A leading aviation services and support company with an international presence, this company provides key engineering services across a number of countries thanks to their skilled engineers and technicians.

Global payroll leaders sometimes decide to review and change their vendors and technology- this typically involves some market research followed by an appropriate procurement process. The company usually studies current market research and reviews available RFP and business case resources produced by relevant thought leaders in the payroll industry.

With the rise of technology and global instability, international expansion is a key strategic focus for many successful businesses. For CFOs, such strategy can raise a range of challenges that must be carefully navigated in order to ensure success in the new market. Here are the key challenges of international expansion.

Change is rarely popular, but it is an inevitable part of modern business -anyone reluctant to embrace it will find themselves quickly left behind by a hugely competitive and unforgiving global marketplace. Every business department from IT to Payroll to HR to Marketing will be subject to some form of change management initiatives at some point in their evolution.

The payroll industry is populated with a few key providers who all play important, but distinct roles in the very important payroll eco-system. These roles exists because companies have different needs outside of the obvious payroll function of ensuring their employees get paid accurately and on time. To give you a picture of these needs, think of the very common scenario of a company looking to scale operations into a new country.

A recent Deloitte study of 600 global business leaders revealed that companies are spending half their time creating and updating reports. As a result, only a fraction of their time is spent on the far more valuable task of data analytics. This is an inbalance which costs companies timely and important insights. Insights which could, according to Matt Soderberg of Deloitte Consulting LLP, reporting on the results, “prove vital to the business.”

The payroll department has long been considered something of a functional, back-office process. One of those things you only pay attention to when something goes wrong. This narrow view is changing as keen observers are noticing the sheer volume of useful data flowing through payroll teams on a daily basis. Many are now wondering if this data may have other valuable insights. Business leaders are always looking for new ways to create growth and are always grateful for any new data that can help them make important strategic decisions.

Many payroll managers today are looking for a global payroll solution. They have found that the current processes in place are not sufficient to meet the day-to-day demands of global payroll operations. Payroll professional are under increasing pressure to deliver payroll services along with additional reporting requirements.

Payroll services may have been resistant to change for a long time, but new market forces have emerged that mean change is inevitable. Things like the rapid scaling rate of companies into new countries and territories is resulting in a need for innovative thinking.

Most people have accepted that the traditional role of the CFO is changing, and as we enter a new decade, it is perhaps time to evaluate what the priorities might be for a CFO in 2020 and beyond. CFO’s have many responsibilities, chief among these is a common business priority around cost efficiency.

Gartner is the world’s leading research and advisory company. A recent published report focused on the changing role of payroll operations and how a need has arisen for technology solutions in this area. The report, titled The Market Guide for Multicountry Payroll Solutions¹, shines some much-needed light on the changing needs of payroll departments everywhere. It examines these needs and explains how some of the traditional models are no longer best positioned to meet these needs.

A new decade has arrived and payroll professionals in multinational companies around the world are faced with a series of complex challenges. These challenges are likely to require technology-based solutions capable of empowering global payroll teams to meet new demands being placed upon them.

  There is a misconception that increased technology invites a greater risk of security breaches. More advanced and confusing systems, more external suppliers and the storage of more data than ever can often make CFOs nervous of technological progress.  ...