REWARD
I n part one, we explored what service desk technology is and how it can complement the payroll operation to enhance customer experience. We discussed how automating queries can create space and capacity for payroll teams to upskill and offer a more personal service to employees. If used correctly, service desk technology and automation can really drive a culture of control. Let’s explore what this means in practice. Imagine you work in a centralised payroll team, processing payroll for over 3,000 employees and, on pay day, multiple queries come in via email, chat and telephone. Some employees are based in the same office as your team and they flood through the doors with their queries, everything is urgent, and everyone is distressed and seeking immediate resolution. Chaos! Pay is very emotive; it touches people in many different ways and as a result, swift resolutions are a must. This is where service desk automation can be a key ally to the team, by processing all queries and requests in the most efficient and effective way. If built correctly, the technology can triage, analyse and prioritise incoming queries according to their urgency. It can also: l provide self-help instructions for known issues (knowledge-based articles, policies, etc) l categorise queries and establish urgency to enable optimal resolution l channel queries via the correct agent through a pre-defined escalation protocol and workflows l provide the employee with a unique reference number to obtain updates on the progress of their query or request l provide a customer experience which always places that customer in control of their enquiry. All service desk technologies are underpinned by a comprehensive audit trail functionality which enables
transparency and a clear log of all touch points in the ticket journey from start to finish. This forms the foundation for the measurement of performance against service level agreements (SLAs) and can
into issues originating from the operation. We already know that payroll collects data from everywhere in the organisation, processes it and then generates the output. By identifying operational issues, recurring or isolated, they can be controlled and contained, routed to the relevant stakeholder for investigation, preventative measures can be implemented to avoid further escalation and finally, the issues can be resolved. This extends to other departments as well, such as human resources or finance. We have seen multiple cases where monetary operational savings were achieved through intervention which originated in payroll. The service desk approach can also ensure processes become standardised and answered in a uniform way. This ensures clear practices become embedded within line managers and that they’re better equipped to answer questions going forward. Savings can be achieved by optimising the payroll resource by, for example, using automation to centralise and manage payroll queries / requests. This would then give payroll professionals the time to deal with more complex issues or processes, which could add value to the organisation by saving cost, increasing efficiency or improving legislative compliance. Going back to the customer experience (in our case, the employee experience), service desk automation can improve engagement and productivity through high customer satisfaction and effective education. As an industry, we know a significant proportion of the working population in the UK don’t fully understand our tax system which, in turn, can create dissatisfaction through the misconception that their employer has made a mistake with their pay. Identifying common pay issues and educating employees to better understand the make-up of their pay empowers them and fosters a more productive employee- employer relationship. n
provide insights into: l team performance l training issues l insufficient resources l system issues l time taken to resolve queries l and much more. These insights can also identify
issues for which permanent fixes can be implemented to prevent recurrences. They can also identify patterns and trends which can help the team to better plan and prepare for specific events in the payroll cycle. “We have seen multiple cases where monetary operational savings were achieved through intervention which originated in payroll” As Peter Drucker said, “You can’t improve what you can’t measure”, and service desk technology does just that. It measures performance and enables the team to embrace a continuous improvement mindset to ensure their service is fit for purpose and meets customer expectations. But it isn’t just the employees and the payroll team who benefit from service desk automation; the organisation benefits as well. Through the data collected by the technology, the employer can gain insights
“As an industry, we know a significant proportion of the working population in the UK don’t fully understand our tax system which, in turn, can create dissatisfaction through the misconception that their employer has made a mistake with their pay”
Join us next time when we discuss harnessing the benefits of service desk automation to drive a culture of continuous improvement, which can positively impact the payroll team and organisation.
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| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward |
Issue 100 | May 2024
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