Solve the most common global payroll challenges! Companies that have offices in more than one country know how complex payroll systems in other countries can be. At first, it may seem easy to manage the wage of your own employees, but with a closer look at the legislation, you may face some challenges. In order to stay compliant and keep your employees happy, you need to be aware of different pitfalls. It quickly becomes costly if they are not considered early in the process.
Check out our list of the most common payroll challenges that come up when managing global pay. Learn now and avoid problems later.
#1 Challenge: Achieve Global Compliance
Are you a global business with locations worldwide? Then you probably know the challenge of staying on top of local legislation, varying tax payments & realising the complexity of different international reporting systems. Keeping track of these variables and making sure, that everyhing is running smoothly can result in a massive workload for your payroll experts.
Outsourcing your payroll to only one Global Payroll Partner- not one payroll provider per country- will be a great option. The partner will help you to optimise your processes, reduce time spent on payroll and guarantees you that you act according local regulations 24/7!
Top Tip: Make sure your chosen payroll partner covers all countries that you are operating in to avoid changing payroll partners later on.
#2 Challenge: Process Standardisation
Different providers in different countries call for different processes. Setting up a new employee, updating company data or managing payslip distribution could soon become a challenging task if more countries need to be managed. Considering that data analytics is playing a key role in many companies, different payroll provider‘s make this difficult. The use of different data formats will not allow for a simple comparison between locations. This will push many already very busy payroll teams beyond their capacity.
With only one Global Payroll Provider you can streamline your processes worldwide. While you take care of the front-end of caring for your employees and providing the necessary data to your provider, the global payroll service provider will take care of the back-end. They will manage documents, deadlines, tax & social security payments and providing you with a standardized & simple to analyse set of data.
Top Tip: Ask your potential global payroll provider about how they streamline their processes. Also, ask them how they will communicate with you in order to estimate the remaining workload for you.
#3 Challenge: Expansion into new Countries
Expanding into new countries where you have not yet had an entity will put you in unfamiliar situations. Common challenges are language barriers, compliance issues, necessity of setting up an entity or cultural differences. These can all create a barrier to entry if not considered right at the start of the expansion project. Such aspects must be clarified before sending off employees to ensure their salary & employment are compliant with the laws of the specific country.
If you choose a global payroll provider, they will manage that for you. You only provide the required data & information. A global partner can offer their in-country expertise and ensure a smooth implementation & transition phase.
Top Tip: Contact the Global Payroll Provider as early as possible. This allows them enough time to talk to authorities, set-up an entity or register your employees. Asking for a project implementation timeline will also offer you more clarity.
#4 Challenge: Data Security
Data Security has become one of the biggest challenges of businesses. Operating in a global world does not make this easier. Each country has different data privacy measures and not knowing them in detail can put you in massive trouble. Especially when it comes to sensitive employee data related to payroll.
A global payroll provider with local expertise will have the knowledge of data security processes in different countries. They will guarantee that your and the data of your employees is protected according to up-to-date standards.
Top Tip: Before signing a contract with a Global Payroll Partner be sure to request information about data privacy policies within the company.
#5 Challenge: Technology Integration
There is nothing worse than having to log into different portals and platforms in order to get all information you need. However, this is a massive problem for companies that do work together with separate payroll providers in different countries. Every provider has a different way of illustrating information. Some may be able to integrate their HR & Payroll software with the one you already use, but others won’t. This creates a complex system of providing and extracting data.
One global payroll provider may come to your rescue. They are able to provide you with a solution whereby all data is stored and accessible via one software. Depending on their utilized software, they will be able to integrate it with your software of choice.
Top Tip: Check in with your chosen global payroll provider and see whether their system can be integrated into your current IT infrastructure.
This post was written by Novative. They are an exhibitor on the HRTech247 Payroll, Time & Attendance floor in the Technology Hall here.
