Payroll tasks can be time-consuming and complex. But a well-managed payroll system allows you to spend more time on revenue-generating activities and less on manual data entry.
Look for an online payroll platform that supports direct deposit. It offers a web-based employee self-service portal so staff can easily check their bank accounts, view paychecks, submit expense claims, and download payslips.
Easy-To-Use
Online payroll services give employees an easy-to-understand breakdown of wages, deductions, and payroll taxes. This increased transparency helps build trust between staff and management and can contribute to employee retention.
Many online payroll services make it easier to comply with state and local tax regulations by automating calculations, filings, and payments. This reduces the risk of costly mistakes and hefty fines often resulting from manual payroll processing.
Almost all online payroll systems are easy to use and require little training for new users. Most online payroll platforms come with direct deposit capability so employees can get their money immediately. Some also offer prepaid debit cards that provide instant access to employee funds. Additionally, these services integrate with accounting and time and attendance software so that the data from each can sync automatically. This saves restaurants much time and reduces the likelihood of errors.
Mobile-Friendly
An online payroll service helps you manage the process of paying employees. It takes your information about each employee — their wage rate, any deductions or benefits they have, and where they live — to calculate their paychecks each pay period. Then, the software withholds and pays local, state, and federal taxes on your behalf. It also fills out and files quarterly payroll tax reports.
The best online payroll services are optimized for mobile, with dedicated apps for administrators and employees. This makes it easy for employees to check and update their pay information from anywhere. Some even allow them to submit time-off requests with just a few taps.
A key feature to look for is how well a payroll software system keeps up with tax changes. As laws evolve, a business must stay compliant or risk costly penalties. That’s why finding a service that can automatically update and file forms for all types of specialty taxes, like local or municipal charges, is crucial.
Flexible
When choosing an online payroll system, look for one that offers a variety of reports to give you a clear picture of your business’s finances. The system should also allow you to customize these reports based on your needs and industry.
Some systems offer more than 160 reports, making it easy to analyze your wages, taxes, turnover, etc. You should also be able to easily integrate the system with other programs you use, such as accounting software.
Many payroll services also support direct deposit, which gets employees’ earned money into their bank accounts on payday. This eliminates the need for paper checks and saves time and money on processing fees for the company.
Other features include an employee self-service portal, which gives workers access to pay stubs or a blank pay stub form, tax documents, and other information. This can help boost engagement and improve customer service. Some systems also let users run unlimited monthly payroll cycles. This flexibility is important if your business’s payroll needs fluctuate. You should also be able to cancel your subscription or add additional payroll employees anytime.
Other features include an employee self-service portal, which gives workers access to pay stubs, tax documents, and other information. This can help boost engagement and improve customer service. Some systems also let users run unlimited monthly payroll cycles. This flexibility is important if your business’s payroll needs fluctuate. You should also be able to cancel your subscription or add additional payroll employees anytime.
Automated
Automating your entire accounting and payroll system will make things much easier. It’ll also reduce the time you and your HR team spend on manual payroll processes. While you’ll still need to manually input new hires and update details (should salaries, bonuses, or annual leave entitlement change), the system can automatically handle most of your payroll-related work.
Automated systems are better at math than humans, so they’re more likely to eliminate mistakes. They can quickly calculate deductions, overtime pay, and PTO while keeping track of commissions and wage rates. They can also keep up with changes to tax policy and calculate withholding taxes for each employee, eliminating the risk of costly errors when filing deadlines or calculating workers’ compensation payments.
Online payroll services that are fully automated also help your employees by making it easy for them to access their data. Through third-party portals or direct integrations, they can instantly access their pay stubs and tax documents from a centralized database. They can also easily edit their information like addresses or bank account details if they ever need to without bothering your HR department.
Secure
Hackers can find a treasure trove of information in your payroll system, including social security numbers, banking account numbers, pay stubs, and home addresses. Choosing an online payroll solution with security features in place is essential.
Your payroll software should use SSL and other encryption technologies to prevent unauthorized data snooping. It should also display a padlock symbol in the browser when your connection is secure, whether on desktop or mobile devices.
Remembering employees to use strong passwords with uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters is important. Requiring regular password changes can help, as well as requiring two-factor authentication.
A cloud-based payroll solution will be more secure than an on-site deployment, but you must ensure that the vendor diligently monitors their external storage systems. They must promptly clear out any files you mark for deletion to avoid them lingering as a potential security threat. The provider should also provide you with a detailed explanation of their security measures and be transparent about any previous security issues they have experienced.
