Finding an appropriate payroll software platform gives you the freedom to operate with efficiency and control while provide a solid financial grounding to improve your business.

However, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when looking at the options available, resulting in analysis paralysis and a delay to deployment.

So, what is essential to look for in a platform and what options could be a good choice?

What is payroll software?

Payroll software is used by recruitment agencies to manage and simplify the employee payroll process. It’s a proven way to reducing errors and increasing efficiency within your business – using automated tasks to ensure nothing is missed and ensuring that staff and contractors are paid the correct amount, and on time.

Reliable payroll systems will usually be fully customisable and can be tailored to the needs of your agency, with elements easily added or removed as required – growing and evolving as your recruitment business adapts to changes in the industry.

What should you look for?

When it comes to picking out the right tool for your business, it’s important to understand why you need it and the core functionality you’re are looking for.

That should start by reviewing your current system and process from end to end, detailing where your workflow is slowing down and identifying areas for potential improvement.

Once you understand what you need, it’s important to be aware of key attributes that are essential to seek out.

While every recruitment agency has its own bespoke requirements, some aspects to look for include:

Flexibility: A system should allow you to dictate how it is deployed while fitting your existing processes, and not the other way around. Being able to change, or modify, your solution will permit you to be responsive to changes in the market, accommodating requests from new clients or exploiting opportunities in the industry.

You should ask: To what degree can the system be customised and changed?

Scalability: With care, combined with good planning, your company can grow and move from strength to strength. As you scale and expand, you will need a modular solution that can adjust smoothly to match your requirements and size. That can include allowing for efficient account creation and customised workflows.

You should ask: How can the system and its setup grow and change with us?

Being fit-for-purpose: Once you have identified obstacles blocking your path, validate that the proposed system addresses them. That can be as simple as taking the stress out of pain points, streamlining multi-step processes, or providing automated assistance for reminders and reconciliation.

You should ask: How does this directly and meaningfully resolve the issue we have identified?

Pricing: It is important to strike a balance between cost-effectiveness and utility. While some packages offer generous onboarding options, it’s vital to look at long-term costs and the degree of reliance your business places on the system. It can be easy to find yourself ‘locked’ into one after it’s been activated, making it financially prohibitive to change.

You should ask: What subscription packages you offer and what steps are involved if we decided to terminate our contract?

What is the best payroll software for recruitment agencies?

Our Practical Software payroll package has been designed by a highly specialised team of contractor and recruitment professionals, with the aim to reduce payroll paperwork and save costs.

Custom built to support recruitment agencies; our platform is designed by teams that understand the obstacles modern agencies face. Our highly seasoned team prides itself on providing a service that deals with the time-consuming minutiae that professionals experience, making payments and deductions straightforward. It gives you full control over reporting, the capacity to auto-generate P45s and P60s and much more – making it a truly fit-for-purpose solution.

What next?

If you want to learn more about the options available to support your business, the team at Practical Software is here to help.

With comprehensive experience operating in the sector, we work with you to understand your specific business needs and ensure you can deploy a solution that is truly fit-for-purpose.

You can learn more about our platform by reviewing our solutions in detail from here.

Or, if you have specific questions, do not hesitate to contact us directly and let us know exactly what you need for effective, efficient deployment.