For all its seeming simplicity, payroll has never been one of the easiest tasks to accomplish. Companies have struggled for decades to make it more efficient and cost-effective. While the advent of automation and computers has indisputably helped the situation, it is only the prospect of fulfilling payroll in a “cloud” environment that may truly make this process as effortless and convenient as it should be. Doubters may be skeptical but here are six reasons for migrating your company’s payroll to the cloud:
Improved Quality – Ask any payroll manager or subcontractor and he’ll tell you that payroll is all about getting it right the first time. Even if your company has provided reliable payrolls for years, one glitch can land a company on the wrong side of employee temperament and then morale, productivity and even recruiting can suffer. In short, employees want to be paid correctly and on time.
Cloud computing addresses this issue with the latest in technology and user experiences. Innovations can be implemented faster in the cloud so that your company can change with the expectations of your employees. This fact will improve overall user experiences and satisfaction levels across the entire company.
Flexibility of Response – Cloud solutions are designed to be modular and scalable. A company can avail itself of only the products it needs when it needs them, expand or contract when the situation demands and seamlessly upgrade when technology improves. These benefits are provided by a SaaS solution without the concomitant demands of a fluctuating payroll.
Similarly, a cloud solution can service varying payroll needs across different municipalities, states and, indeed, countries. In short, the flexibility of a cloud solution is unmatched by an in-house solution, no matter how robust.
Cost Optimization – The ultimate point of any new initiative is either a revenue gain or a cost reduction. Cloud computing solutions, in general, and payroll-related ones, in particular, allow companies to reduce their payroll costs for non-functions. Employees are then free to concentrate on strategic initiatives that will grow the company as whole. In addition, software as a service (SaaS) solutions are implemented far faster, are more easily upgraded and require far fewer maintenance resources.
Superior Control – With an in-house solution, payroll does not always get the attention it deserves. Instead, it is often be seen as a necessary evil – albeit an important one – but the day-to-day tedium and bi-weekly rush required for accuracy and compliance can often overwhelm an HR department. In this scenario, many companies lose control over the payroll process and don’t even realize the costs until it is too late.
Cloud computing delivers better control because more and better resources are directed at issues such as updates, upgrades and expansions. The costs for individual clients are contained because they are spread over numerous clients. As an added bonus, a cloud solution provides a more accessible platform where information is available anywhere and at any time to authorized individuals with an Internet connection.
Mitigation of Risk – Similarly, the security of the system on a cloud payroll platform, both physical and technological, can be amortized across numerous clients allowing for better overall security than can be provided by an in-house solution. These benefits extend across such matters as offsite access controls, backup and recovery, and denial of service attacks.
With a vast array of clients, most SaaS providers are subjected to numerous requests for audits and other reports from their clients which results in many eyes continuously testing and improving the system against hacker attacks and government watchdogs. It is a self-correcting mechanism that no in-house HR department can replicate.
The Bottom Line – Whether the source is a government agency, company management or the employees themselves, 21st century payroll systems continually make ever greater demands on their resources. Companies with in house solutions will continue to struggle until they finally realize the error of their ways.
Cloud payroll solutions are simply the only way to cost-effectively manage payroll systems for even mid-size companies that integrate exempt and non-exempt employees, multiple jurisdictions and ongoing governmental changes. So, get that head of yours in the clouds and take a look.
Read more about how in house HRIS stands up to SaaS…
We could say, cloud payroll solutions are simply the only way to cost-effectively manage payroll systems for small business. Well researched article and keep sharing !!!