Professional service companies play an important role in business life. Time and efficiency are so important in the business world, especially with so much competition in today’s commercial environment. Business needs to concentrate on development now that the economy is growing again, and using professional services to do some of the administrative tasks that are suitable for outsourcing makes perfect sense.
Payroll
One such task is payroll – a vital job that requires both efficiency and accuracy. Although there is software available to take care of many aspects of staff payroll, outsourcing specialists will require basic information on the staff and all new entrants and leavers in order to manage all aspects of the payroll and ensure that Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) receives timely returns and remittances. Every company has a statutory responsibility to provide returns to HMRC together with the tax and National Insurance owed. Using a third party to do the payroll does not change that ultimate responsibility but getting reliable professionals to do the work means there is little fear that things will go wrong.
Staff
In terms of each employee, their salary will be processed and the net amount transferred directly into their personal bank account on the due date. Their payslips can be sent by an email that is password protected so that no one else has access. Every employee needs to receive a document that provides evidence of their annual earnings for future reference – with a copy going to HMRC for their archives too.
Employment legislation is fairly complex. At every budget there can be changes in tax codes and personal allowances. These changes must be adopted on the agreed date. Companies like www.berkeleyhamilton.co.uk that have a whole section dedicated to payroll services make it their business to monitor such changes on behalf of their clients and implement them accordingly.
Confidential
There may be some company bosses that initially feel reluctant to hand any company information over to a third party, particularly sensitive information such as in the case of payroll. The answer to this is surely that it is likely to be more secure when done by a professional company relying on its reputation. Employees that have knowledge of company information are never duty bound to stay. If an employee is party to all the information regarding the salaries of everyone from the top downwards within a company, it can be potentially more sensitive than outsourcing that information.
It is likely that the cost of getting such services will be less than employing a full time wages clerk. That is a serious consideration in any business. In addition, companies who find themselves stretched yet do not want to take on more staff might be able to give themselves more breathing space by looking at the whole subject of outsourcing. Perhaps they should start with the payroll.
