As Samuel Johnson famously said, “Curiosity is one of the most permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous intellect.” So, no matter where you are on your payroll journey, approach it with curiosity. The practice of payroll is an ever-changing landscape. In this article, we’ll travel along the different stages you’ll encounter as you progress through a payroll career.
Departure station: ‘Trainee’
(Train announcement): Trainees are enthusiastic team players who respond positively to clients. They communicate clearly and effectively and have a willingness to learn.
When you first embark on your payroll journey, you’ll be a trainee and you’ll have a mentor assigned to you. This mentor will teach you the basics about payroll and help you with any questions.
During this leg of your journey, you’ll learn to:
- Understand the importance of self-checking by completing straight run and simple payrolls.
- Prepare PAYE liabilities and understand what can affect an employer’s PAYE.
- Complete pension duties for various pension types and providers, and understand what each pension type means.
First stop: ‘Payroll Associate’
(Train announcement): Payroll associates are confident and deliver excellent service to clients. They promptly solve issues and identify their own training needs.
Your journey’s underway. At this point, you’ll gain more responsibility and receive your own portfolio of clients to process.
This leg of the journey will also see you:
- Gain knowledge in processing more complex payrolls.
- Prepare PAYE liabilities and communicate with HMRC where needed.
- Complete year-end tasks and reconciliations.
Halfway there: ‘Senior Associate’
(Train announcement): Senior associates are helpful and share ideas to help build the team’s knowledge. They’re adaptable, can identify client needs, and actively look for opportunities for personal growth.
You’re halfway through your journey. As you continue to progress, your duties expand. You’ve still got your portfolio of clients, but now it includes more complex, larger clients.
At this stage, you can expect to:
- Review payrolls completed by trainees and associates and give necessary feedback.
- Provide the team with support and advice on queries and calculations.
- Assist with internal team deadlines and ensure all filings are processed on time.
- Assist managers where needed.
Next stop: ‘Assistant Manager’
(Train announcement): Assistant Managers are self-aware and can work outside of their comfort zone. They’re open to new processes that could improve the team’s work.
You’ve come a long way from where you started. Not only that, you’ll now be involved in the duties of the wider department.
At this stage on your journey, you’ll:
- Assist with complex queries and identify any training needs of the team.
- Evaluate client satisfaction and give suggestions for improvement.
- Conduct staff appraisals and encourage staff through their own payroll journeys.
Final stop: ‘Payroll Manager’
(Train announcement): Payroll managers are supportive and can adapt their communication style to a wide range of people. They’re knowledgeable but are also happy to learn from other members of the team.
You’ve reached your destination — what a journey it’s been! You now have overall ownership and responsibility for clients and the team. You’ve become the driver.
As you begin to welcome new people on their payroll journeys, you’ll:
- Proactively respond to client queries, and work flexibly to meet their needs.
- Manage the team’s time and cost and follow up on suggestions to potentially increase accuracy and efficiency.
- Identify the team’s training needs and put them into action.
You’ve travelled a long way and learnt a lot. Whether you stay on your payroll journey until the final stop or are content to stay at another, a career in payroll is full of learning and self-development. If you’d like to begin your payroll journey with us at CT, contact us at mail@ct.me or call 0131 558 5800.
Author: Charlotte Walker, CT: Payroll
