CIPP Consult: Delivering tailored solutions to the payroll profession
10 March 2014
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:
- How to get started on a global payroll project
- Identifying the right solution for your organisation
- Implementing your strategy
- Multi-country vendor management
For full details please visit the website, email us or call 0121 712 1000.