In an ever-changing world, the area of recruitment, training, development, and vitally retention have become more important than ever. We see more and more employers, especially in the bureau sector now having to consider how their starter recruitment will look, whether it be inexperienced staff they can train and mould, or those with a history in the industry who bring currently required and possibly new skills to the team.

But this is only a small part of the story. Depending on the size of the team it can be even more important to develop staff, increase motivation, and invest in their progress given the current tenure in payroll averages alarmingly at approximately two and a half years.

So, we are going to review all key areas of development along with the tools and options open to the payroll manager.

What is the make-up of your staff? We can break this down into three key categories to try and understand the team.

Firstly, the new joiner you have recruited with little or no payroll experience. The advantage here is giving you the opportunity to mould the individual and their knowledge to your needs. They come with no premise or habits and bring an open mind to what can be such a rewarding role and career.

The likely hood is initial cost and salary will be lower, but you must consider and balance this to the higher costs in respect of their training, developing and possible mentoring, along with the lower initial possible work output as they get up to speed with requirements.

As such your checklist is: What core payroll training do they need? What systems training is required? What soft skills and business training must be given?

Secondly comes the “land running” option, and this can be driven by the level of employee you wish to take on.

There are considerations here around exactly what skills you need and what the individual can bring. Are you looking for day-to-day ability with your software and payroll system, perhaps it is down to legislative knowledge, supervisory or managerial experience, or are you looking for skills you do not have or are limited in the current team. Especially with what is happening in the coming years, benefit knowledge and P11D administration could be a key facit to your decision.

Your checklist here is: What new skills do they bring with them to the team? What processes or systems do they need to learn that are different? How do I evaluate the knowledge that they say they have?

Thirdly and probably more importantly as a group are your current team. They know your process, your procedures, and your systems, but where are they going, what do they need, and how do you motivate and invest in them to ensure you are their employer of choice?

Your final checklist is: How do I improve the knowledge that they have? How do I keep the staff up-to-date? How do I expand their role and ability?

And on the back of all three groups the big question could also be: What does appraisal and their Personal Development Plan look like?

When it comes to payroll, nobody is ever finished!

Whether it be understanding and learning new skills, improving and expanding on knowledge, or considering and integrating new technology and process, the world of payroll is an ever shifting and changing arena with new areas to consider almost daily.

So, not only do we need to continue to move and learn with the times and ensure we have a way of getting the information we need, but just as importantly, how do we assess and evaluate the level of knowledge within the team and that we’re remaining compliant?  

Going back to the earlier statement, do we actually have the skill sets to ensure we are able to manage and correctly administrate all areas of the role especially given the ever-expanding nature of payroll? Ten years ago, it would not be uncommon for HR and Payroll to be not only in separate offices, but separate buildings. But today, if you consider the roles in a venn diagram the overlap is becoming greater and greater, so it is imperative that there is co-ordination between the two.

Just consider a number of key areas where change has occurred such as pensions especially since auto enrolment, the ever-changing area of employment, employment rights, and flexible working, and of course the possible transition of roles and skills within those non-cash benefits  – and we are not even touching international and global delivery!

So, how do we learn and improve?

One of the amazing positives within our industry is the wealth of support and learning facilities that are available to all from a number of providers, and as a manager or learner some of the important considerations could be time, cost, resource, and how does somebody learn and achieve not only to add value but in a way that matches their learning style.

For some, tutor led Face to face or virtual training is the answer, not only learning from the tutor’s skills but having the option to ask questions and get clarification throughout the training. Some learn better in an independent environment, so E-Learning including A.I. derivatives could be their choice.

Some enjoy a more academic route meaning that qualifications could be a path they follow, whether that be around core knowledge or supervisory or management skills supporting by accredited courses through learning platforms.  These in the main are know distance learning giving the payroller the opportunity to fit this around their already busy life!

The payroll journey and the required skills are continually changing – just think about technology as an example and how we incorporate this into our procedures and processes. If you would have said the words Cloud technology in payroll twenty years ago, nobody would have had a clue what you were talking about..

Just as importantly, away from individual development is the question of team knowledge and having the ability to put a strategy in place for the future. Here we can look at a number of important tools that are a vital element to the successful running of a team.

Whether it be prior to the start of a new tax year and taking an annual Payroll Update Course to understanding new and future changes, public or membership webinars on key subjects to give you further opportunities to understand the detail of change and to have the platform to ask questions, public or membership blogs, newsletters, or magazines which can be an easy way of learning that fits into an every busier day. All these avenues are open to all with limited resource and requirement needed.

Membership options with the likes of The Payroll Centre or CIPP give you the availability of helpdesk Support. As we’ve already mentioned, nobodies an island, and there’s always going to be an area where you need support in answering those complicated questions, even if it’s just a case that you know the answer, you just want it confirmed by somebody else!

But expanding past the industry support, a vital aspect of our role falls to the government and its business departments. Whether that is HMRC, the DWP, or the DBT to name just three, having access to their webinars, updates, and bulletins in today’s world is non-negotiable.

Just as importantly, moving away from rules and regulation, we must never forget those further business skills and their development within the team. So, consider actual payroll subjects to increase knowledge – e.g., benefits, pensions, International and alike.

Consider your systems, training and super user ability – do you have a system champion who works with your provider ensuring not only that you understand and have a development path to what’s going to be changed, but you have a say with them on what you want the system to do.

Consider what is important internally, some key areas of review and possible inclusion could be procedures, manuals, security, audit skills, and disaster management and recovery.

And finally, those soft skills and other systems used. Staff want to improve, they want to learn more, and they want to be better so wherever possible, remove the leash, and why not ask them what they want?

But what is the final ingredient?

Staff can go on numerous courses, read every update, and take a number of qualifications, but as a manager what’s key to know is what have they actually learnt and for this we’re really talking about confirmation and assessment.

Key Performance Indicators and general feedback are going to be a great start point, but more structured feedback could and should be needed and for this there are a number of paths depending how you want that assessment to be based.

As a team you have several options taking you to possibly a CIPP Payroll Assurance Scheme where you review and become certified as a team that you have effective process and are managing compliance to the highest level.

On an individual basis it may be the area of knowledge that is key to you, and this is where the Payroll Centre’s ACT solution could well come in, giving you the ability to understand their knowledge levels and shortfalls and give you the tools to educate and improve.

There are numerous options open to you, but importantly you should never “take your foot off the gas.” People want to learn, they want to develop, and they want to achieve the best for themselves and the business, and that opportunity is in your hands.