5 reasons to consider cloud payroll for your practice

Canadian accountants and bookkeepers have turned their focus to cloud-enabled software because they need flexible and agile financial applications that are easy to manage, affordable, and scalable.

This demand for cloud-based financial applications continues to grow because of the ability to access data in real time and from any location. Cloud systems also drive higher ROI through time savings and process efficiencies.

HR solutions such as payroll have also taken to the cloud.

Offering HR services such as payroll runs will create an ongoing, additional source of revenue. Cloud-based payroll solutions enable accounting professionals to offer HR management services to clients who don’t have the capacity to perform HR functions in-house (or simply prefer someone else does it).

Putting payroll and accounting systems together in the cloud can really simplify your life.

Discover 5 reasons you might like to consider adding cloud payroll software in your accounting or bookkeeping practice.

1. You can access payroll data remotely in the cloud

One of the biggest advantages of cloud-based software is the ability to work remotely.

You and your clients will enjoy anytime, anywhere access to payroll data. No longer tied to your office or desktop software, working in the cloud creates so many options to work remotely and use any device you want.

Other perks of working in the cloud include:

• Best-in-class data encryption and online security features will keep sensitive client and employee information safe and secure. You can manage who has access to your data.
• The cloud facilitates better collaboration when your team members (and clients) can instantly access the payroll information they need.
• There’s less room for error as data is automatically saved and backed-up to the cloud, which means the latest data is being used to ensure accurate payroll runs.
• No software installations are needed because the software is always up-to-date and compliant with the latest legislative changes.

2. Employees can self-manage their information

The cloud is very good at reducing your administrative tasks.

For example, one of the features of cloud-based solutions like Sage Payroll is the employee self-serve portal.

It provides your clients’ employees with a secure app to submit their hours worked, request time off, and modify their personal information.

In addition to reducing admin time for you and your team (no more manual timesheets), the employee-self-service portal will:

• Support an easier time tracking experience because employees can enter hours worked directly through the portal.
• Enable employees to access their pay details online using a desktop computer, laptop, mobile phone, or tablet — instead of receiving a physical piece of paper.
• Give employees better choices — by selecting one of the e-Payment methods (digital cheque or direct deposit), employees can choose how they want to be paid and enter their bank details directly in the portal.

3. It will make your business more environmentally friendly

Automation features found in cloud-based software applications are designed to reduce manual processes and save your business time, effort, money — and paper.

For example, with cloud-based payroll software you can issue digital cheques to pay client employees at no extra cost and reduce or even eliminate paper-based paycheques and pay slips — which is welcome news for the environment, and anyone in your organization who cares about it.

Using the cloud also increases security because digital payment eliminates the possibility of printed employee cheques or information left lying around on desks or trash bins.

Eliminating paper cheques also saves money and time because you no longer have to purchase custom printed cheques and then write, track, and reconcile them. No more bank fees to process those paper cheques, either.

Beyond cheques and pay slips, working in the cloud will eliminate many time-consuming paper-based manual activities — such as physically tracking employee hours worked and then manually inputting time sheet entries into payroll software. By using the cloud portal for time tracking, employees can simply login and enter their hours.

4. Cloud payroll software integrates with accounting software

Perhaps the biggest benefit of working in the cloud is the ease of integration with other applications you already use.

Easy integration comes with the territory in the cloud. APIs and web services enable cloud systems to integrate with one another so your practice can use the best applications for each functional area of the business — for example, Sage Payroll integrates seamlessly with Sage accounting.

Harmony between payroll and finance makes sense in so many ways:

• Automatically sync your payroll data directly into your journal to minimize data entry errors and maintain clear view of your client’s business.
• Access a full view of your client’s finances with everything in one place, so you can deliver valuable insight, reporting, and advice

• Leverage the power of an integrated HR solution to better manage payroll and HR workflows in one single place with different HR modules you can add on.

No more jumping from one software application to another to retrieve or enter payroll data.

Sage Payroll includes basic Sage HR functionality for free including features like leave management, time tracking, document management, and access to the Sage HR app. Learn more about Sage HR and what it can do for your clients.

5. In the cloud, you only pay for what you use

Scaling up the services you need is incredibly easy (and affordable) with cloud-based software.

As your practice grows with more clients — or your clients grow with more employees — you can simply add to your subscription.

For example, whether your client has 100 employees or just one, Sage Payroll allows you to scale up or down on demand and pay only for what you and your clients need with monthly per user and employee pricing.

In the cloud, there’s no expensive upfront software purchase or complicated set-up process. Operating costs can decrease because the cloud-based software provider is responsible for things like IT support, server maintenance, and software updates. All you need is a web browser.

And, you’ll find adding modules to a software subscription is more flexible and affordable when everything is cloud-based. For example, if you want additional Sage Payroll functionality, such as employee recruitment and expenses management, you can obtain these modules from Sage Payroll and pay only for what you need.

Enjoy some cost savings with a free Sage Payroll account for your firm and a discount for your clients.

Final thoughts

As you’ve read, cloud-based software carries many benefits, including enabling clients to better manage and connect with their remote workforce — while enabling employees to self-manage their information using a self-serve online portal.

Perhaps most importantly, cloud-based payroll solutions such as Sage Payroll enables accountants and bookkeepers to centralize all payroll and HR data for all their clients in a single unified platform.

With so many benefits, it’s easy to see how cloud-based software can provide your practice with the tools to successfully compete in this connected, digital world.