Time to find a payroll manager for your company? While the recruitment process for a payroll manager may seem easy, let's first get a lay of the land.
First things first: Let's take a look at the basic facts. Data from labor-insights provider Burning Glass shows no change in demand for the role over the past year, logging precisely 7,000 postings for payroll managers during that time, with an average of 37 days to fill each position. But don't let that fool you into thinking that hiring will be easy — especially in today's job market.
So what is the best way to go about finding your next great payroll manager? Glad you asked.
Here's a simple checklist for accomplishing just that:
What do each of these checklist items actually entail? Keep reading for insight and advice on each step.
Lengthy hiring timelines bog down entire departments with extra work and risk important tasks — like payroll processing — falling through the cracks. Revisit your hiring process using this diagram, and identify areas that could benefit from an efficiency tune-up.
If anyone is compensation savvy, it's certainly a payroll manager. So you'll need to be sure you're offering a competitive pay rate from the start in order to attract their attention. Randstad's salary guide is an excellent starting point for compensation comparison.
In addition to experience, what makes for a competitive salary also differs by region. You can put our salary calculator into action to find up-to-date data on pay rates relative to your area.
Before you can craft your job description, you need to know what specific skills and experience your ideal candidate should have. A payroll manager does much more than make sure everyone gets paid — they also manage compensation and the paid time off offered to ensure what your company offers is sustainable and mutually beneficial.
Discuss your company's specific needs with the hiring manager and other business leaders to determine the "must-have" skills — an affinity for math and numbers, for starters — and "nice-to-have" skills, like having Certified Payroll Professional or Certified Protection Professional credentials.
To give you a jump-start, below are the top-requested skills of payroll managers nationwide:
payroll processing
accounting
staff management
ADP payroll
multistate payroll
general ledger
calculation
No one said writing a great job description was easy — and if they did, they were mistaken — but that doesn't mean it has to be complicated. Follow these three tips to keep your description simple and effective.
don't write like a robot
There's so much information that has to fit into a job description, that it's easy to slip into a robotic rhythm of writing. And you can imagine how boring that sort of writing is to read. Keep your posts fresh and engaging by packaging the facts — compensation, size of company — in personable language and highlighting aspects of the position that appeal to humans (as opposed to, say, data processors), such as culture, training or certification support and opportunities for career growth.
show how this job is meaningful
One increasingly impactful way to set your company apart is to showcase how this specific role at your specific company is meaningful. No one wants to feel like a cog in the wheel, so be sure to include how you view the payroll manager as a crucial part of the team. People in this position are privy to highly confidential information and contribute to sustaining the financial health of your organization. Simply put, they directly impact the reputation of your company. Meaningful work? We think so — and make sure they know you do, too.
make it easy to skim
Truth be told, people skim job descriptions before they read job descriptions. This means you need to tailor your post for a quick scan and not an in-depth read. And what goes into a skimmable yet comprehensive description look like, you ask?
A quick note on uniformity: If you list the majority of benefits in bullet points but sneak parental leave information into a sentence elsewhere, for example, you risk readers assuming your company doesn't have a parental leave benefit worth mentioning.
Keep these tips in mind when writing and you should come up with an eye-catching and engaging job description that appeals to qualified applicants. Want some more help? We've got you covered. Find more advice for the writing process in our guide to writing highly effective job descriptions.
The increased pace of change in the business landscape has companies looking to future-proof every aspect of operations. Understanding the trends impacting the accounting and finance industry is key to future-proofing your hiring process.
Below are a few trends for the accounting and finance industry — and payroll managers, specifically — that you need to know:
Payroll managers hold great responsibility in any company. Their role requires multitasking in high-stress environments with sensitive information. How well they manage their responsibilities has a direct impact on the satisfaction of employees and the reputation of your company as a whole.
Such a position requires a high level of discernment in the hiring process. While a multitude of sourcing options exist, working with a staffing firm provides a clear advantage for organizations looking to find a quality payroll manager — fast. The services they can provide are time- and cost-effective; they minimize your risk and work, so you can maximize your return. Makes sense, doesn’t it?
Reach out to our accounting and finance experts at Randstad today to start the process.
Or, if you'd rather browse a bit on your own before reaching out, you can see our pool of available payroll managers — all of whom are prescreened, vetted and available on demand — in our Find Employees portal.