We’re currently living through a once-in-a-generation pandemic, and workers are taking the time to reflect on what’s most important to them. As workers re-evaluate their priorities and we move into a sort of post-pandemic reset, Microsoft has released research predicting a jump in job turnover, an effect that has been dubbed ‘The Great Resignation’.
Locally, Gartner estimates that around one in four Australians is currently job hunting and that 83% of organisations are detecting signs of higher turnover. In fact, in Slack’s most recent Future Forum Pulse report, 60% of Australian knowledge workers surveyed were open to looking for a new job in the next year, a number higher than the UK, France, Germany, and Japan.
Current forecasts suggest a large movement of talent starting in March 2022 so what do we need to do to prepare for any potential impact?
With these projected shifts within the workforce comes an increased HR workload, there’s no better time to evaluate your payroll strategy and ensure that your processes are efficient, compliant, and can be easily adapted to potential changes. With this in mind, you may find it tougher to find qualified and experienced payroll talent to bring in-house.
Whether you’re currently recruiting for payroll specialists or evaluating your strategy, it’s worth considering whether they have qualifications. As an industry, we’ve been working with the Australian Payroll Association to help establish nationally recognised payroll qualifications. The Certificate IV in Payroll Administrator, and the Diploma of Payroll Management are the benchmark for operational payroll staff and management, and are critical to consider when looking to fill vacancies in your payroll team.
When looking at your payroll recruitment and strategy, ask yourself the following:
- How does the payroll function fit into your organisation’s long and short-term strategy?
- Where do the roles you’re filling fit within the company? Do they expand on existing HR functions or sit separately?
- With anticipated increases in turnover and workload in the next 12 months, what processes do you have in place already, particularly regarding due diligence and compliance? And what other processes will you need to introduce to keep up with the changing landscape?
- Are you dedicating premium resources to filling a payroll position when this isn’t the focus of your business?
Perhaps your recruitment resources would be better spent focusing on roles that support the service or product your business specialises in.
In a post-pandemic world, there’s less rigidity in terms of office-bound payroll roles, particularly with the number of cloud-based platforms and secure technology now available. In this jobseeker’s market, flexibility in terms of remote work has become a standard part of negotiations and if you’re not able to offer this, you may find it even more difficult to recruit or retain quality payroll professionals.
A final thought… As we work through this reset process, stability and continuity will be a priority for businesses, both financially and culturally, so there’s value in considering a payroll partner.
Outsourcing to a partner like Payroll HQ to manage your business’ payroll processes gives you the capacity to focus on what you do best. Your payroll doesn’t need to be an additional logistical burden while you navigate through the reset process and ‘The Great Resignation’.
