Time to break the misconceptions about desktop payroll. All you need to know

Sage Pastel payroll effectiveness In a modern Market

Modern vs Desktop isn’t a thing when it comes to Payroll:

One of the biggest strengths of Sage Pastel Payroll Desktop is that many businesses and employees already know it well. This fact actually reduces disruption, reduces re-training, and protects process consistency.

Many South African businesses want control over their data and infrastructure, especially those with strict internal controls, limited internet reliability in some locations, or strong preferences around where payroll data is stored and accessed.  In these cases, an on-premise desktop system is still the best option. Desktop payroll can give businesses more direct control over their payroll environment, user access, backups, and internal processing routines. This is one of the main practical reasons businesses continue using desktop platforms. Because it is installed locally, companies are not fully dependent on having a live internet connection every time they need to work on payroll. That can be a real advantage for businesses that experience connectivity issues or simply want the reassurance that payroll processing is stable and still available even when internet access is down, and the payroll team can still work. HR teams often have to travel & can still work on Payroll matters while on flights where there is no internet connection.

Besides payroll, the Desktop version also has an easy-to-use HR System, suitable for any size and type of business, where performance reviews and disciplinary procedures have never been more accurately recorded. Because the system is so concise and reports are customised to each employee, avoiding CCMA cases and compensation for wrongful dismissal is guaranteed. Disciplinary procedures are simplified by a system that comes with 66 disciplinary reasons, each with a set offence level. Companies can also keep track of company assets in employees’ possession.

It also has an ESS module, which allows employees to view payslips, apply for leave, submit claims, and update details online or via smartphone while synchronising with Sage Pastel Payroll. So, the desktop product can still be part of a more modern payroll ecosystem instead of being a purely old-fashioned standalone system.

It is the only payroll with a built-in Industrial Council Compliance setup that caters to the MIBFA, MIBCO / MICFA, the Electrical Industry and the Road Freight Industry, as well as the Private Security Industry. This module provides the payroll team with the ability to generate the applicable Industrial Council’s electronic submission files without having to manually complete the Industrial Council reports. Simply generate the submission file and e-mail it to the applicable Industrial Council at the click of a button.  Companies that require Bargaining Council setup on Cloud payroll will incur much larger setup fees.

It has the Multiple Transaction Manager Module, which allows employers to give the entire company a salary increase based on either a set value or a specific percentage and process a production bonus or commission by only using one screen. Over shutdown periods, putting the entire workforce on leave has never been this quick and easy. This feature allows companies to make global updates to any transaction within the Payroll system to all, or a selection of employees.

Sage Pastel Payroll Advantage automatically comes with all of the above; it just needs to be set up and training done with clients, which again equates to more consulting.

Sage still actively supports Pastel Payroll.  They provide current software updates/downloads, publish regular tax year-end and legislative guidance for payroll users, and the support materials on their Knowledge Base are also very handy, and this is well-maintained and updated.

Cloud payroll is not automatically the smarter choice. The real question is whether a client's current payroll system is failing them. If Sage Pastel Payroll Desktop is still compliant, is still supported, and teams are processing accurately and efficiently, then replacing it should be driven by a real business case, not just by the idea that newer must be better.

The only time it would be ‘outdated’ is if a business needs real-time remote access, broader automation, more detailed employee self-service or e-onboarding, or multi-site scalability that cloud payroll can handle better.

So the conversation is not really desktop versus modern. The better conversation is whether the business wants a proven on-premise payroll engine with optional digital add-ons, or whether it needs a fully cloud-native operating model.

Written By Nicole Salt (Payroll Head)