The business case for payroll outsourcing PayRoller's Vicki Gris discusses with Marcelo Concha – Co-Founder and CEO of Reo Group about determining if outsourcing the payroll function is right for your business. Business leaders must wear more and more hats today – you need to be a leader, a lawyer/industrial relations specialist, an accountant, a HR manager, a contracts expert, a marketing and digital media guru, a salesperson extraordinaire, a risk and compliance connoisseur, an IT and data security expert, and a psychological safety and wellness champion, to name a few. It is no wonder that business leaders and owners new and old, find themselves looking at what they can outsource to make their lives easier and to free them up to focus on what really matters. The payroll function ticks all the boxes. It is a complex, resource-heavy cost centre for a recruitment business. It requires fit for purpose systems, stringent processes, and experienced resources. The compliance and risk burdens are overwhelming. Keeping up with changing legislation and requirements (per State and Territory) is daunting and expensive.
Vicki Gris, Co-Founder and Strategic Director, PayRoller (APSCo Associate Partner), and Marcelo Concha Co-Founder and CEO, Reo Group
The consequences of getting it wrong are severe and potentially fatal to a business. Outsourcing this function seems like a no-brainer to the converted, however, this task should not be taken lightly. Provider due diligence is critical given the payroll compliance heavy space. Furthermore, providers should be viewed as business partners, rather than a commodity given that they are responsible for engaging, managing, and paying the workers that you have worked hard to source for your valued clients. Putting this specialised function in inexperienced hands will not achieve your goals of; minimised risk, simplification/process efficiency, cost effectiveness, improved service quality and contractor experience or allow you time to focus on your core business.
How do you know if outsourcing the payroll function is right for your business? How do you pick the right partner? Let’s ask someone who has been through the decision process and has come out the other side smiling – Marcelo Concha – Co-founder and CEO Reo Group. Vicki: Reo Group went from an in-house payroll function to an outsourced function partnering with PayRoller almost 2 years ago, can you tell us what your key drivers and considerations were? Marcelo: There were many factors in considering moving our in-house payroll function to an outsourced model. Top of the list was cost, which I needed to balance with risk. While the initial cost comparison would be different depending on how many contractors we have, RECRUITMENT & CO | 31
