It is not an exaggeration to say that money rules the world. All of these hustles done by people worldwide are to make money and to live a better life. In fact, for most professionals, the most awaited day of the month would be a payday, when they receive their paycheck. However, for businesses, these days of processing employees’ salaries are quite the opposite– time-consuming, tedious, and relentless.
Only by recruiting a dedicated HR , payroll administrator, or using payroll processing services can you save yourself from this time-consuming, daunting task and instead concentrate on business, service, and customers. Using in house payroll software will provide several significant benefits, including lower operational costs, improved performance, and timely and accurate report filing, among others.
This blog will answer all of your questions and concerns about payroll processing services. It will also discuss various topics, including how payroll processing works and the significance of payroll software in payroll processing. In addition, we will also learn about the Top 8 Payroll Processing Software later in the blog.
Let’s get started!
How Payroll Processing Works?
The payroll process can be divided into three major segments: pre-payroll activities, payroll activities, and post-payroll activities. Let’s take a closer look at what each of these segments means and what tasks they entail.
Phase-1: Pre-payroll Activities
“Pre-payroll Activities” is the first segment of payroll processing systems. The three general activities that take place in this segment are policy development, data collection, and data validation.
1. Define Business Policy: This is the initial phase in which you formulate and develop different policies for your organization, such as pay policy, leave policy, working hour policy, performance policy, and so on.
2. Collect Input Data: After defining the policies, the next step is to collect input data from different departments to ensure accurate payroll calculation. This method may be more consolidated in smaller organizations, while in larger organizations, it may be more rigorous.
3. Input Validation: The third activity of payroll processing systems is input data validation. You must check and validate all of the input data that you gathered in the previous stage. Since, even a single or slight error can have a significant impact on the entire payroll process.
When all three of the first phase’s operations are completed, proceed to the second phase, which consists of payroll activities.
Source : olxpeople
Phase-2: Payroll Activities
This is the main and most crucial stage of payroll processing systems. However, there is only one operation in this phase: payroll calculation.
4. Payroll Calculation: After the data has been verified, it is time to enter it into the payroll processing system. This method yields net pay after adjusting for necessary taxes and deductions.
It is recommended to reconcile the values and check consistency for the most consistent and error-free results before this step is completed.
Then proceed to the third and final stage of the payroll process: post-payroll activities.
Phase-3: Post-payroll Activities
Post-payroll activities include four major tasks: statutory compliance, payroll accounting, payout, and reporting. Let’s take a quick look at each one.
5. Statutory Obligation
Payroll managers process all statutory deductions such as Employee Provident Fund, Tax Deduction at Source, and Employee State Insurance at this point. The sum deducted is then paid or transferred to the appropriate government authorities.
6. Payroll Accounting
Every company must maintain a record of all its financial transactions for the payroll process, which also includes salaries. As a result, the payroll administrator must feed all compensation and reimbursement data into the company’s ERP system.
7. Payout
Once you’ve completed all of these stages, you’ll be able to pay your employees’ salaries. You can pay with cash, cheque, or bank transfer, among other options. However, bank transfers are preferred by the majority of employers.
8. Reporting
Reporting is the last step in the payroll processing system. During this process, you prepare detailed financial reports containing all employee expenses and submit them to the finance department.
This is how payroll is processed. While each company’s payroll process can differ slightly, the essence of the payroll process remains consistent in the corporate world.
Let us now look at the importance of payroll software in payroll processing.
The Importance of Payroll Software in Payroll Processing
Payroll processing and administration, as previously mentioned, entails a wide range of activities and is a complicated and time-consuming task. This is why we need specialized payroll software. These human resource and payroll software can assist administrators in streamlining payroll tasks, enabling small business owners to concentrate on other critical business activities.
Other significant advantages of in house payroll software include the following: it simplifies processes, increases efficiency, fosters growth, aids in eliminating human error, integrates with other business apps, improves accuracy, enhances data security, and saves time and money.
Furthermore, it organizes your data, automates repetitive tasks, and helps in the detection of errors. All of these benefits enable your team to be more productive and efficient. Also, the time, money, and resources saved can be used for other critical business activities, such as increasing sales and excelling over competitors.
We hope that this information has offered you a better understanding of what payroll processing systems are, how they operate, and how important they are for small and large businesses. Let us now proceed to the final chapter of the blog– The Top 8 Payroll Processing Software.
Top 8 Payroll Processing Software In 2022
We examined a wide range of payroll processing software that was released or upgraded in 2021. Out of all of them, the Top 8 Payroll Software Providers that have gained the most points have earned a spot on this list. Let’s take a quick look at the functionality and operating modes of each of these human resource and payroll software.
1. Keka
Keka is employee engagement software that includes features such as payroll, attendance management, leave management, and timesheet software. As per Keka, this payroll processing system has revolutionized the Indian payroll industry. In addition, Keka’s range-based pay structure is capable of simplifying the automation process for any size enterprise.
