automation of processes can decrease the need for manual input and therefore reduce the likelihood of human error.

Quality assurance is another crucial factor to consider when running payroll. When assuring that reports and salaries are correct, it is key to use four-eye checks, also known as the two-person rule, which requires two different individuals to approve any action before implementing it.

Planning is a vital part of payroll operations to ensure the accuracy and timely processing of payroll, so having a contingency plan is key to avoid a payroll disaster.

As mentioned earlier in this article, processes often stem from things going wrong, so when an error has occurred, a process is put in place to prevent it from happening again. Looking at the main risks can also help to implement best practices. But what are the main risks to look for?

To find the main risks, you must ask the right questions. Questions such as:

• Where could the processes collapse, or who is the process dependent on?

• What could be the impact if the process fails? And how can it be avoided?

PayFit's approach

At PayFit, we like to think we offer the best of both worlds: in-house payroll but with all the perks you'd typically associate with outsourcing.

Not only do we have a dedicated customer support team (including CIPP qualified payroll specialists), but our cloud-based software also automates all calculations and provides full transparency on those calculations.

This means that even users with limited prior payroll experience can confidently use PayFit.

Interested in finding out more? Why not book a call with one of our product specialists?