5 International payroll software benefits

Global payroll is inherently complicated—the number of employees, varying lawsand different cultural customs all add complexity. Most payroll professionalswould welcome a little more simplicity and time back in the day.

And technology may be on your side with international payroll softwareintegrations.

What is international payroll software?

International payroll software is a high-tech solution to the growingcomplexity problem in global payroll processing. It’s a program that connectsyour human resources and payroll systems to facilitate information sharing.

Adding the right international payroll software to your process can save a tonof time by automating manual tasks and reducing errors—ultimately helping youstay in compliance around the globe.

Time is money and payroll automation saves you both.

Time-saving perks of international payroll software

You’ve probably heard these lofty promises before about some hot new tech isgoing to change your business and save you a lot of money. But there are oftensignificant tradeoffs, and the actualized savings always falls a little shortof expectations.

Is international payroll software just one of these new, shiny objects withbig promises—or is it here to stay?

In 2020, the average global payroll department clocked 25 hours of overtime processing payroll. Thatwas before remote working during the pandemic complicated the process. What ifyou could eliminate that overtime entirely?

Here are a few specific examples of how international payroll software cansave you time and money.

1. Reporting

In the aftermath of a global pandemic that left its mark on the businessworld, everyone is buzzing about being more adaptable and agile. Businessleaders are invested in shoring up their business models, making sure they canweather the next storm.

At the same time, technology has evolved to help us turn all the data wecollect every day into actionable insights. Having the right data in the rightplace at the right time improves agility by allowing businesses to make betterdecisions, in less time.

International payroll software collects all the right data like labor hourtrends, the average rate of pay and financial projections—and gives backdigestible insights about your global workforce with the click of a button.

2. Filing

With important dates popping up quarterly (or monthly, in some cases), stayingon top of tax filings for international employees and contractors can getoverwhelming.

Instead of paying manual labor to fill out complicated tax forms and calculateaccurate numbers for estimated tax payments, the right international payrollsoftware can automate your filing processes. You’ll save time and the expenseof costly filing errors.

The right software will store historical filing data and effortlessly transferinformation where it’s needed. Your quarterly filings will feed right intoyour annual reconciliations, which means you’ll spend a lot less time lookingup data on old returns and double-checking numbers on filings.

And that’s time your personnel can spend doing more strategic tasks.

3. Reconciling non-labor payroll

If processing payroll was as straightforward as multiplying hours worked by aset wage, you might not need a complex software program to pay your employees.But running payroll has evolved to include dozens of different types ofcompensation.

Does your company currently have a good process in place for tracking othertypes of compensation, like:

• Commissions
• Overtime
• Bonuses
• Travel allowances
• Remote working allowances
• Paid time off
• Traditional benefits participation

International payroll software integrates tracking for all these differentpieces of your payroll program. Streamlining your data entry, tracking, andreporting options across your entire payroll system gets rid of the time suckcaused by duplicating the same work in different systems.

4. Monthly payroll processing

Take a moment to really think about everything that goes into processingpayroll.

The process begins by collecting lots of variable data from across theorganization. Timesheets, new hires, terminations, overtime slips, etc. createa constant flow of administrative work for your payroll department.

Then you have dozens of garnishments and thousands of tax withholdings toprocess. Even if all of the data is 100% accurate, this takes a significantamount of time. And only a slim 11% of global employersreport a truly functional, standardized payroll process across the board.

This means that 89% of global employers have room for improvement. Automatedpayroll via international payroll software reduces much of the manual laborthat slows down the payroll process.

5. Compliance

Compliance with all local laws is usually a top concern for global employers,considering that, year after year, the cost of non-compliance goes up. Andwhen it comes to payroll, it’s not just about taxes—newer regulations likeGDPR are piling on to the typical cost of non-compliance.

The average cost of non-compliance is now at an eyeball-popping sum of $14.8million dollars . The potential fallout from a compliancemisstep is a lot more than pocket change to even the most profitablebusinesses.

International payroll software automates nearly every process, from data entryto tracking and calculations. Investing in this technology takes the elementof human error out of the equation, which can save your company millions innon-compliance fines—and thousands of labor hours addressing those errors.

These software programs offer two levels of protection.

First, computer-generated calculations are precise and not susceptible tosimple mathematical mistakes. Second, when manual data entry is necessary,safeguards ensure consistency and accuracy. For example, the software maylimit the number of digits in a numerical field or display a pop up thatrequires a secondary confirmation before saving a newly entered value.

Save time with international payroll software

International payroll software is a staple that provides layers of time andcost-saving protection for your global business. These tools use automation insmart ways to eliminate errors and the time that you would otherwise spendfixing those errors. You can process more complex payroll needs in less timewith better accuracy—no matter where your workforce is across the globe.

If you’re ready to ditch these common payroll time sucks, partner with a Payroll 360 service to connect the dots between your integration needs and a capableinternational payroll software.