Why integrate HR and Payroll
solutions?
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Integrating people management
The last few years have seen an increasing
trend towards greater integration between HR and payroll. Driven
by the need to increase efficiency and improve information sharing
this trend also reflects the desire to create much greater synergy
between the two functions. Sharing data and processes helps to
ensure that payroll and HR systems are synchronised and that everyone in
the business, whatever their role, has access to the most up to
date and accurate HR and payroll information.
Bringing
two vital functions together
Both HR and payroll have a vital role to play
but they do not always share the same priorities, which can lead to
issues. Mistakes such as employees being paid incorrectly, or in
the worst case, not at all, are highly visible and have the
potential to undermine employee relations which HR has worked hard
to build.
The payroll team, however, is very dependent
on accurate and timely information if they are to do their job
properly, and any time lag on the part of HR in providing
information about employees can lead to errors not of payroll’s
making.
Creating a
more unified approach
By creating an integrated system, in which
information and processes can be shared between the functions, the
two teams are able to work more closely together, building bridges
and helping them to focus on the joint goal of managing human
capital effectively.
Highlighting areas of overlap where both
functions rely on the same information also helps to streamline
processes and dramatically reduces duplication and error, while
introducing workflows that ensure everyone knows what is going on
will help to avert potential problems, keeping both teams in the
loop.
Reducing
administration
An integrated HR and payroll system works
harder for the organisation, allowing data to be entered once and
once only, reducing the administrative load and freeing up staff to
focus their time on the more strategic elements of both payroll and
HR.
At Sage we have found that those customers
using our SnowdropKCS integrated HR and Payroll
solutions can save up to 40 hours a week in administration,
effectively freeing up a whole person, which could equate to
between £17,000 and £25,000 in salary alone.
Introducing self service
An integrated system also makes it easier to
introduce self service functionality as data only needs to be
updated on to one database, and employees can view information
relating to pay, benefits, holiday entitlements, and anything else
they need all in one place.
As a result our customers have found that the
SnowdropKCS Self-Service
module can reduce administration by as much as 80%.
Encouraging greater
collaboration
Sharing data also increases the level of
collaboration between the two functions, reducing requests for
information and therefore the administrative load for both teams,
while also ensuring that management reports are entirely
consistent.
An integrated system can also clarify who has
responsibility for which specific areas, so that everyone knows
which data is the remit of HR and which of payroll, reducing
duplication and inconsistencies.
Ensuring
greater security
Integration also means that security can be
managed across both systems, ensuring that HR cannot change or
access information that is purely the remit of payroll and vice
versa.
At the same time everyone can have access to
everything they need and there is a single audit trail to keep
track of any and all changes.
Realtime
HR and payroll integration
One of the key features of the recently
released SnowdropKCS 2011 is the enhanced integration it delivers. In
recognition of the fact that there is simply no point in entering
and keeping HR and payroll data separately. This also allows data
entry to be shared across different areas of the business, evening
out the peaks and troughs depending on their workload.
In addition SnowdropKCS 2011
also offers greater integration with other Sage ERP solutions.
Information from the payroll about departmental and project costs,
for example, can now be shared with other Sage modules, such as
finance and project accounting, contributing to the creation of a
more integrated and easier to use business wide system.
The benefits of this kind of organisation wide
approach have led to over 70% of our HR and payroll customers using
SnowdropKCS Personnel, as
it helps them reduce administration while providing a platform for
planning for the future.
Taking a
strategic approach
The benefits of integration extend beyond the
practical impact on administration to the strategic role of HR and
payroll. Improving the flow of management information within the
organisation, integration enables the production of timely and
accurate management reports, while also helping to ensure that you
are utilising your HR and payroll departments as effectively as
possible.
Why
integrate?
- Eliminate the duplication of data
entry – Changes made to the shared HR and payroll database
need to be entered only once, reducing the workload by as much as
40 hours a week
- Reduce the amount of
paperwork - If HR, for example, creates a new employee
benefit, the payroll changes can be automatically established as
part of the benefit plan so there is no need to submit another
paper document to the payroll department
- Integrate your reporting -
Reports containing employee information and benefits data from HR
alongside pay data from payroll are only made easily possible an
integrated solution
- Create a better employee
experience - An integrated, self service solution means
that employees can easily access everything they need in one place,
reducing queries and increasing employee satisfaction
- Reduce errors - With a
single integrated solution there is much less chance of errors
occurring as data needs be entered once and once only and is then
available to whoever needs it
- Enhanced collaboration -
Clarifying the unique responsibilities of each function while
sharing data and processes helps to synchronise HR and payroll
functions while providing everyone in the business the most up to
date and accurate information