introduce our tax preparation services to our client’s staff,”
said Rupani, who added that the ;rm currently processes
payroll for about 20 clients.
Rupani went on to explain that one of the reasons
why clients have turned to the ;rm, versus a service
bureau, for payroll is because most of the ;rm’s payroll
clients “don’t plan much around payroll.” They may add
employees on a Tuesday, and expect them to be paid on
a Friday, for instance. “When the client sends me this
information, they know the work will be done and their
staff will be paid. The payroll bureau has deadlines for
adding new employees, for bank account veri;cation, etc.
There is a very good chance the employee either [would]
not be paid or [would] not get a direct deposit because the
employer did not meet the reporting deadline.”
Pat Carson is founder of Carson & Crew, a San
Jose, Calif.-based ;rm that specializes in QuickBooks
consulting, outsourced bookkeeping and payroll. An Intuit
Online Payroll user since 2004, the ;rm has always done
payroll for any small-business bookkeeping clients who
requested it. “Even before the wonderful technology we
use today was developed, I was using National Payment
to manually enter a net amount for [direct deposit] for
one of my clients after I processed payroll to enable timely
payment of his employees,” Carson said.
Payroll processing currently accounts for about
10-15 percent of the ;rm’s revenue. For many clients, the
;rm offers just the service of set-up, paying the taxes, ;ling
forms and being an advisor. For others, it also processes
the payroll. However, the growth of this segment has been
20 percent to 30 percent over the last three or four years,
and is currently the ;rm’s largest growing segment.
“We process payroll for over 80 clients now. Our
typical client is a small business with one to 15 employees
that is comfortable with a computer and the Internet but
still needs the support for correct and timely processing of
payroll taxes and forms,” Carson said.
According to Ariege Misherghi, senior product
manager for Intuit Online Payroll for Accounting
Professionals, they often see accountants dabble in
payroll with one or two clients, in order to get used to the
solution, and then expand the business. “Now word is
spreading and [accountants] are realizing that payroll is
pro;table,” Misherghi said.
Payroll
FROM PAGE 34
AFTER THE FACT ...
“I would say that most accountants, if they are doing
payroll, it is because they have a client that is essentially
demanding it,” said Andy Childs, vice president of
marketing for Paychex. “The other reason accountants do
it is after-the-fact payroll. ... It is something that most of
the payroll service bureaus, including Paychex, don’t do
very well because it’s not our typical way of dealing with
taxes. So if someone has a need for after-the-fact payroll
tax calculations, they pretty much have to go to their
accountant.”
Paychex is a provider of payroll, human resources
and bene;ts outsourcing solutions for small-to-midsized-
sized businesses. It works closely with the accounting
community in a number of ways but, historically, its
small-business services sales representatives will cultivate
relationships with CPAs and enrolled agents in their
territories and Paychex will provide payroll services
for those CPAs’ clients, typically on a referral basis. In
recent years, Paychex has also offered its e-Partnership
Program, which is a hosted payroll application that allows
accountants to essentially do the payroll data entry on
behalf of their clients. However, this isn’t an offering
Paychex aggressively approaches in the marketplace.
PARTNERING WITH CPAS
In February 2011, Paychex acquired SurePayroll, a
provider of Software-as-a-Service payroll processing
for small businesses, which, at that time, was serving
approximately 30,000 small businesses. SurePayroll
has several ways in which it partners with accounting
professionals, including a referral program and a reseller
program. Through the reseller program, accounting
professionals can leverage SurePayroll’s technology
platform and create a private-label version of SurePayroll.
Jeff Berenfeld, owner of Laguna Hills, Calif.-based
Databoy Accounting and Bookkeeping, started an
independent payroll service bureau with a business partner
in 2005 but, several years later, the two business partners
split ways. Now, with a non-compete agreement about to
expire, Berenfeld is gearing up to launch a new company,
American Brand Payroll, and will hit the market as a
SurePayroll reseller. “I was looking to get back into the
business without all of the headache and the ;nancial risk
that an independent service bureau faces. The operations
are extremely complex and can be a nightmare unless
you’re organized like a hospital operating room,” he said.
American Brand Payroll will target businesses with
between ;ve and 10 employees, and he hopes to add at
least 100 payroll clients in 2012. “Once you start doing
accounting for [clients] and you’re involved in their
;nances — especially if they have a bad experience with a
payroll company or are maybe doing it in-house — they
want the additional service so it’s all tied together. They
already trust me to make sure that it’s right and if anything
goes wrong there’s no intermediary person they have
to talk to, they just call me or I proactively [address] it
without them knowing about it,” said Berenfeld.
A VALUE-ADD
For some ;rms, payroll didn’t necessarily stem from
client demand, but rather from a desire to offer a value-added service to clients. That was largely the case for Bert
Doerhoff, co-owner of AccuPay APS, an outsource payroll
service that has been in business since 1992.
Doerhoff said that the initial driver for a foray into
payroll was to offer clients an additional service that
See PAYROLL on 38
Paychex
1. What opportunites does
providing payroll services offer to
accounting firms?
The goal of any accountant is to be their
clients’ most trusted advisor. With every service provided, the
accountant strengthens that relationship and opens doors to new
opportunities.
However, that’s not the
only aspect to consider.
Accountants should also
evaluate client demand,
staff capacity, revenue
potential, and compliance
risk. Accountants must
identify and recommend
the solution that meets
clients’ needs, and makes
sense for their firm. If
offering payroll isn’t a
good fit, all is not lost. By
choosing to outsource,
accountants can be
assured that their clients’
needs are expertly met,
while they add value to
their client relationships in
more consultative ways.
Andrew Childs
Vice president of marketing
Paychex Inc.
2. How are you helping accounting firms realize
those opportunities?
Paychex provides multiple offerings that allow accountants to
elect their desired level of payroll participation. Accountants
who choose to play more of an advisory role can partner with
Paychex to provide their clients with a comprehensive suite
of payroll and HR services that can be tailored to meet the
clients’ needs. Paychex provides state-of-the-art online tools and
resources to allow accountants to access their client information
when they need it, and truly maximize their advisory role.
Paychex does it all, from payroll administration to the full
complement of human resources services — and we are proud
to be the only payroll and HR provider selected for the AICPA
Trusted Business Advisor Program. Accounting professionals
that partner with us can be confident they are working with a
financially solid industry leader whose offerings can be adapted
to meet the needs of individual clients. Whether it’s payroll
processing, retirement services, health insurance, or more,
Paychex offers the services to maximize a CPA’s role as trusted
advisor.
