Get the best people to the workplace and keep them there
Payroll departments need team members who can multitask, have a keen eye for detail and can handle working with confidential and sensitive information.
Recruiting for such positions can be a challenge. Now that the job market has improved and there are more opportunities for qualified candidates.
“The hiring for payroll, it’s like there’s a flurry of activity around it…(companies are) struggling to find people,” said Dianne Hunnam-Jones, District President of Accountemps for the Greater Toronto Area.
“We have so many more open positions in payroll now than we did three months ago.”
There are many reasons for the sudden job market increase.
Growth in the economy means companies are expanding and hiring. They need more payroll people to support the employee database, said Hunnam-Jones.
Many companies have also taken a look at their structure coming out of the recession and they are taking this opportunity to redefine roles, which can create new positions, she said.
“Instead of just saying ‘oh a payroll manager’s left, let’s replace a payroll manager’ let’s rather look at the entire talent pool and see if there’s people we can do something with and maybe we’ll end up replacing a human resources assistant instead,” said Hunnam-Jones.
A good job search starts with a thorough job description and a well written job advertisement.
Once the ad is prepped and ready to go, place it on job boards targeting payroll professionals, like the Canadian Payroll Association website and recruitment websites targeted to HR specialists, she said. The ad has to be able to catch the eye of the qualified people you are trying to target, she said.
“You’re competing against so many people out there, so your ad has to have in it what’s going to attract somebody to want to apply to your company,” she said.
Sometimes it is work-life balance that draws candidates into applying for a position, for others it is growth opportunities within the company.
Many also appreciate and look for opportunities for professional development, said Hunnam-Jones.
Jobseekers may also be looking for variation in the tasks they will perform on the job on a day-to-day basis, said Colin Monk, managing director at recruiting firm Michael Page International.
Professionals are still really looking for positions with longevity and diversity within the role, he said.
“Can there be promotions, is there a good development scheme attached to it, can people see opportunity on opportunity one, two, three years ahead.”
Employers should consider getting recommendations from current staff members. A company’s employees are industry professionals and are likely to have contacts of other highly skilled industry professionals, said Hunnam-Jones.
“That is a huge way to get good people into your company,” she said. “Good people...know good people.”
Hiring managers may also be able to find great candidates if they are willing to train people who have the credentials, but little work experience, said Hunnam-Jones.
“The schools are now doing a really good job of pushing out people who want a career in payroll,” she said.”But companies are not prepared to hire them.”
She advises companies to look at their talent pools and see if they can move the work around so they can bring someone in at entry level and still offer them career growth, she said.
“You’ll cast your net much wider,” she said, adding there are many people who come into Accountemps who have worked in payroll internationally.
They are often overlooked because they lack Canadian experience, but they are great candidates, she said.
“There are superb people, superb, if you’re open on the Canadian experience piece,” she said.
In this market of growing job opportunities, it is essential managers do not wait too long to make an offer to a candidate they are interested in, said Hunnam-Jones.
“If you find somebody, hire them, don’t wait,” she said. “Because we have seen multiple offers for these people, the good people.”
Once you get the right people to sign on the dotted line of a contract it is a matter of integrating them into the team and making sure the team works well together.
Employees want to feel involved in the workplace, said Monk.
“People want to enjoy their workplace and feel very much a part of a team,” he said.
When building a strong work team the key is always communication skills, said Sue Armstrong a Canadian Management Centre facilitator.
Teaching employees skills that may not be intuitive, like asking open-ended questions and encouraging good listening skills, is essential, she said.
Even in teams where there is a lot of individual work and not as much group project based work, it’s important these skills are honed.
This helps to avoid conflict when people work together in a department, she said.
“Nobody works on an island,” she said.
Recruiting for such positions can be a challenge. Now that the job market has improved and there are more opportunities for qualified candidates.
“The hiring for payroll, it’s like there’s a flurry of activity around it…(companies are) struggling to find people,” said Dianne Hunnam-Jones, District President of Accountemps for the Greater Toronto Area.
“We have so many more open positions in payroll now than we did three months ago.”
There are many reasons for the sudden job market increase.
Growth in the economy means companies are expanding and hiring. They need more payroll people to support the employee database, said Hunnam-Jones.
Many companies have also taken a look at their structure coming out of the recession and they are taking this opportunity to redefine roles, which can create new positions, she said.
“Instead of just saying ‘oh a payroll manager’s left, let’s replace a payroll manager’ let’s rather look at the entire talent pool and see if there’s people we can do something with and maybe we’ll end up replacing a human resources assistant instead,” said Hunnam-Jones.
A good job search starts with a thorough job description and a well written job advertisement.
Once the ad is prepped and ready to go, place it on job boards targeting payroll professionals, like the Canadian Payroll Association website and recruitment websites targeted to HR specialists, she said. The ad has to be able to catch the eye of the qualified people you are trying to target, she said.
“You’re competing against so many people out there, so your ad has to have in it what’s going to attract somebody to want to apply to your company,” she said.
Sometimes it is work-life balance that draws candidates into applying for a position, for others it is growth opportunities within the company.
Many also appreciate and look for opportunities for professional development, said Hunnam-Jones.
Jobseekers may also be looking for variation in the tasks they will perform on the job on a day-to-day basis, said Colin Monk, managing director at recruiting firm Michael Page International.
Professionals are still really looking for positions with longevity and diversity within the role, he said.
“Can there be promotions, is there a good development scheme attached to it, can people see opportunity on opportunity one, two, three years ahead.”
Employers should consider getting recommendations from current staff members. A company’s employees are industry professionals and are likely to have contacts of other highly skilled industry professionals, said Hunnam-Jones.
“That is a huge way to get good people into your company,” she said. “Good people...know good people.”
Hiring managers may also be able to find great candidates if they are willing to train people who have the credentials, but little work experience, said Hunnam-Jones.
“The schools are now doing a really good job of pushing out people who want a career in payroll,” she said.”But companies are not prepared to hire them.”
She advises companies to look at their talent pools and see if they can move the work around so they can bring someone in at entry level and still offer them career growth, she said.
“You’ll cast your net much wider,” she said, adding there are many people who come into Accountemps who have worked in payroll internationally.
They are often overlooked because they lack Canadian experience, but they are great candidates, she said.
“There are superb people, superb, if you’re open on the Canadian experience piece,” she said.
In this market of growing job opportunities, it is essential managers do not wait too long to make an offer to a candidate they are interested in, said Hunnam-Jones.
“If you find somebody, hire them, don’t wait,” she said. “Because we have seen multiple offers for these people, the good people.”
Once you get the right people to sign on the dotted line of a contract it is a matter of integrating them into the team and making sure the team works well together.
Employees want to feel involved in the workplace, said Monk.
“People want to enjoy their workplace and feel very much a part of a team,” he said.
When building a strong work team the key is always communication skills, said Sue Armstrong a Canadian Management Centre facilitator.
Teaching employees skills that may not be intuitive, like asking open-ended questions and encouraging good listening skills, is essential, she said.
Even in teams where there is a lot of individual work and not as much group project based work, it’s important these skills are honed.
This helps to avoid conflict when people work together in a department, she said.
“Nobody works on an island,” she said.