Features:
- Rich analytics on budgeting and compensation
- Integrate with accounting software
- Expense management integrated with payroll
- Unified payroll and time tracking software
- Keep track of new joined and exiting employees
- Salary revision
- Payslips on SMS, Email and Mobile app
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Monthly, Yearly
Desktop Platforms: Web Application
Mobile Platforms: Android
Website: https://www.keka.com/payroll-software
2. Opfin
Opfin is a payroll software with automated compliance. This payroll management system allows you to handle your workers from onboarding to separation, and it automatically calculates and disburses wages after taking into account leaves and statutory deductions. The platform also integrates with HRMS to ensure that employee additions and deletions are handled automatically.
Features:
- Easy payouts and disbursals
- User-friendly dashboards
- Powerful APIs
- Leave management and tracking
- Payroll compliance
- Workforce management
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Monthly
Desktop Platforms: Web Application
Mobile Platforms: None
Website: https://razorpay.com/payroll/
3. Pocket HRMS
Pocket HRMS, formerly known as Pocket HCM, is a modern Cloud-based Payroll and Human Capital Management Solution (HRMS) that combines the benefits of the cloud and mobility. It is a cloud-based payroll management system that is agile and flexible, able to tackle regulatory compliances, tax reporting, e-TDS returns, and other tax issues.
Features:
- HR Chatbot– smHRty
- User friendly HR dashboard
- Generate real-time MIS reports
- Mobile payroll application
- Agile and streamlined design
- Cloud-enabled HRMS
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Yearly
Desktop Platforms: Web Application
Mobile Platforms: Android, iOS
Website: https://www.pockethrms.com/payroll/
4. Wallet HR
The Wallet HR is an HRMS solution that encompasses anything from hiring to retirement and can be implemented in all businesses. This payroll processing software provides an end-to-end HR software solution that spans an organization’s entire employee life cycle from recruiting to retirement.
Features:
- Applicant tracking system
- Automated interview schedules
- Dynamic assessment forms
- Powerful onboarding module
- Grievance management
- Flexi-pay & reimbursement
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Monthly, Yearly, Onetime
Desktop Platforms: Windows
Mobile Platforms: Android
Website: https://www.wallethr.com/
5. HROne
HRone is an intelligent enterprise-ready HCM suite that automates HR processes, simplifies human interactions, and provides actionable insights to help organizations create better workplaces. This human resource and payroll software was created to optimize the workflow for all of its stakeholders. It meets all of your organizational needs through integrated modules that optimize your team’s efforts and maximize outputs.Features:
- Consumer centric design
- Automates HR processes
- Actionable insights
- Single window redressal system
- 40+ built-in imports
- Reports straight to the email inbox
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Yearly, Onetime
Desktop Platforms: Windows, Mac, Web application
Mobile Platforms: Android, iOS
Website: https://hrone.cloud/
6. Qandle
Qandle may serve as smart HR in the modern workplace. The in house payroll software integrates seamlessly with your other tools, making the transition smooth. It also assists you in better organizing your resources. Overall, Qandle is a user-friendly and detailed HRMS solution with a robust feature set.
Features:
- Shareable links for job boards
- Intuitive applicant tracking
- Hassle free scheduling
- Collaborative hiring
- Qandle assistant– QanBot
- Smart Integration
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Monthly, Onetime
Desktop Platforms: Web application
Mobile Platforms: Android, iOS
Website: https://www.qandle.com/
7. Zimyo
Zimyo is an HR and payroll management device that is highly customizable. It is a cloud-based Human Resource solution that can handle the requirements of a small business to a large corporation. It is simple to integrate with any current HR management system. Using this app, you can centralize all of the critical HR functions.
Features:
- Easy implementation
- Fully responsive platform
- Easy to integrate
- User friendly UI
- 24X7 customer support
- Highly customized
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Monthly, Yearly
Desktop Platforms: Windows, Mac, Web application
Mobile Platforms: Android
Website: https://www.zimyo.com/
8. greytHR
greytHR is regarded as one of the best cloud-based payroll applications. It addresses all aspects of the payroll process, such as processing salaries on time, avoiding time-consuming and error-prone manual calculations, and adhering to all legislative compliances. Furthermore, it also provides efficient tools for effective people management, simplified HR processes, and professional HR service delivery.Features:
- Professional implementation
- Configurable salary structure
- Automated payroll inputs and payslips
- Comprehensive Post-payroll process
- 100% statutory compliance
- Rich payroll reports
Deployment: Cloud Based
Payment Terms: Monthly, Yearly
Desktop Platforms: Web application
Mobile Platforms: Android, iOS
Website: https://www.greythr.com/
These are the top 8 Payroll Management Systems to watch in 2021. Each of these payroll softwares has its own pros and cons. Before choosing one, conduct extensive research or contact their sales team to gain a deeper understanding of these tools.
Summary:
Whether you want to put your resources to better use than payroll processing or a centralized payroll system with compliance support to streamline your tasks and avoid human errors, selecting one of the above-mentioned payroll processing systems is the best option. However, we recommend that you thoroughly understand your needs, as well as the business structure and activities, before choosing the right one.
Paras Kela is a web developer turned content writer who holds writing expertise in multiple niches. The strong cocktail of his English-medium schooling, passion for writing, and vast industry experience help him create information-rich, SEO-friendly, engaging content. In his spare time, he enjoys binge-watching drama series & documentaries, gardening and spending time with loved ones.