In celebration of National Payroll Week I interviewed the elusive Keith Baker VP of International Payroll & Benefits.

Speaking to Keith Baker I found out how payroll has evloved from his point of view and then looked into the following areas: Challenges he has faced, business partnering internally & externally, EMEA & Global responsibilites, systems & vendor management, the introduction and development of benefits and how taking on all of this responsiblity has enhanced his career.

The interview

What trends you have seen develop over the years:

“I’ve worked within the payroll industry for over 14 years and it is noticeable that all payroll roles, from Payroll officer to Payroll Manager and beyond, have now become truly multi-skilled and crucially, a key part of the strategic decisions companies are making. Gone are the days where you can process a small, basic domestic payroll and not be interested, or responsible, for the output you create”

How has payroll changed from your perspective:

“I believe that payroll has broken through the glass ceiling that may have previously limited its exposure to senior management and business leaders. It rightly deserves it’s place at the top table within a business, with even the smallest piece of payroll information having the potential to highlight issues, positive or negative, within a company. Think how difficult Gender Pay reporting, for example, would be without accurate payroll data.”

“Of course, with greater exposure within a company, the demands on your time and your soft skills increases dramatically. We all have the technical ability to produce global payrolls, but are you comfortable with presenting your data clearly and concisely to the business? Can you explain your job to a total stranger? It’s these type of situations where your soft skills are tested. If you don’t practice these skills, and proactively seek out the chances to practice these, you can’t improve them. A little tip - If you are looking to supercharge your career in payroll then focus on your presentation skills, both verbal and visual. Standing out from others means having the confidence to literally stand up in front of your peers and show your passion about your chosen profession.”

Talk to me about global responsibilities:

“Surprisingly recently, I was working in a role where I had one monthly UK payroll to complete, that was it! I was well within my comfort zone and each month passed incident free. But now almost all roles have a global responsibility and, I’ll be honest, that is quite daunting. I had to take a step back at one point and realise that I wasn’t employed to be a payroll expert for every single country around the globe, but to use my entire skillset (technical, soft skills and common sense!) to get the payrolls completed.” 

What are your thoughts on the systems that support payroll and vendor management

“The one thing I can say about payroll systems is that there isn’t a truly global solution. There are some incredibly clever minds in the payroll industry and yet no-one has cracked the ‘one system’ solution. Whoever does will be very rich! There are household names who provide payroll solutions, often using in-country payroll bureaus to plug the gaps, and whilst it isn’t perfect, it does the job ok. For me, it’s more important to be flexible and open to change – for example, I’ve worked with people who have learnt the ins and outs of the payroll system they use, but naturally this knowledge is then redundant if/when that system is changed. In most of my roles I have worked with vendors, either in the UK or further afield, and I often employ a technique I call ‘political smarties’. Ultimately, it is about being yourself, being honest with vendors, and building up rapport with people. Doing this means that you are topping up your imaginary bowl of ‘political smarties’ ready for the time when you need to ‘spend’ a few solving any issues – which, believe me, will happen!”.

How have you taken Ownership of your area:

“I believe that payroll is often housed within the HR function for one reason - people buy people. HR is a very people orientated department and payroll has become a very people orientated industry. So with this in mind, I make sure I am approachable. Employees don’t always want the answer right away, but they want to feel like you care about their issue. That is ownership. Taking time to sit with an employee who is struggling to understand their recent tax code change and help them, that is ownership. Learning the technical skills to be produce an error free payroll is the easy bit, learning how to treat people with humility and honesty is what makes you stand out from others.

How do you approach Business Partnering & communications:

“One of the best ways of gauging how a business is performing is to dig into the payroll data. Is there a large amount of overtime? Does the person doing the overtime on a Thursday evening then take Friday off sick? Are one department receiving bonuses yet another isn’t? This rich source of information is crucial in helping the business understand its challenges. But it doesn’t if they aren’t told! Proactively discussing these items with the right people makes a real difference, and it must be proactive. Sitting and waiting for people to come and ask you for information undoes all the hard work you do to elevate the importance of the payroll function. And how to communicate with the business? In my working career, I’ve learnt a few things about communication. One is to keep messages short, not using any words that you wouldn’t use when talking to friends. I don’t think I’ve ever said ‘sustained growth’ outside of work, ever! To appear genuine in delivery, keep the language simple. Another, which works best when replying to emails, is to mirror the tone and language of the sender when you reply. If someone sends a one line email, don’t reply with four paragraphs of detail. Communicating with people in their own style means your reply is much more likely to be understood and acted upon”.

Ownership of benefits from processing through to negotiations, renewals, benchmarking and setting up benefits platforms:

“It is no surprise that payroll staff are often given responsibility for benefits, as their skills are transferrable. I look at benefits as the perfect opportunity to showcase my skills, whether discussing my philosophy on private medical insurance or encouraging engagement with a company pension. It is important to see benefits not as an additional chore, but as a chance to make a difference to the same employees who rely on you to get their pay correct each month. Also, don’t forget that you are also an employee and may utilise those exact same benefits. In every payroll cycle there are quiet periods and I use those to research, discuss and benchmark the company’s benefits. In conjunction with brokers, it is worthwhile investing some time to set out clearly what you and the company want to achieve (is it simply ‘we want the cheapest’?) and explaining that transparently to employees at the right time. The most recent successes I have had with benefits have been the simplest (purchase holiday schemes) and the administration of those are usually very simple and cost effective, which keeps the Finance Director happy! I think that expensive looking apps, websites or portals have a place in benefits, but I try not to get fixated on them too much as your benefits offering shouldn’t need to look polished just to be valued by employees”.

Where you see Payroll heading in the future:

“When I started my career in payroll over a decade ago, I never envisioned being in the type of role I am now. One of my earliest memories of payroll was in my first ever job, where I had a door literally shut in my face by the payroll department because ‘it was our busy week’ and they didn’t have time to even talk to me. I’ve spoken to a lot of people over my career who had similar experiences and that just isn’t acceptable. I had no burning desire to get into payroll, but once I landed my first payroll job I decided that I would do it ‘my way’. I’d be friendly, listen to people and do a payroll faster than anyone else, whilst answering any queries I received. Did I achieve all of that, all the time? Of course not, but aiming to be the best version of ‘you’ you can possibly be isn’t a bad target. I believe that the industry has shaken off its old image of being a closed door, metaphorically and physically, and that has opened up some incredible opportunities. An old manager of mine once declined my request for a salary review because ‘I had reached the top of the expected salary for that role’ and yet now I am lucky enough to have far surpassed that amount. So, where do I see payroll in the future? I don’t believe much will change in the day to day processing, and there will always be a human element to payroll no matter the technological advances.  We’ve all worked hard to position payroll as a key part of business operations and I firmly believe that is where it now sits. We must now adapt to see ourselves as business leaders not business admin. Payroll will become even more visible, a vital global resource and that will bring new, exciting challenges.