Leave Your Payroll System to the Pros

For employees, a regular paycheck represents much more than money in the bank. It represents stability, achievement, and trust that their hard work will pay off, literally.

For employers, payroll isn’t quite so symbolic. Payroll management can be fraught with potential errors, compliance pitfalls, and requires a significant investment of time. In fact, 32% of corporations in a recent survey said inaccurate data in the payroll system is a challenge. Another 30% said complying with regulations in the post-COVID environment is troublesome.1

Managing payroll data is complex.

For most large corporations, payroll data is usually spread across many functions (e.g., finance, HR, accounting). Hourly rates, time off and retirement contributions are just a few of the data included in employee pay. And they must be calculated correctly.

Remote and hybrid work models add additional levels of complexity. Overseeing employees in multiple states or countries with different tax structures, as well as all the necessary data, can be especially thorny. Entire departments may now be spread across many locations, often creating disparate data sources and technologies. The potential for errors is limitless. It’s no surprise that evaluating the tax implications of remote work in multiple jurisdictions has become a priority for 58% of payroll professionals in recent years.2

Failing to withhold, calculate and report employee taxes in a timely manner can be costly to companies. Employers could be penalized depending on the error, size of the company, amount owed and timing of payment. There are also penalties for improperly filing W2s. Penalties may include up to 15% plus interest for late filings, as well as property liens, civil and criminal sanctions, and jail time. After looking at total costs, it makes sense to automate payroll functions.

Professional payroll service providers stay abreast of government regulations as part of their job. In addition, most payroll companies have teams of experts who can research questions and provide answers to employers and employees.

Companies need payroll strategies.

As the workplace evolves, companies recognize the need for strategies to manage employment-related change. Yet, 33% of organizations don’t have one.3 Do you have a plan to scale your payroll functions for growth, while reducing risk and complexity?

The right payroll partner can help determine “must-have” services versus those which are “nice-to-have.” Some additional choices might include new-hire reporting, software integration, vacation management, employee self-serve and mobile access.

Payroll automation offers many benefits.

Whether your payroll solution is in-house or outsourced, there are key benefits to automation.

• Saves time. Consider all the tasks involved in payroll processing: tracking benefit deductions, wage garnishments, new hires and terminations, paid time off, and so on. These are important but repetitive tasks that require extreme attention to detail and flawless data inputs. Automating these responsibilities frees employees and managers for more mission-critical, strategic endeavors.


• Saves money. Consider the wages and benefits manual labor requires. If time is money — and it is — payroll automation just makes sense. It can reduce expenses, as well as improve efficiency.


• Minimizes mistakes. For employees, mistakes in deductions, hours or pay rate can be costly and frustrating, and can damage employee-employer trust.


• Promotes self-service. Employees want self-service access to their payroll platform. HR leaders want it too. Just 59% say employee self- service is currently offered at their companies.4 An integrated payroll platform allows employees to print their own tax documents, preview pay information, access pays stubs, change tax allowance forms, and update their personal contact information. Letting employees complete these tasks themselves saves them — and your HR team — time and headaches.


• Enhances security. Payroll data is particularly sensitive because it contains personal identifying information. Engaging a trusted partner enhances security with state-of-the-art IT, including redundant systems and data storage protocols.

Employees expect accurate, timely paychecks. You want to meet these expectations — and satisfy compliance and reporting requirements. Synovus can help evaluate your payroll processing needs and options. If you’d like to discuss next steps, complete a short form and a Synovus Treasury & Payment Solutions Consultant will contact you with more details. You can also stop by one of our local branches.