How much does recruitment payroll software cost?

An introduction to recruitment payroll solutions

With a recruitment payroll solution, timesheets are automated and are captured thus ensuring pay is calculated and invoices seamlessly handled within one centralised system. This enables recruitment agencies to track billable hours, payments and invoices, whilst ensuring that all of their legislative and compliance requirements are met.

Benefits of using a specialist payroll solution for recruitment agencies

• Streamlined invoicing process
• Improved efficiency in tracking contractual hours
• Enhanced accuracy of payroll calculation 
• Automated payment processing
• Increased visibility into financial data
• Reduced overhead costs associated with maintaining manual systems

What are the options for an agency looking for a recruitment payroll solution?

In today's competitive landscape, agencies seeking a recruitment payroll solution have a variety of options to choose from to streamline their processes and ensure compliance with often complicated industry regulations.

One of the most popular choices is utilising specialised payroll and billing software, in order to automate tasks, carry out reporting, and seamlessly integrate with other key systems such as a recruitment CRM or other back-office finance systems. These tools can also enable accurate processing of timesheets, and other essential payroll elements. 

Some agencies may choose to outsource their payroll function, allowing a specialist team of experts to deliver an integrated and guaranteed managed service to navigate the complex requirements of payroll and billing management will help relieve the administrative pressure, allowing teams to focus on core recruitment tasks, such as finding and placing candidates.

Ultimately, the choice of a recruitment payroll solution will depend on an agency's specific needs and goals, but exploring these options and conducting thorough research can greatly contribute to their long-term success.

How much does recruitment payroll software cost?

Implementing a recruitment payroll solution can be a significant investment for any organisation; however, it is essential to understand the various costs associated with it to make an informed decision.

Initially, the direct costs such as purchasing the software or subscribing to a service can be substantial. Additionally, training your staff to use the system effectively is vital; this may require time and financial resources. The ongoing maintenance of the system typically requires timely updates and upgrades, which may involve additional expenses.

In some instances, companies may need to hire or allocate skilled personnel to manage the solution, leading to added staffing costs. Despite these expenses, a well-chosen recruitment payroll solutioncan help streamline processes, reduce errors, and ultimately save an organisation money in the long run by increasing efficiency and preventing costly mistakes.

There are three key elements to most recruitment software pricing:

1. One-off implementation and set up costs

A key part of investing in new software is a successful implementation process. This will involve your team working together with the provider to configure the software to meet your needs and get up and running. Good recruitment software providers will have a range of specialist resources to help get you live on the new software, depending on the size of your business.

Things to consider include whether there will be a named project manager who will ensure the timings are met on both sides so you go live when you expect to, which team will set up the software with the appropriate payment and billing rates, as well as any integrations to ensure your financial data flows and is captured correctly, if there is a data migration team to help you get your data into the new system.

2. Ongoing subscription costs

There are typically two pricing models:

• Subscription cost to access the software. Usually charged per user.
• Usage costs to run the software. This captures those costs that are more variable for your business, depending on your usage of the software. Examples include cost per timesheet, cost per payee, cost per invoice and cost per hour billed. These costs can be billed based on a forecast across 12 months so you can budget how much this will cost you.

With Access Recruitment’s Pay and Bill Solution, there are no upfront license or setup fees. There is only a monthly SaaS fee to consider which includes the full onboarding, support and training to ensure you have everything you need to maximise your use of the solution in your business – thereby enabling you to budget effectively and conscientiously. 

Our SaaS software cost is based on number of timesheet hours processed, starting from approx £1.70 per timesheet, which is based on the average cost per timesheet and assumes 36 hours worked per timesheet processed per week. As more timesheets are processed, the average cost is reduced. The cost per timesheet will depend on a number of factors including the number of timesheets processed, and number of hours worked per worker.

For an outsourced service, pricing starts from as little as £250 a week for the full service from timesheet capture to billing, invoicing, payments, payslips and reports in this full wrap-around service which works out from only £2 a timesheet.

To get a better idea of the costs involved with our payroll solutions for recruitment agencies speak to one of our recruitment payroll specialists today.

3. Add-on costs

Each recruitment software provider will have their own pricing model. It’s important to ensure you know upfront what all your costs are, so you don’t get any shocks once it’s too late. This is your chance to ensure all the elements you want are included in the pricing quoted, or if there are any additional costs you should factor in.

Some areas to look out for are:

• If the scope of the project changes, some suppliers may use this opportunity to hike fees. It’s important to be very clear on the project scope from the outset and the expectations from both sides.
• Different levels of service post implementation, to ensure you have access to the right technical support for your users.
• Many software companies also now offer marketplaces so you can add additional functionality or partners you want to suit your specific business needs. These may come at an additional premium.

The challenges of payroll solutions

Factors to consider when selecting a pay and bill solution

• Pricing structure
• Software integration capabilities
• Security and privacy measures
• Reporting and analytics tools
• Customer support availability

 What are the drawbacks if I do not use a specialist recruitment payroll solution?

Choosing not to use a specialist recruitment payroll solution can have significant drawbacks. Firstly, recruitment agencies may struggle to keep up with constantly changing tax and employment legislation. This could lead to costly errors and legal disputes, which will undoubtedly damage your reputation.

Secondly, your agency may face challenges in ensuring accurate and timely payment of contractors and temporary staff. Ensuring this vital aspect of your operations runs smoothly is vital for maintaining trust with your clients and candidates.

Ultimately, failing to use a specialist recruitment payroll solution can have a domino effect on the entire recruitment process, leading to inefficiencies and dissatisfied workers and clients.

What about drawbacks for outsourcing too?

While outsourcing recruitment payroll systems may seem like a convenient solution, it's important to consider the potential drawbacks. First and foremost, you may be sacrificing control over an essential aspect of your business operations. If the outsourced company makes errors or isn't diligent about security, it could create major problems for your organisation.

Additionally, outsourcing payroll could lead to reduced visibility and transparency, making it harder to understand how your payroll costs are being allocated. Ultimately, it's important to weigh the benefits and drawbacks before making any decisions about outsourcing your agency’s payroll processes.

Conclusions

The cost of recruitment payroll software varies. There are numerous factors that can affect the cost of processing payroll for your workers and billing your clients, such as the size of your company, the types and numbers of workers that need to be paid, and the features you need.

However, investing in recruitment payroll software, such as FastTrack360, can pay off in the long run by saving you time, streamlining your processes, and increasing your teams overall productivity. It may be a worthwhile expense for your business.