Whether you are a start-up or an established brand, small business owners wear a lot of hats. With limited staff and even less time on your hands, today’s growing businesses need to partner with a payroll provider that can do more than just cut a check. The right payroll company should be a welcomed relief to a number of arduous tasks associated with managing the human resource functions of your business.
What to Look for from a Payroll Partner
1) Automated Processing
Goes without saying, as a small business owner if you are shopping around for better payroll processing it had better be fast and easy. (Otherwise you’d just keep doing what you’ve been doing.) Automated online payroll is your best bet. A customizable set-it- and-forget-it payroll system can be a timesaver, and provide precision accuracy accompanied by a sigh of relief.
2) New Hire Reporting & Compliance
Oh the paperwork. Onboarding an employee entails a lot more than just saying “welcome to the team.” The administrative nightmare and paper-trail of compliance that follows can leave small business owners thinking twice about expanding their team. This stress can be alleviated with the right payroll system. Required electronic forms cued up at the ready, prepopulated data and online submission, and integrated tax features can replace mounds of files and IRS penalties.
3) Paid Time-Off (PTO) Management
Eventually, those hard-working team members of yours are going to want to take a day off. But keeping tabs on PTO is no vacation for small business owners. Take the burden off yourself. Find a payroll partner that offers online vacation requests and automatic withdraws of hours so you don’t have to spend extra time on calculating their time-off.
4) Easy Integration
Small to mid-sized businesses should look for a flexible payroll provider that can seamlessly integrate with other software solutions they use to run their business. Unless of course, you want to waste time with technological limitations that mean entering data in multiple places, risk gaps in communication that lead to pricey errors, and endure the stress of trying to keep pace with workforce trends. (Personal choice I guess.)
5) Accessibility
Don’t waste your time (or money) investing in a system that can’t accommodate a mobile workforce. Today’s on-the-go employees expect connected communications, and that includes access to their payroll information. The freedom to login from a device outside of your office, can increase your talent pool and allow you to expand your capabilities – a must for any company, especially smaller businesses.
6) Financial Reporting
“To comply or not to comply?” – asked no HR person ever. Because small business owners don’t have enough on their plate (pause for eyeroll), end-of-year and quarterly reporting will certainly fill up a corporate dance card and create one heck of a bottleneck in regular productivity. What you need is a payroll system that can be setup to automatically generate reports, offer analytics on demand, and feed this information in a timely fashion to the IRS. No question about it.
7) Security & Integrity
You’d think it would be a given. However, the biggest mistake small business owners make is entrusting a payroll service without due diligence. At first glance it’s appealing to select the least expensive option. However, that can end up a costly mistake. A payroll provider should be forthcoming about security protocols to protect your data. They should have an established reputation, should be recognized for excellence, and provide peace of mind.
Netchex is ideal for small business owners. It’s not just about running effective payroll, it’s about making it easier for you to manage your entire employee process, from recruiting to retirement. Which is why we offer flexible options for payroll processing with full client support, and complete integration. Netchex makes it easy for you to get you up and running and keep the focus on what’s really important to you – running your business.
Talk to us to find out how to put Netchex payroll services to work for your company. Take a look at our full suite of HCM solutions that grow with your business, including HR, compliance, benefits administration, and time & attendance, – all backed by top-tier experts and the best customer service in the industry.