Better payroll tech means better workflow, savings (Web sight)

Millions of dollars could be saved

Organizations have reaped the benefits as payroll technology continues to improve. A streamlined payroll process can simplify procedures and improve workflow, contributing to huge savings in an organization. Larger companies can save millions of dollars a year by smoothing the flow of payroll data and increasing control and creating end-to-end owners of payroll processes, according to a white paper released by Atlanta-based market research firm The Hackett Group.

Lessons from Canadian employers
www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061128.tq-beingserved28/BNStory/GlobeTQ/home

This Globe and Mail article, “They are being served,” outlines how several Canadian employers are using new methods to improve payroll services. North York General Hospital in Toronto is using technology from Kronos to manage scheduling for its 3,000 employees. As hospital vice-president and CFO Corrine Wong said: “Relying on a non-system, paper-based approach is prone to human error. Messages written on Post-It notes can be easily lost or forgotten.” The article also looks at how Canadian retailer Holt Renfrew dealt with payroll adjustment troubles by using biometrics. The company implemented an integrated workforce management system from Toronto-based Workbrain Corp. and a time-and-attendance tool using the stores’ existing biometric identification system. When signing in, employees submit their fingerprints and “their information is captured by the system and compared to the schedule to ensure the appropriate person is on the job and on time. Employee sales activity throughout the day is recorded and integrated into the system.” There has been a “4.5-per-cent increase in payroll accuracy with an overall reduction in payroll costs of one per cent. The department also saves more than 40 hours of work each week in data ¬entry.”

Biometrics and Payroll
www.paypunch.com/paypunch_articles_recogsys.asp


PayPunch, a biometric time clock and attendance tracking system, takes a close look at the benefits of biometrics in “Payroll accuracy: Biometrics make the dream a reality.” The article investigates how biometric readers can identify workers by their unique physical characteristics such as fingerprints, retinal blood vessel patterns, iris features and hand size and shape. The author, who works for Recognition Systems Inc., says traditional identification methods such as badges, personal identification numbers and passwords aren’t secure since they can be used by other individuals at the company. “With biometrics, your body is your card. Eliminating cards and badges substantially reduces timekeeping costs.” The article looks at how to set up a biometric payroll system and how to add biometrics to an existing badge-based system.

Battling cheque fraud
www.adp.com/home/advisor/vol16no4/index.html

The ADP site takes a look at cheque fraud and the increased vulnerability of companies that issue paycheques in “Strategies for cutting the costs and reducing the risk of payroll cheque fraud.” The article suggests several strategies to deal with the problem, including using a “positive pay” system that requires software to transmit unique details about each cheque to the bank; using direct deposit; and using a secure payment method that eliminates exposure to external fraud. It states: “If you issue paycheques to your employees, your business is vulnerable to cheque fraud in the form of forged signatures, fake endorsements and counterfeit or altered cheques. The problem is more common than you may think. In a 2005 survey conducted by the Association of Financial Professionals, 52 per cent of respondents indicated that they had been victims of cheque fraud.”

Easing the administrative burden
www.talx.com/news/articles/BusFin_PayrollStrategies.pdf

Integrating and streamlining payroll systems can help organizations build efficiency and improve business strategy, says BusinessFinanceMag.com’s “6 strategies for payroll best practices.” By addressing an organization’s objectives, culture and industry, the administrative burden can be lifted and a substantial return on investment can be achieved. One of the six guidelines discusses integrating payroll with other systems and migrating to the web. Electronic time and attendance monitoring, HR, general ledger and tax reporting are usually controlled by separate applications but tying them together, often through a web interface, “can connect islands of automation and achieve significant performance gains.”

Ann Macaulay is a Toronto-based freelance editor and regular contributor to Canadian HR Reporter. Her Web Sight column appears regularly in the CloseUp section.

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