Perceived challenges when changing providers
In our 2023 Annual Payroll Survey, of the respondents who haven’t switched payroll providers, 52% said they considered switching but didn’t go through with it.
That was a dramatic 31% rise from the previous year, showing a continual year-on-year trend towards a reluctance to switch.
The reasons they cited are some of the main barriers to switching. If you’re facing some of these barriers internally, or you’re worrying about them too, we’ve got some suggestions on how to effectively challenge and overcome them.
Over 20% of our survey respondents said this was the reason they didn’t switch to a new provider.
A number of factors drive this, one in particular is a lack of resource. Perhaps you’re worrying that switching takes time and effort, and everyone’s already swamped. But choose the right provider and the switch shouldn’t need much person-power at your end - your provider should do most of the work.
Take Moorepay for instance, we offer a ‘simple switch guarantee’, delivered by a dedicated, UK-based implementation team.
Learning to use new software sounds like hard work, right? Building a relationship with a new provider, getting used to new processes - what a pain! That’s what 21% of respondents thought in our survey when we asked them why they hadn’t switched.
But what happens if you don’t switch? Think long term.
If you’ve realised there’s a better payroll solution and service out there, what will that save you in time and money? Plus, if you pick the right provider, it won’t be a hassle to switch - they’ll make sure it’s easy.
This was the top reason cited for not wanting to change, with 23% of respondents reporting this.
If this is also how you feel, you may need to weigh up exactly how inconvenient being with your current provider is in comparison with the promises of your new provider.
Although you may need to do a bit of organising to enable the move, the benefits of getting a better payroll provider can include reduced admin, fewer employee queries, less (or no!) payroll mistakes and improved compliance. All very valuable goals and worth the effort to get there.
You're not alone. The number of respondents who reported this issue rose by 100% since 2022, with 13% of people reporting this as their main reason for not switching.
To overcome this one, you need to get really clear on the numbers. Like how much time does it currently take to process the payroll? What could this be reduced to? How many mistakes are being made? What could this equate to in time-cost-savings with a new provider?
Conveying all of this to your stakeholders should make it difficult for them to say ‘no’ to investing in a switch.
Your payroll contains lots of highly sensitive data.
Perhaps the thought of lifting this from one provider and shifting it to another fills you with dread!
But this should be covered as part of your selection process. Ask providers about data security, certifications, employee qualifications, and check out their service reviews online.
Perhaps you’re also worried learning a new system will lead to user-error, which could mean catastrophic payroll mistakes. Again, cover this when you speak to different providers. What level of training and support do they provide? And how intuitive is their software?
Find out more
We closed out 2022 winning Payroll & HR Software Product of the Year Award - named “a game changer in how SMEs work with the payroll industry”.
And since then, we've also won CIPP's Payroll Service Provider of the Year 2023!
Fancy checking it out?
