Published on October 23rd, 2018 | by Sunit Nandi

Payment Planning – How to Improve an Inefficient Payroll Process

In the not too distant past, employees filled out time sheets or punched a clock, and when it was time to collect timesheets, the supervisor reviewed these sheets for mathematical errors. When satisfied that everything was correct, the supervisor would sign them and pass them onto the appropriate payroll officer. This officer, an expert at collecting and correcting timesheets, would then enter the data into the system if the timesheet was not sent back for serious errors.

This process could last an entire afternoon depending on the size of the company, but every pay cycle, employees would receive their pay without problems, most of the time. Problems with benefit and retirement payments would arise occasionally causing this officer to have to contact another person for information, which could take weeks. Today, with the new single touch payroll system, businesses have addressed many of the inefficiencies that go along with processing payroll. Click here to see one touch payroll system in Australia.

Continue reading to learn how you can make improvements and implement an efficient payroll process for your business.

Analyse Current Processes

Before doing anything, payroll managers should take inventory of the current processes and then assess areas of inefficiencies. The best way to do this is to focus your energies on a particular area because payroll involves many tasks and revamping a program can overwhelm even the most seasoned payroll manager. For example, one area of focus is the timesheet.

If your company is still using the old method of timesheets with data entry once or twice every pay cycle, review this process to see where it can be made more efficient. If your pay system still issues paper checks to its employees, review this process to find ways to encourage employees to switch to direct deposit, even providing incentives to do so. The point is to review your current processes to find areas of weakness that can be improved upon, and then include the appropriate software experts who can help your organisation choose an appropriate program for your business.

Invest In Software

One of the best ways to reduce inefficiency in the payroll process is to invest in good software that can automate tasks. Software that allows your employees to input their time, request leave, and see their schedules, in addition to a number of tasks lifts the burden of having to hire someone specifically for data entry.

Furthermore, for payroll officers automation helps with calculating salary, leave balances, retirement contributions, and taxes, and with the single touch payroll system being mandated across Australia, the right software can keep all of this information updated in a timely manner. While the caveat of software that can automate many of these functions is that it is expensive, the investment pays off over time in terms of efficiency and productivity.

Streamline Any Tasks

Look at ways to automate tasks to reduce the amount of time you have to devote to payroll in a single week. In the best scenario, most of your time should be devoted toward correcting errors in the system and maintaining the system, as opposed to devoting a lot of time toward tasks that could be handled by the employees themselves or tasks that can be automated. The point is to reduce the amount of time and the number of steps it takes to complete payroll.

Making Payroll Efficient

Today’s payroll managers have so many tools at their hand when it comes to reducing inefficiency in the payroll process. When participating in a coordinated program that involves assessing and analysing current inefficiencies and then seeking the help of software experts, you can purchase programs that have adequate tools. Moreover, you can transition from a payroll office that is mired in inefficient and outdated technologies to one that focuses on finding ways to fine-tune these processes into a system that works for your business.

Tags: how to, improve, inefficient, payment, payroll, planning, process

About the Author

Sunit Nandi I'm the leader of Techno FAQ. Also an engineering college student with immense interest in science and technology. Other interests include literature, coin collecting, gardening and photography. Always wish to live life like there's no tomorrow.