Thinking about switching to a new payroll provider, but not sure there is a reason to switch? You might worry about payroll cycles being missed or incorrect data due to the transition period but, it doesn’t have to be a lift and shift situation.

A successful payroll conversion starts with a simple conversion process to fit your company needs and to save you the time and effort of getting started. When you’re ready to make the switch, here are six factors to weigh when selecting a payroll provider.

When Should You Do Payroll Conversion?

When deciding to take on a new payroll solution, timing matters. Quarter 2 is a suitable time to begin the process if you have mid-year conversion in mind. Another option is to convert at the end of the year. The best time to start a year-end conversion is October so that it doesn’t interfere with any year-end processing you will need to do.

The time of year you choose to implement is all up to you, but one thing we can guarantee everyone is a streamlined process that facilitates a transition, no matter when it is. This involves working with an experienced, knowledgeable sales consultant who understands your needs and requirements to recommend the best solution. With the complexity of the workforce solutions, and the number of offerings that need to be impactful to your organization, a strong payroll vendor should have their sales arm involved throughout the engagement.

Data Conversion

When evaluating a conversion, it’s also critical to assess if the payroll system is integrated with core HR and attendance. This offers several benefits when payroll, core HR, and time tracking data are stored in a centralized database; they include:

• More flexibility for users
• Fewer payroll mistakes
• Reduce duplicate entry of data
• Lower labor costs
• More insight on company trends and metrics

Choose a vendor that matches you with a dedicated implementation manager who has experience bridging the differences in the systems together and making recommendations that will help purchasers become more productive, minimize the chances for mistakes and lower expenses.

If your company has employee garnishments, non-cash fringe benefits, or complicated vacation, then you’ll want to find a solution that will address your specific needs and scale to your company structure.

Data Integration Capabilities

Existing business investments have benefits for a lot of companies, such as general ledger software, point-of-sale (POS) systems, and other retirement packages. This is a huge advantage as all of the data is accurate and up-to-date because these systems can be integrated with an online payroll system. Other benefits include:

• Removed redundant data entry
• Reduced paperwork
• On-time reporting

Look for providers that already have a track record of integrations with the most popular business applications and vendors. Those technology owners/developers will be able to create your data integrations, so you get a custom solution.

Managing Payroll Tax Compliance

Payroll compliance rules related to taxes are always changing, so it’s important to have a payroll provider that has a department for tax compliance, to help keep up with those changes. Once conversion is complete, one or a group of tax compliance team should help updating your payroll tax tables each year, along with help with your end of the year processing.

A good payroll provider will have a team of tax compliance experts that will review your existing data to identify potential payroll tax errors. And the tax compliance team will also need to update payroll tax tables annually, process tax filings and payments and assist with year-end processing.

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Your payroll provider’s tax compliance team should take care of updating your federal tax tables for you each year. For state and local taxes, remember to forward any letters you receive to your payroll provider so they can update your info.

Data Conversion

Proper data migration from your old system to the new one is one of the most crucial steps of the conversion process. You want to be confident that your data is going to be accurate, be sure to complete the following tasks:

• Data Migration: Historical data is entered into the new payroll system.
• Payroll Compliance Assessment: This compliance assessment reconciles data history.
• Final Validation: Parallel, or side-by-side payrolls are run before payroll goes live for the first time to verify the data and tax settings are correct.

Find providers that will assign you an implementation point of contact that will manage your data conversion process. In fact, they should do all of the above and more, including importing payroll and employee data from prior years.

Customer Support

Equally important issues you ought to look for during a payroll conversion are the amount of customer service offered. This is the partner program that gives you peace of mind because you know there is a customer support member available to make this a successful engagement with the payroll provider. Asking how much support a payroll provider gives can help out with the decision:

• What specific professional payroll certifications does the support staff carry?
• Will an account manager and team be dedicated to my account?
• Is the support team reachable by phone, chat, or email?
• What is the time for a support request to be answered?
• Do you have specialists available for complex benefit and ACA compliance questions?

Look for payroll providers that hand-hold you with assigned trainers and account management. Your trainer will develop the training plan to suit any specific deployment requirements. After the conversion, your account manager must always be your primary point of contact so they will always understand how your business runs on their payroll system.

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Your dedicated account manager should be there to answer any day-to-day questions or requests that may arise. You must be able to call, email and chat your requests, and make use of the reference materials available too.

Final Thoughts

Those are few tips to ensure a successful conversion when choosing and implementing the right payroll software. Choose payroll providers with expertise and experience in payroll processing and tax compliance with a proven record of customer retention based on high-quality customer service.