The international health crisis has had a significant effect upon business operations, not only encouraging teleworking practises and a greater reliance on cloud-based, collaborative documents, but also on prompting companies to place a greater emphasis upon their employee satisfaction and wellbeing. This duty of care has always been in play, at least within respectable workplaces, but has become even more essential as employees face more significant stress outside of the office.
Workplace wellbeing must also be rethought as employees begin working at a distance too, since office benefits, as well as the practice of in-person check-ups, is no longer as readily available. Employers are offering support options, such as workplace counselling, to ensure that the issues employees face, both personally and professionally, do not compromise their performance.
Unduly conservative businesses may disregard the extra effort for employee wellbeing as non-essential, seeing the potentially frivolous expenditure, that of adding a pool table to the office, as a poor return on investment. However, this idea that workplace wellbeing and good company culture derives solely from aesthetic sprucing is wholly wrong. In fact, it is business essentials, such as human resources and payroll services that underpin workplace satisfaction.
Payroll is perhaps the most important factor for workplace culture and it affects both the appeal of the business to potential new hires and ensures that current employees are more likely to stay. One study, for example, found that nearly half of all employees will begin job searching after only two payroll related errors. This risk alone is worth scrutinising payroll practices to ensure that, at the very least, costly errors are avoided.
Payroll affects employee culture in a number of ways. Employees tend to feel less loyal to a company that cannot correctly ensure their regular and secure salary payments, often expressing that diligence is a form of respect that must go two ways. Poor payroll practices, especially those that might appear insecure or insincere, can lead to a company culture of suspicion and, ultimately, bad press. Certain payroll services like bonuses and benefits must also be handled confidently or else lead to a culture of uncertainty.
Transparency in payroll operations is an incredibly useful, and evermore essential, addition to the department. With payroll software becoming ubiquitous it is increasingly important for employees to have clear and unbridled access to their own payments and payslips. Keeping this documentation and information offline leads to employees becoming frustrated and more likely to seek out an employer that allows them to better manage their own finances, instead of having to engage in paper-based practices.
Of course, payroll is perhaps most essential for its amount. Employees most value the amount they are getting paid, wanting to ensure that it is a fair salary, likely measuring their own productivity to the rate of pay. For businesses to better engage their employees, attract new talent, and create an exciting and dedicated work environment, competitive pay rates and salaries are the most effective option.
