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Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/588168
PAYROLL SYSTEMS Reviews 11 Professional Payroll Systems By Mary Girsch-Bock T here are 28 million small businesses in the United States – and they all need to process payroll. W hile many of those businesses are one-per son operations, there's still a tremendous opportunity available to accountants looking to boost revenue streams. It's not uncommon for small busi- ness owners to get tripped up when processing payroll. Payroll is a time consuming process, and many business owners balk when faced with the reality that paying employees is not simply writing a check, but also entails federal, state, and local pay roll ta xes, unemploy ment ta xes, workers compensation tracking, and now Afordable Care Act requirements that need to be managed. At this point, many business owners become much more amenable to outsourcing their payroll to a repu- table accounting frm. For accounting frms considering adding payroll to their suite of products that are ofered to clients, the payroll reviews this month will certainly come in handy. And for those already offering these services, it never hurts to see what's available. For frms not already ofering payroll to clients, there are several things that should be considered prior to implementing ser vice and choosing a payroll provider. Tese include: • W hat level of service do you want to provide? Will payroll services be provided in house, or will the entire process be outsourced? Making this decision early in the sof t ware purchase process will help narrow down the choices that will beter suit your needs. • System access and security levels will need to be determined as well. Do you want to ofer your clients complete access to the payroll process; including time entry and employee level access for payroll stubs and W-2's, or do you want to process payroll in your ofce and restrict outside access? • Do you have adequate personnel in the ofce to handle client payroll processing on top of other services currently ofered? W hile most systems are extremely time efective, and don't require a lot of data entry, there will be additional work that needs to be done. It's good to make sure that the resources are in place prior to starting a new service. • Do a trial run. Many payroll services are pro- vided on a subscription basis, so you won't fnd your frm out a lot of money if you do a trial run, and decide that processing payroll is not right for your frm at this time. Tat also provides an opportunity to 'get the bugs out' before ofering payroll processing services on a larger scale. • How much should you charge? Tis is another reason to start small. Will you charge a 'per- payroll' rate or a fat rate? Will you charge by employee? A trial run, with further examination afer a few months will help you determine price points, and if you're under or over-charging. In this review, we looked at a number of payroll products that are well suited to accounting frms. While many are specifcally designed for accoun- tants, others ofer comparable features, while also being suitable for use in businesses as well. For this review, we looked at the following areas: • Basic System Fu nc t ions – wh ich i ncludes ease-of-use, whether the product is designed for accounting professiona ls, and product sca l- ability. • Reporting and Monitoring – which looks at opt ions such as t he ava i labi l it y of due-date tracking or system reminders, tax fling options available, as well as the abilit y to customize system reports. • Integration/Import/Export – takes a look at how well the product integrates with modules from the same vendor, as well as third-part y appl ic at ion s . T h i s a rea a l so add resses t he availabilit y of Time Clock import, as well as what data import/export formats are available. • Help/Support – one of the most impor tant areas, and frequently overlooked by those in the market for sofware, we look at the availability of telephone and email support, user tools such as wizards, interactive help functionality, and whether an account rep is assigned to your frm. • Client Self Service Features – important for those looking to outsource payroll completely, this area looks at the availability of client and employee portals, and whether the option to brand the resultant product with a frm logo is available. • Advanced Features – this area looks at features such as the ability to handle union or certifed payrolls and the availability of HR tools. Whether you're looking for an in-house payroll system, or a web-based product, the products here are a great place to start, with many ofering free trials or demos to try out. 6 October 2015 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTIONS REPORTING & MONITORING INTEGRATION/ IMPORT/EXPORT HELP/ SUPPORT CLIENT SELF-SERVICE FEATURES ADVANCED FEATURES OVERALL RATING AccountantsWorld Payroll Relief Run, Powered by ADP – Payroll for Partners Advanced Micro Solutions – 1099 Forms Filer/Payroll N/A Cougar Mountain – Denali Payroll N/A Gusto Payroll Intuit Online Payroll for Accounting Professionals N/A Paychex – Paychex Flex Real Business Solutions – Payroll Mate N/A Red Wing Software - CenterPoint Payroll SurePayroll Thomson Reuters – Accounting CS Payroll