Let’s face it. There are plenty of people who enjoy their job. But no matter how much you love what you do, you love payday even more. So payroll isn’t just another “to do” on your list, it’s the whole darn notebook! Because when your people like what they do, and get paid right, you’ve got a winning formula that equals engagement and retention.
In this blog, we’re going to take a look at just how important a smoothly-running global payroll department really is in terms of your team’s experience. But don’t worry, we’re not just here to guide you on how to do payroll, but how to do it well!
What’s payroll got to do with employee experience?
Why is payroll so important? Because your team’s experience is critical to your success. And you just can’t separate the two. When you’re on the ball with your payroll operations, your people will be engaged, and performance will flourish. If you’re missing pay and messing up time off, your people are going to be pretty annoyed. As a result you’ll see morale, and productivity, tank.
Accurate, timely payroll processing means that your team is paid correctly and on time. And it’s absolutely crucial if you want to keep your people happy and engaged.
Payroll impacts every area of employee experience
A payroll machine that runs smoothly is directly correlated with your people’s satisfaction, engagement and motivation. Let’s have a look at just a few of the areas that payroll affects:
Financial security and stability
Your people have mouths to feed and bills to pay. Being paid on time, in the correct amount means that they keep a roof over their family’s head and can provide three square meals a day. Mess up your team’s pay and you’ll cause untold stress. Not only does pay cover the bare necessities of their lives, it also helps your people to plan for the future. Being financially secure reduces stress and frees up your team’s minds to focus on the task at hand. And what does that mean? Productivity and higher job satisfaction!
Trust and transparency
Trust. It’s a vital component of ensuring a more-than-satisfactory experience for your team. Your payroll should be handled in a way that builds trust and demonstrates transparency. Being totally transparent with payroll procedures and how your team’s compensation is calculated fosters trust within your organisation.
When your team trusts you, they’ll feel valued and they’re much more likely to enjoy and be engaged with their work. If they know you’re trustworthy, they’ll be loyal and stick around because working for you is such a joy.
Recognition and rewards
When it comes to bonuses, incentives and performance-based pay – payroll plays a part too! Recognising and rewarding your team is vital to motivate them and show that you value them. Putting all this good stuff through the payroll will give your people a spring in their step. And we all know what that means…a healthy boost to morale, better performance and employee engagement that’s skyrocketing.
Compliance
When your team sees that you’re complying with your numerous legal obligations (like granting them their rights to paid time off, minimum wage, maternity and paternity leave for example), they’re way more likely to trust you and you know, be confident that you’re not going to end up being fined to the hilt and laying off staff for failure to comply with local regulations. Trust and confidence, all that good stuff, helps your people feel like their rights and wellbeing matters to your organisation. A valued workforce means a satisfied, smiley (we hope!) and engaged workforce.
Accuracy and reliability
Making mistakes or making your team wait for pay makes for particularly dissatisfied people. If you want to avoid the death knell of overpayment, underpayment or incorrect deductions, you’re going to need to make sure your payroll processing is completely and utterly accurate, one hundred percent of the time. When your people can trust you to deliver the correct pay and benefits, on time (every time!), they’re going to be able to rely on you. Again, trust and reliability = a motivated team who are satisfied at work.
Employee benefits administration
It’s not just the basics that need to be right. Part of retaining talent is managing the perks that come with working for your organisation. Whether these are the statutory benefits, like paid time off or the extras like health insurance, or the nice extras that you use to sweeten the feels, managing global employee benefits efficiently through the payroll ensures that your people actually get what they’re entitled to. On time, with no problems. When your team gets access to a decent and well-managed benefits package, guess what? They’ll be more satisfied, motivated and able to achieve a steady work-life balance—which again, helps to contribute to robust team engagement and feeling motivated on the job.
How to manage your global payroll
Getting all of this stuff right when you’re based in one country or region is challenging enough, but making sure it runs like clockwork over various continents is a whole new struggle. And when you’re a global organisation, global employee experience is key. Because we love the world of HR and payroll, we’d love to share some tips and best practices when it comes to managing it all.
