Background: When Growth Outpaces Infrastructure
A well-established UK-based accounting firm had been scaling steadily since 2015, catering primarily to tech startups, consulting firms, and e-commerce businesses. Their clients trusted them for expert bookkeeping, compliance filing, and financial advisory.
But behind the scenes, one critical function was faltering: Payroll.
The Tipping Point: Hidden Issues in an Overlooked Function
By early 2024, the firm had grown to a 50-member internal team and was managing payroll for 60+ clients. However, their in-house payroll process was still being handled by a small legacy team using spreadsheets and manual data inputs.
Over time, the cracks became evident:
- ❌ Frequent errors in payslips—wrong tax codes, missing allowances
- ⏳ Delays in submissions—especially with HMRC FPS/EPS deadlines
- 😟 Frustrated employees—with multiple staff raising concerns
- ⚠️ Two client escalations due to repeated miscalculations
The firm’s leadership realised the cost of inaction was too high. Trust was slipping, and the compliance risk was real.
Accelus Solution: Dedicated Payroll Pod
Accelus was brought in to assess and implement a fix—not just a patchwork solution, but a long-term, scalable payroll system.
We recommended a dedicated 2-FTE Payroll Pod, designed to integrate seamlessly with the firm’s operations:
- 👩💼 1 FTE Senior Payroll Specialist
→ Responsible for client payroll processing, reconciliations, and compliance submissions - 🗂️ 1 FTE Payroll Administrator
→ Handled data collation, document validation, and client queries
With secure data transfer protocols, daily UK-time overlaps, and real-time dashboards, the team was live in under 10 business days.
Implementation Milestones
Week 1–2: Discovery & Clean-Up
- Reviewed 3 months of historical payroll files
- Flagged 18 recurring issues across clients
- Set up payroll SOPs aligned to UK regulations
- Migrated 40+ payrolls to cloud-based tools (BrightPay + Xero add-ons)
Week 3–5: Transition & Testing
- Ran dual-processing parallel to internal team
- Achieved 100% payslip accuracy by Week 4
- Built client-specific checklists and monthly validation packs
Month 2 Onward: Steady State
- Took over 100% of recurring payrolls
- Implemented compliance tracker with alert system
- Average query turnaround dropped from 48 hours to less than 6
Impact at a Glance
✅ 98.7% Payslip Accuracy (up from 91%)
📅 100% on-time HMRC submissions
📬 5x improvement in client query turnaround
💼 Freed 30+ hours/month of internal bandwidth
💡 Zero escalations in the last 90 days
Conclusion: Payroll Isn’t Just Admin — It’s a Trust Engine
By outsourcing payroll to Accelus, the firm didn’t just improve numbers—they rebuilt internal confidence and client satisfaction.
Payroll done right creates consistency, protects your firm from risk, and gives your team back time to grow.
📩 Ready to treat payroll like the core function it is? Let’s talk.
