Case Study: CeX reduces payroll admin by 90%

The journey

Financial Director Emma Best joined CeX in 2009. Over a year on, and she’s a woman on a mission: to transform the quality of accounting systems at CeX and to provide management with the information they need to drive the business forward.

“When I joined, CeX was already using Access,” says Emma. “The Dimensions business system is a good one, and I was keen to maximise its potential by linking as much of the business into the accounts as possible.”

The first area to come under scrutiny was payroll. At the time, CeX was using a bureau service. Each month, staff had to re-key data manually from Google Docs into a spreadsheet in readiness for the payroll run.

“This proved very labour-intensive,” says Emma. “Plus, there were no real checks to ensure mistakes hadn’t occurred. And the reports we got back didn’t allow us to easily journal the information into Dimensions, making it impossible to get hold of information quickly.” Payroll was becoming a full-time job, tying up valuable resources that could’ve been used more effectively within the accounts department.

The discovery

As existing users of Access finance software, Emma began her search by looking at the Access payroll product, SelectPay. Sufficiently impressed by the demo, she decided there was no need to look elsewhere. “SelectPay did everything we needed and at a cost that was easily justified,” she says.

Key purchase factors included greater data accuracy gained through integration with Dimensions, which would, in turn, save time and reduce errors across the business.

“That SelectPay posts straight through to the finance ledgers was the key benefit,” says Emma. “And when our HR people saw it, they were amazed – not just because it’s so easy to maintain new starter information, but because it provides a central database for employees with all information in one place.”

Timesheets

Another crucial purchase factor was the seamless integration SelectPay offered to CeX’s timesheet application. CeX collects data on hours worked via its EPOS system, which is then exported into an Excel spreadsheet. This information can be quickly loaded into SelectPay and easily reported on.

“There were no extra development costs required at all,” says Emma. “That SelectPay can easily link to timesheets from our existing system was a real bonus.”

Implementation

Decision made, SelectPay was implemented in under a week. “You can’t not run payroll – everyone was paid accurately and promptly the first time. And the Access helpdesk is very good; we’ve only had one small issue, and the technician stayed on the phone until it was resolved,” praises Emma. Moreover, the system was delivered on time and within budget.

The result

Having implemented SelectPay, CeX has seen many benefits including:

ROI of six months

In her initial proposal, Emma calculated that SelectPay would quickly pay for itself – which it has!

“We’ve seen an ROI of six months by simply eliminating bureau costs. And there are more significant, long-term savings too.”

90% reduction in payroll admin

Because SelectPay posts everything through to the finance ledgers, re-keying has been eliminated and so has the need to check information. This in turn has meant that payroll preparation takes a fraction of the time it once did.

“Before, we were relying on a full-time person to prepare the payroll. Now, it’s possible to complete in two days – we’ve reduced payroll administration by 90 per cent.” This has allowed Emma to re-deploy staff on value-adding tasks and to drive the business forward. “For this reason alone, I would definitely recommend SelectPay.”

Epayslips cut paper trail

Using the epayslip function has also contributed to the efficiency gains. “We employ a lot of students, who frequently change address,” says Emma. “Before, we’d have to ask the bureau to re-send hard copy payslips to us, which we would then forward to the employee. Now, we can easily stay up-to-date with any changes and deploy payslips at the click of a button. It’s a two-second job.”

No need for training costs

Because SelectPay is based on the familiar Dimensions look and feel, the learning curve was minimal. “All CeX staff found it easy to get up and running with SelectPay,” says Emma.

“It’s really easy to use – and it’s very flexible too, enabling us to easily accommodate fluctuations in staffing levels and accommodate contracts for seasonal staff. It’s very easy to add new starters too; our HR people love it.”

The future

With payroll sorted, Emma has since turned her attention to other areas of the business and is in the process of implementing the following Access products:

Dashboard

This product will enable Emma to deploy the very latest management information to franchisees and other decision-makers across the business.

“Most of our transactions are held within our EPOS systems, and we wanted an easier way of getting this information out,” says Emma. The Dashboard module does just that by gathering information held in any database or system and presenting it in a series of charts and graphs. Each graph can be tailored to show the KPIs relevant to the business. In CeX’s case, this will enable franchisees to interrogate key information relevant to the retail environment.

“We have a lot of questions, for example, ‘How many vouchers have been issued, by store, and not redeemed?’ ‘How many thousands have been redeemed, in our stores or others?’ ‘Which employees have the highest sales?’ – with Dashboard, we’re confident we’ll have the answers at our fingertips.” It’s not just the functionality that’s impressed. “Compared to similar products, Dashboard offers outstanding value for money and is fast to implement so we can start using it pretty much straightaway,” says Emma.

Service manager

CeX also has a booming property arm in the form of its 140+ stores. “We’re keen to gain visibility of all our leasehold properties, and Access Service Manager will help us do this,” says Emma. This product will provide a central property database from which comprehensive reports can be run, such as when leases are due.

CeX has also ordered the Call Logging module, which will enable the company to manage a detailed planned maintenance schedule and easily track all the purchase orders passing through. “We’re looking forward to the implementation and the efficiencies that it’ll provide,” says Emma.