Gone are the days where you would get to the end of the workweek and provide your staff with a piece of paper stating how much they earned that week. These days, there’s a lot more involved in payroll systems for small to medium-sized businesses. One way to help eliminate stress and make sure you are doing everything correctly, and now critically with the introduction of Single Touch Payroll, is with the use of accounting or payroll software.
If you’ve been searching the market for payroll software for your business, chances are you’ve come across a number of different options. There are various software options and all of them have their own benefits depending on your business, size, your industry and your needs. One such payroll software that we believe is an excellent solution is Xero. We’ve looked at a number of the different benefits of Xero and have come up with our top reasons for choosing Xero for payroll.
It is affordable
Whether you’re just starting out or whether you’ve been in business for a while, every dollar counts. If you can save money within your business overhead expenses, this can help you with your bottom line and therefore can help with your success. One of the greatest benefits of Xero is the fact that it is quite affordable. If you’re a very small business with only a couple of employees, you can make use of the Xero Payroll Only plan. It is a complete payroll system for 1 to 4 employees. Starting at only $10 per month, you can ensure you stay compliant for a low price.
Xero makes calculations easy
One of the benefits of Xero payroll systems is that it can automatically calculate tax rates, leave entitlements and pay rates for your staff. No longer will you need to work out how many hours of leave time your employees have earned and manually track this in a spreadsheet as it is all taken care of within the software. This will ensure that you are paying your employees correctly every single time, which is obviously going to reduce risk and any potential issues in the future.
Single Touch Payroll is now easier than ever
The ATO has introduced an initiative called Single Touch Payroll or STP. It is required by all businesses of all sizes, even those with just one employee. Single Touch Payroll means you are required to report wages, salaries, superannuation and PAYG withholding every single time you pay your employees. From many businesses, this means weekly or fortnightly reporting. Xero makes Single Touch Payroll easy as you can file all details to the ATO directly through the software. It’s also available with the Xero Payroll Only plan.
Xero offers plenty of support
One of the biggest benefits of Xero is the fact that it has a very solid support system. No matter what time of day or night that you need help, you can get support from Xero for free 24hrs a day, 7 days a week. Their customer support team are very thorough and helpful and will help you to find the answers that you are looking for via email. There is also a fantastic help centre with excellent help articles which are very easy to navigate and locate.
No lock-in contracts
With a Xero subscription, one of the beauties is the flexibility. You aren’t locked into any lengthy contracts and you can cancel with at least one months’ notice. It’s a monthly subscription service which means that you can focus less on your budgeting and focus more on your business and getting things done. You can move up and down the subscription levels as required and if the number of staff on your payroll increases or decreases.
Manage your payroll in the cloud
Cloud-based software is making life much easier for many businesses. When you choose a cloud-based software, data and information are available anywhere you can connect to the internet. Today, a business’ workflow is likely to be predominantly online and is significantly different from business methods that were in place 30 years ago. You’ll be able to stay compliant and provide fast and simple processes for your employees with cloud-based software.
Your staff can use the Xero Me app for convenience
Xero has made a very convenient app called “Xero Me”. It gives your staff the opportunity to enter their own leave requests and timesheets in a convenient and easy to use app for their smartphone.
Not only does it make it easier for them to submit their details and information, but it also means that the data is added directly to your Xero account without much hassle for you and your business. You can approve or decline timesheets and leave requests easily. Your staff can also see what their leave balances are and their payslips.
Payslips are made easy
Payslips used to include printing pieces of paper and giving them to staff on a given day of the week. Not any more. To reduce waste and simplify your processes, Xero gives you the opportunity to email staff their payslips.
Emailing their payslips is as simple as clicking a button. After completing their timesheets and the pay run, you can simply select from a dropdown menu to “send payslips” and you can select all (or some) of your staff members to give them their payslip via their email address. It is simple, reduces time and reduces office waste.
If you’re thinking about switching to Xero and you’re unsure if it is the best option, have a chat with the team at Diverse Business Consultants. We are experts when it comes to Xero and small to medium businesses. We can also provide you with tailored training in Xero and payroll. Get in touch with us today.
