Choosing a payroll and HR solution provider for your small business

With numerous options and a wide range of features available in the Canadian market, selecting a small business payroll and HR solution provider can be confusing. As with any big decision, conducting thorough research will increase the likelihood of making the right choice. 

Start with a needs assessment

Begin by identifying your priorities. Are you looking to reduce time spent on manual tasks, improve payroll accuracy or get help managing payroll and tax compliance?

In addition to your needs, think about your current pain points. Are constantly changing compliance laws frustrating? Is the time it takes to run payroll cutting into your other work? Is keeping track of employee time and paid time off a challenge? The right small business payroll and HR platform can address most, or all, of these issues.

Know where to look for small business payroll and HR solution information

The best place to start is online. Visiting websites of payroll and HR providers, such as ADP Canada, will help you understand what each company offers. Then, consult expert third-party review sites, like Capterra, G2, TrustRadius, Software Advice and NelsonHall. These sources use structured methodologies to evaluate providers and clearly outline their advantages and disadvantages.

Be cautious when reading employee-submitted reviews. For companies like ADP Canada, the client is the employer, not individual employees. Employees who need help should submit their requests to their employer, and the employer should address them accordingly. Often, the source of concerns voiced by employees is related to how their records were set up. Proper setup by administrators usually resolves these issues.

Finally, seeing product demos and speaking with a product representative are important steps. The time spent conversing with a representative is small compared to the considerable amount of time that could be saved with the right payroll solution.

For full-featured small business payroll and management systems like ADP Workforce Now On the Go®, demos are the best way to see what a solution offers. Demo calls are also a great time to hear how product experts answer your questions. A good conversation can make the difference between a semi-informed decision and a fully informed one.

Learn how simple small business payroll can be.

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What to look for in a small business payroll and HR management platform

Most small business payroll service providers cover the basics, such as calculating withholding taxes and processing payroll.

Look for features such as:

• Compliance tracking and alerts
• Time and attendance management
• Time-off tracking

ADP Canada is committed to supporting employee experiences across Canada. The ADP Workforce Now On the Go solution, available in English and French, simplifies your payday so you have more time to focus on growing your business.

Don’t forget the employee experience

If your employees find the platform helpful and easy to use, they’ll embrace it, and that will mean you can both get the most from the platform and spend less time answering questions and troubleshooting issues.

Many aspects of small business payroll and HR, from new employee onboarding to accessing pay stubs and requesting time off, can be accomplished via self-service with a powerful payroll and HR solution.

Mobile apps offer features that make it easy for employees to access what they need and provide the information you need, anytime and anywhere.

Look into integration and support

Integration with tools, such as accounting software and time-tracking platforms, is beneficial. It ensures smooth data flow, reduces manual data entry and simplifies reporting. The quality of support is also crucial to achieving overall success with a small business payroll and HR platform.

ADP offers support through a variety of methods depending on the selected product and service level:

• Get taxes automatically calculated, deducted and remitted on your behalf; tax filings are done for you
• Automatically create and send forms including T4, T4A and Releve 1
• Speak with HR specialists to find answers to your HR questions
• Provide employees with access to confidential counselling and coaching
• Employee hours are automatically calculated for payroll

“We were up and running within 48 hours after we made first contact.”

Zack Tavakoli, Director of Operations, Technomed

Understand pricing and what’s included

Some providers show their prices online, but these usually only show the starting costs or base price. Even though some providers may give basic pricing based on the number of employees, their roles and payroll frequency, these estimates often don’t include all the additional costs. For example, ADP Workforce Now on the Go offers software bundles that include payroll, time tracking and HR software.

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Take the next step

See firsthand how intuitive and user-friendly your payroll and HR management can be. Schedule a conversation with an ADP expert today to compare package options and find the right fit for your business.

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This resource offers practical information concerning the subject matter and is provided with the understanding that ADP Canada is not rendering legal or tax advice or other professional services.