Standard Life has partnered with software provider Sage to overhaul its automatic enrolment (AE) process, which it says will reduce the “administrative burden” on businesses.
Employers who use Sage 50 payroll software will now be able to send employee and pension contribution data through to Standard Life in one click.
The pension provider said replacing its manual extraction and exchange of payroll files with a simplified payroll process would save employers time. It said the change was particularly relevant to small businesses who typically did not have staff dedicated to meeting their auto enrolment obligations.
Since the government’s auto enrolment initiative began in October 2012, more than 7.6 million people have been enrolled in qualifying workplace pension schemes, with Standard Life having enrolled more than one million new members by the end of November 2016.
According to The Pensions Regulator, more than half a million employers are set up for auto-enrolment, but almost twice as many have yet to meet their duties.
Standard Life head of employer and trustee proposition Alan Ritchie said: “2017 is a peak year for small businesses to take the first steps towards a high-quality workplace pension – we are over halfway through with 900,000 employers having staged and another 600,000 to come.
“By integrating with Sage’s leading payroll technology, we continue to support businesses to ensure their auto enrolment experience is a success.”
Sage product marketing director Dan Docherty added: “We develop our technology to ensure tasks, such as automatic enrolment, are as pain-free as possible for businesses.
“Teaming up with Standard Life means we are able to support even more businesses in eliminating what can be an administrative burden; helping owners free up time that they can use to build their businesses instead.”
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