With the right vendor, your organization can have an essential partner to assist with navigating the constant changes and increasing complexity of the payroll environment. The right vendor can also help your organization increase payroll operations efficiency while maintaining compliance.
However, creating and maintaining vendor relationships can be challenging. It requires the right set of skills to get the most value out of the partnership. That’s where PayrollOrg’s The Art & Science of Building Strong Vendor Alliances course—formerly known as Winning Collaborations for Managing Vendor Partnerships—comes in.
In December, several PayrollOrg members took part in a focus group to gauge the benefits of the newly revamped course and share feedback.
“Participating in the focus group … was a truly enriching experience. We worked together to bring fresh, tech-forward insights into the revised course, ensuring it reflects the evolving landscape of global payroll partnerships,” said Sarah Chasney, CPP, Director of Payroll, Travel, and Expense for Banfield Pet Hospital. “The program’s focus on strategic relationship-building, performance metrics, and modernizing vendor management practices makes it an essential resource for today’s global [and domestic] payroll professionals.”
The newly revitalized, expanded course will equip payroll professionals to transform their vendor relationships into high-performing alliances. For example, it is not uncommon for a payroll professional to find that software has become obsolete or is no longer supported, to have to cobble together workarounds to pull reports and other data, or to discover that the scope of the payroll department’s jurisdiction has expanded to include new states or a global workforce.
Determining how to tackle these challenges can be overwhelming. Thus, having the right vendor can be an invaluable ally to help clear this hurdle. But how do you find the best vendor with the most appropriate product, how do you pull in the right expertise at the right time, how do you negotiate and set expectations between your organization and the vendor(s), and how do you lead with confidence throughout the process?
A payroll professional must balance compliance issues, data security and privacy concerns, costs, change management, and more when implementing any new or updated solution. Many threads, both internal and external, must be woven together to craft a solution and guide its successful implementation.
“This is a valuable skill to learn, especially since many of us rely on external vendors in our day-to-day work,” said focus group participant Carney Kim, CPP, SHRM-SCP, Payroll Manager at Alexander & Baldwin. “Having these skills can help payroll professionals play a more strategic role in their organizations.”
After completing the revamped course, payroll professionals will be able to do the following:
Having a road map to follow to find a solution and a toolkit of skills to use to implement the solution can improve efficiency, reduce stress, and allow payroll professionals to navigate a vendor selection process with ease.
This comprehensive course features new expanded modules on leadership and interpersonal skills, including negotiation and conflict resolution. There are also enhanced examples and resources, combining real world scenarios with practical application of the skills and concepts discussed in the course.
PayrollOrg’s partnership with leading industry experts, as well as decades of payroll knowledge and leadership experience, have been incorporated into this revised and expanded course.
“Our focus was to enhance the course’s strengths and refine its presentation addressing the evolving payroll landscape. This involved integrating technology, fostering communication with subject matter experts, accommodating various learning styles, and ensuring a cohesive narrative,” said Cari Breitinger, CPP, Director, HRIS and Payroll at BELFOR Property Restoration, who also served on the December focus group for this interactive course. “I believe both new and experienced payroll leaders will gain insightful knowledge from the updated presentation and be able to apply the learned skills to their vendor relationships, ultimately helping them achieve their departmental goals.”
Facilitated by an experienced instructor with extensive payroll industry knowledge, PayrollOrg’s The Art & Science of Building Strong Vendor Alliances will be presented as a three-day interactive virtual course from October 7-9, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. CT.
Attendees can earn up to 12 RCHs, 1.2 CEUs, or 14 CPE credits.
“This course really sheds new light on the world of payroll—especially around how payroll professionals work with vendors. It covers everything you need: building solid partnerships, knowing what to expect from vendors, and smart strategies to maintain those relationships over time,” said focus group participant Tiffani Gray, CPP, Payroll Manager, Riverside Health System.
This course is an essential tool for payroll professionals, finance leaders, procurement specialists, and operations managers who are responsible for selecting, managing, or optimizing vendor relationships. It is ideal for those seeking to strengthen strategic partnerships, enhance service delivery, mitigate risk, and drive value through effective vendor collaboration and relationship management.
“The course is friendly and approachable—perfect for someone leading payroll initiatives without prior experience. Packed with key insights and real-world context, it’s a fantastic introduction to leadership in payroll,” Gray added.
Whether you are evaluating new outsourcing opportunities, considering technological solutions, or simply looking to improve existing vendor performance, PayrollOrg’s The Art & Science of Building Strong Vendor Alliances equips you with the essential tools and insights to achieve these goals with confidence.
Register today.
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Jamie Owen, Esq., is Editor of Payroll Information Resources for PayrollOrg.