Xero’s New Payroll Feature Makes Life Easier For You And Your Employees

At the recent Xero conference in London, a very exciting thing happened.
We say exciting, but we know that as accountants, we possibly have different definitions of ‘exciting’ compared with you creative types.

But still, it was big news for us, and once we explain, it will be big news for you too.

A New Payroll Solution

Gary Turner, the Xero managing director, took to the stage and announced “the first seamless, all-in-one accounting and payroll solution.” It’s a brand new payroll system, which makes calculating and organising wages incredibly simple.

For the accounting world, it’s like the best thing sliced bread. Seriously, it’s like the pinnacle of creativity and innovation when it comes to payroll.

But where it really matters is for you.

For small creative agencies where time is money.

How Can It Help Small Creative Agencies?

From the words of the MD of Xero himself, payroll is painful. Sometimes it’s horrible.

It’s something no small business likes to do, and we’ve never really met anyone who enjoys doing payroll.

As Turner says,for SMEs payroll “is typically a costly, dry and time-consuming process…and small businesses have been waiting too long for companies to innovate in payroll and improve their experience, which up until now has been painful.”

But that’s all going to change.

Xero’s new payroll solution is going to make things a whole lot easier for small creative agencies.

Here’s what you’ll be able to do once you’ve got it.

1) Enjoy More Time

Looking after payroll isn’t much fun. It’s pretty much just boring and mundane. In fact at times, it’s a bit like watching paint dry, only you can’t leave it on its own.

You have to pay someone to sit and do it, and because you need to be accurate, this takes a lot of time.

If you or a member of your staff are managing any part of the payroll process, they’re likely wasting time that could be put to much better use somewhere else.

Well, with Xero’s automatic updates, you can do away with manual data entry and spend more time on your business!

2) Boost Productivity

With all the business finances in one place now, thanks to the fully integrated payroll software, everything you need can be automatically generated for you!

This means it’s super easy to work out net pay calculations, issue payslips and analyse gross! And for your employees, it’s even simpler to get P45s and P60s

These new Xero tools allow you to manage and monitor staffing costs on any device. And since it’s in the cloud, you can be wherever you want to be. Pub anyone?

3) Save some cash

For many businesses, payroll can typically be seen as an additional ‘cash-cow’ service which you have to add-on to any business bills. It’s not something you have the time, knowledge or inclination to do yourself, so it’s just one more thing you have to pay someone else for.

No-one likes paying for things when they shouldn’t have to.

So with the new payroll system from Xero, everything’s integrated in one system…and it’s FREE to Xero users! No additional outlay, for a great new system.

It’s almost as good as getting a free cake with your coffee.

4) Stop worrying about RTI

Payroll has always been difficult to manage and coordinate for many small businesses because of the regular changes to tax related earnings, and all the data which they are required to submit to HMRC.

Worry no more though, because the new Xero payroll solution links straight up to HMRC, delivering real time information each month, on things like student loan repayments and national insurance calculations.

And of course, all the data gets updated in your Xero account instantly, with no duplication issues.

5) Increase Employee Interaction

Xero’s friendly user interface extends to their new payroll system too. For your employees, this is great news.

They can apply for time off in the system directly and easily view their own pay history. You can utilise other employees to authorise leave for their colleagues in the same department, and can track absences with manager approval.

And for you the employer, it’s easy to make changes. So things like extra reimbursements for expenses, added on benefits, and adjustments on earnings are not a problem at all.

6) Benefit From Better All Round Integration And Communication

All in all, Xero’s payroll solution is just absolutely great. Working in collaboration with your accountant, it provides loads of capabilities to revolutionise your payroll process, streamlining everything to make for perfect, seamless integration with your creative agency.

It’s flexible and innovative and talks directly to Xero’s already brilliant accounting solution.

Basically, it’s just another reason why Xero is amazing, and why you’ll soon thank us for recommending it to you!