Often companies move to the cloud in piecemeal stages, with some departments embracing the new technology quickly, while others wait to see the improved productivity take place before diving in.

Many payroll administrators are still wary of migrating their systems to the cloud from legacy systems. This is either due to the complexity of the information gathered or their fear that a cloud system can’t ensure the safety and privacy of personnel records.

These concerns are understandable, but luckily no longer relevant. Given the range of leading cloud-based payroll solutions that have proven to be secure and efficient, businesses stand to benefit hugely from migrating to a cloud-based payroll system. In addition to improving your company’s productivity, here are more benefits of moving to the cloud.  

Reduce Costs

All too often, an international business with presence in multiple regions has to contract external service providers in each country of operation to assist with local legislation. While staying on top of rules and regulations is crucial for compliance, managing the volumes of individual contracts requires a dedicated budget and team; and it’s incredibly costly.

A cloud-based payroll system with a robust global footprint enables you to centralise your HR and payroll functions. You can do away with an expensive spread of regional support and keep a closer eye on your operations from head office, all the while maintaining 100% compliance.

Improve Compliance

Expanding your business into new territories is an exciting yet challenging endeavour. Africa, for example, presents a continent of 54 countries all brimming with opportunities. However, each country also comes with its own very unique set of laws and languages. A cloud-based payroll system with the relevant regional scope can help you to navigate these new requirements, ensure that your new office is set up fast, and that it meets all of the local legal requirements.

Compliance is further improved thanks to automatic updates. Your cloud-based payroll system can be customised for your company’s specific focus areas, products and regions. So, should a change in important legislation occur in one country, the payroll service provider geared for that region will update accordingly. What’s more, the legislative update reflects on your payroll processes with immediate effect, ensuring that your processes maintain compliance at all times.

Enhance Accessibility and Flexibility

A major benefit of the cloud is that it enables colleagues on opposite sides of the world to work together. Armed with smart devices and internet connections, they can access important information, download documents like payslips and tax certificates, submit leave requests or expense claims instantly, and from anywhere.

A self-service platform will also enable employees to update their profile information as well as apply for leave without having to involve HR. All requests, concerns and questions can be tracked directly to managers, freeing up HR to focus on more strategy-related business tasks. Of course, should HR need to step-in at any point, they can log in, track the process of an issue and get up to speed very quickly.

Ensure Integration

Cloud-based solutions like PaySpace are customisable and easy to integrate with other cloud solutions. For example, PaySpace and Xero work seamlessly together, complementing each other’s functionality and providing the user with a superior experience.

There is no painful or laborious transfer of information. Data is automatically pushed and pulled between the systems, reflecting updates from both ends. This integration is particularly useful for payroll administrators who work with accounting or financial software. In fact, more and more accounting firms are taking advantage of the growing partnership between HR, payroll, and accounting software systems and are enjoying enhanced efficiency.

Manage Metrics and Data

Many payroll administrators need to keep track of multiple data points. A cloud-based system allows them to monitor information in real-time, with various ways of examining and presenting the relevant data to all stakeholders. Analytics reports can be generated quickly, whether for internal use or external compliance needs.

And, unlike legacy solutions, cloud-based systems eliminate the need for backups. Also, with the data in the cloud, the risk of information getting lost or damaged is much less. Contrary to what many companies may think, cloud technologies are very secure; only authorised users can access specific information. What’s more, a global payroll provider that is ISO27001 certified has the security knowledge and expertise to help keep corporate networks safe.

Forward-thinking companies can offer their payroll administrators a powerful, secure, and compliant tool by migrating to a cloud-based solution. It is an excellent move to reduce costs, increase productivity, and build a more agile payroll function that can keep up with your business’ growth and ambitions.