RSONAL DEVELOPMENT
# Be Payroll
Emma FarrowACIPPdip, head of payroll and pensions at Citizen talks through the perks of holdingmembershipwith the CIPP
Why did you choose to become amember of the CIPP? I wanted to take control and responsibility of my own self development within both payroll and pensions. I knew that being a member had many benefits that I could use to enable me to continue to build on my knowledge as a payroll professional. Professional magazine and the Advisory Service are fantastic tools and I use them all the time. How has your membership helped you in your career? Being able to increase my knowledge has naturally helped me to progress to the level I am at today. The insights and knowledge you gain from the CIPP are invaluable and make me feel more confident. I always feel reassured when I read or research a topic through the CIPP that we are doing things correctly. My membership has played a big part in this, as the CIPP is quick to communicate changes in rules or legislation, which allows me to communicate effectively and efficiently within my organisation. What membership benefits have you used or enjoyed the most and can you give me some examples? I look forward to reading Professional magazine and the newsletters that are circulated from the CIPP, and I can honestly say that I get so much insight from these tools alone. I am also a big fan of the Advisory Service, especially when I cannot get through to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Additionally, I have benefitted from discounted training sessions, and attended training on off-payroll working. Can you describe your payroll journey to us so far? Like everyone else, I ‘fell’ into payroll. I started my career in payroll following the birth of my first child and, at the time, I was working in the travel industry which did not provide me with the work/life balance I needed. It was because of this that I went looking for a nine to five job. In 2001, I joined a large catering company and my first role involved taking incoming calls from employees and following scripts to either divert their calls to the relevant teams, or to answer standard questions. Two days in, I got thrown into inputting timesheets and never looked back. I quickly learned I thrive on pressure, so in 2003, I took the leap of faith and moved to a payroll bureau. I absolutely
loved the fast-paced environment and the variety of work, not to mention the amount of experience I gained within just two years. I quickly learned that not one payroll was the same. I loved working with clients and finding solutions to their complex issues. Getting an insight into business operations has played a huge part in shaping my career. I took redundancy in 2005 and this felt like the right time to move into payroll management. Eighteen months later, my third child was born, and at the same time, we set up a family business, so I took some time off to stay at home to raise my children and support my husband to grow the business. In 2011, I felt it was the right time to kickstart my career again and moved around part-time payroll and human resource (HR) roles as this enabled me to complete the school run, whilst rebuilding my knowledge. In 2015, I felt I was ready to commit to a full-time role and moved back into payroll management. I’ve stayed there ever since. What are your hopes for your future career? I would love to see payroll leaders being represented at a more senior level as I think involving payroll in business strategies will help organisations to make more informed decisions. I am passionate about continuous improvement and extremely ambitious, so who knows where my career will take me, but I like to think there is room for further career progression. Do you have any plans to study any CIPP qualifications or training courses? I completed the CIPP Foundation Degree in 2019 and have considered starting the Master of Science (MSc) in Strategic Management. Now is not the right time for me but it is part of my five-year plan. What advice would you give to those new to the payroll profession who are just starting out in their careers? Be curious, keep generating questions and asking why. Although payroll is governed by legislation, this does not mean you cannot be creative and improve your skills to become more effective and efficient. n
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| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | December 2021 – January 2022 | Issue 76 10
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