Standardise your payroll processes
It’s so much easier to have an accurate and effective payroll department if your processes are consistent and uniform across the board. So whether it’s onboarding new talent, managing your team’s payslips or basic data input…standardise, standardise, standardise!
Keep up to date
We know you know your onions… but it can’t be said too often. Keep up to date.
Local laws and regs change at the drop of a hat and woe betide you if you get left behind, because you’ll be falling foul of compliance. Things change quickly in the global landscape, so keep an eagle eye on all of it. It helps to partner with a payroll provider in the know who’ll keep you on track with all things compliance.
Centralise your payroll data
Centralising your payroll means you can manage all of your payroll operations in one platform. Across the board you’ll have the same processes and procedures – no matter the country or jurisdiction where your team gets paid. It also means all your data is in one place, your processes are super slick and your data is above all safe and secure.
Have accurate employee data
This is an obvious but massively important practice. Make sure you have the CORRECT info for all of your people. Inaccuracy can lead to people not getting paid the right amount (amongst other things), or worse – not getting paid at all. And we know you don’t need that hassle.
Secure your data
Your global payroll data is a fraudster’s dream. So, it goes without saying that you need to be particularly careful when it comes to protecting your sensitive data. Failing to keep it safe and secure can have damaging consequences for your people and your organisation as a whole. You’ll need encrypted data transmissions, virus software, cybersecurity training for your team and ultra-secure data storage. And if you’re partnering with a payroll provider, make sure their security credentials are legit and they have the necessary certifications?
Audit
Monitoring internal compliance by conducting internal audits makes sure that your people are doing things the right way. An audit itself makes sure that everything is in place, but continuous monitoring will allow you to find out if your team is actually following the policies to the letter. Then there’s reconciliation. Are you matching your current payroll figures with those listed in the ledger? If so, great! If not, get on it, because it’ll really help in your audits and with compliance.
Let your employee's self-serve
Give your people access to their job-related and personal info so they can manage it for themselves. We’re talking about things like access to payslips, pay information, holiday requests and more. It’ll make their lives easier (and yours!). Self-service means less admin for you, better efficiency, communication and compliance. Also, it helps with employee satisfaction, too, because you’re giving them the power and autonomy over their information and situation.
Communicate
Keep your people in the loop! If you communicate frequently with your people, they’re going to feel included and like they can trust you. Which in turn will increase engagement and job satisfaction. If you communicate what your organisation is trying to achieve and how each team member plays a meaningful part in that—you’re onto a winner.
Outsource your payroll
One super-efficient way to manage your payroll is to get someone else to do it! That’s right, outsourcing your payroll means your payroll will run smoothly, accurately and your people will get paid on time, no matter where they work. It takes the burden off you, so you’re more able to focus on core operations for your organisation.
The three Cs
With all that being said, the backbone of any on-it payroll department is the Three Cs: Communication, collaboration and continuous improvement. When the channels of communication are open and flowing clearly both ways, when everybody is working together with the aim of continually evolving as individuals and as a whole—that’s where the magic happens.
Isn’t global payroll great?
If your people are the beating heart of your organisation, HR and payroll are the lungs. You all really need each other! So why not get a breath of fresh air into your HR and payroll systems by outsourcing it all to us?
Here at Cintra Global, we’ll make sure your global payroll is accurate, timely and compliant. We’ll also help you hire, engage and manage a happy, productive global team. How does that sound?
Partnering with us brings together all of your global payroll and HR requirements in one handy central platform. Whatever you need, we’ll take care of it for you. Here’s a slice of what we offer:
- Initial set-up
- Employee onboarding and offboarding
- Total compliance management
- Payroll reporting
- Payroll compliance filings
- Payslip creation and delivery
- Employee self-service payslips and documents
- Holiday and absence bookings
- Full payment management
If you’re itching with excitement at the thought of having global HR and payroll off your plate (and even if you’re not)—get in touch with us today!
