BCX upgrades a leading client’s HR and Payroll system to cope with complex shifts and enable self-service.

BCX, one of South Africa’s leading ICT and telecommunications infrastructure partners, has successfully implemented a new HR and Payroll system for a client in South Africa, to address complex shift and leave requirements and enable self-service for teams of blue-collar workers.

The client employs around 1 500 people in South Africa and the Sub-Saharan Africa region. Unionised blue-collar workers form the majority of the staffing headcount, which calls for an excellent understanding of the environment staff work in. This means HR and Payroll functions must operate smoothly in providing accurate payments on time, every week or month, to keep up productivity levels and prevent any industrial-relations issues.

The client used a solution that was decommissioned, so they evaluated market solutions and found BCX’s HR and Payroll Cloud Solution to be the most appropriate fit.

The biggest challenge was to ensure that any new system could cater for many complex rules and shift pattern payments, as well as the leave policies attached to these shifts. Prompt and efficient support services from a vendor was included as a mandatory requirement, as was the legislation and accurate tax calculations. The closure of South African offices during the COVID-19 pandemic also highlighted the need for the HR and payroll personnel to have access to their payroll and HR environment, from their home offices, while ensuring that the environment for the software was safe, secure and managed with no interruptions of availability.

Interfacing to internal systems such as SAP and Timekeeper were also required, so that there is minimal disruption to the wider organisation processes during the implementation of a new HR and payroll solution.

BCX engages with a number of organisations from various environments and has gained extensive experience and insight into its customers’ challenges in every sector. BCX HR and Payroll Cloud Solution was the system chosen to meet the client’s challenges.

With this implementation, most of the client’s challenges would be catered for. The client is now able to address any queries, any time and any place, due to the cloud solution deployed. The client can produce all the correct payments, reporting and legislative calculations as required, within a safe and secure cloud environment. The solution supports the HR team’s focus on cost saving without compromising on service to the employees.

The new system also paves the way for employee self-service. Many of the blue-collar workers do not have access to a PC and thus are limited to paper-based payslips and leave forms.