Delivering tailored solutions to the payroll profession

12 February 2014

Delivering tailored solutions to the payroll profession

CIPP Consult is a wholly owned subsidiary of the CIPP. Our consultants are all professionally qualified people with experience of delivering payroll services and solutions to organisations ranging in both size and sector.

We pride ourselves on building long term relationships with our clients so they come back to us with repeat business. They are assured of a high quality service delivery and we provide a fresh impartial perspective on the “payroll function” which will help the organisation in driving the payroll department forward.

We will work with you to understand your needs
We will propose a tailored solution to fit the requirement of the client
We will give a clear statement of our terms of business and the arrangements under which we work
We will hold regular contract review meetings to ensure satisfaction

Some of the many services we are able to offer:

Benchmarking
Data/work flow analysis
Expenses & benefits “health checks”
Implementation
Interim management
Invitations to tender documents
New payroll/HR solutions
Outsourcing
Payroll “health checks”
Payroll procedures manuals
Payroll specifications
Project management
Risk assessment
Global payroll

Benchmarking – Is your payroll function cost effective?

Do you know what the cost per payslip is and have you calculated this having entered all of the relevant information?

We can carry out a comprehensive benchmarking exercise for you. Firstly you will need to complete a comprehensive questionnaire about the company’s payroll system, working practices and costs.

This data will be entered into an existing database of information owned by CIPP Consult. The data will then be analysed and the relative performance results reported.

We will produce an analysis of:

Cost per payslip
Cost per employee
IT cost per payslip
Labour cost per payslip
Workload statistics
Staffing structures
Quality of work statistics

Data/work flow analysis

Employment law states that employees have the right to be paid “on time and accurately”. Payroll departments are very aware of this and often their sole focus is directed at achieving this therefore very rarely do payroll administrators have the time to take a step back and look at the workflow processes within the department. CIPP Consult specialises in this type of exercise and has carried it out for many organisations. We look at the payroll (and often HR) operation from an independent view point and are able to put forward new and innovative ideas to bring the payroll function up to date.

We will provide a comprehensive report following our assessment of:

The payroll department’s working practices
The type of payroll documentation that is in circulation throughout the organisation
How data flows into the payroll department (where applicable speaking with external departments, locations or clients)
How data flows from the payroll department
Duplication of effort
The organisational structure of the payroll department
Work allocations
Cut off dates in relation to the whole of the organisation

Payroll health checks

As a manager you are probably aware that your procedures and processes could be better but being under constant pressure to produce the payroll doesn’t leave you that much time to spare. Do you have doubts about your payroll standing the scrutiny of an HMRC Compliance Audit without penalties being levied? Are you aware that other departments within the organisation are deliberately flouting the procedures set down in order to minimise compliance issues? Often when an external company is brought in to look at these issues senior management take more notice than if someone carries out the exercise internally. Why not allow us to help you by carrying out a payroll health check.

We will provide you with a comprehensive report following an in-depth assessment of:

Compliance with HMRC and National Insurance legislation
Compliance with SSP legislation
Compliance with SMP/SAP/SPP legislation
Compliance with expenses and benefits legislation
Compliance with the data protection act

Outsourcing or looking for a new payroll or payroll/HR solution

The strategic decision to either outsource the payroll or look for a new payroll or payroll/HR solution is usually made at senior management level. This decision is made without giving any real consideration to the practicalities of how it will be done, the length of time involved and the pressure it will put the payroll department under whilst the project is on going. Having many years experience of dealing with this type of project CIPP Consult can assist companies with:

An in-depth evaluation of existing systems and procedures
An investigation into long term requirements of the organisation
The writing of a detailed specification taking into account “nice to have” and “need to have”
The preparation of invitations to tender (ITT’s)
Analysis and evaluation of tender responses
Information about software systems that will fulfil your requirements
Advice on the best selection and demonstration methodology
Advice and/or participation in implementation planning
Advice and/or participation in acceptance Testing
Advice and/or participation in parallel running

We are also able to:

Act as an independent advisor attending project meetings with the outsource provider
Supply qualified consultants to work as part of the project team for part of or throughout the whole of the implementation

Project management

Project management is one of those jobs that is often allocated to someone within the organisation who either has an interest in the project or is thought to have the time to spare to oversee what is going on. Very rarely are they given the job in isolation. They are expected to carry out their routine work in addition to managing the project. The responsibilities in managing a project cannot be under estimated and it is fair to say that in the majority of cases, people struggle to do both jobs.

A survey concerning “people and technology” was carried out across the public, private and voluntary sectors and the following results were published:

15% found their development and implementation project ran over budget
33% found it did not come in one time with an average delay of 7 months
Only 50% of those charged with bringing in the project were trained in project management
Fewer than 50% were trained in contract or supplier management
Only 40% of those surveyed tested the system or evaluated it in full after the implementation was completed

The responsibility of a project manager is to bring the project in “on time” and “within budge”.

We can provide experienced consultants, some of who are trained in the Prince methodology to:

Lead a team of professionals
Produce, amend and update project schedules
Control and monitor the project including project budget management
Chair regular project meetings and steering groups
Effect and manage change control
Carry out contract negotiations with third party implementation partners
Produce remedial plans for projects that are over budget and out of scope
The responsibility of a project manager is to bring the project in “on time” and “within budge”

Global payroll strategies

For organisations that operate in more than one country we have consultants who can guide you through the complexities of managing overseas payrolls from all areas of the world. CIPP Consult can also call upon our sister organisations around the world to ensure we have the right support to help you in a very complex area. Our consultants have masses of experience covering the following areas: