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VIP Payroll, BDO and Pastel Accounting partner to provide one-stop-shop for African expansion

VIP Payroll, BDO and Pastel Accounting partner to provide one-stop-shop for African expansion
Staff Writer
By Staff Writer, ITWeb
01 Oct 2012

The African continent has enjoyed its best growth decade on record and today is one of the world’s fastest growing regions, with 6 of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world. It therefore makes business sense for South African firms to look at expanding into Africa and opening branches in other parts of the continent.

Companies expanding into Africa either need to send South African staff into these countries as expatriates or need to open an operating entity in that country with local staff members. “Either way companies face challenges in expanding into Africa, especially in setting up their auditing and taxation systems and accounting and payroll systems, and being able to comply with the local legislation of that African country,” says VIP Payroll’s Gerhard Hartman. “Companies need a partner on the auditing and taxation side to help them comply with local legislation and practices, they also need payroll systems in place to be able to pay their staff correctly and accounting practices to comply with local accounting legislation,” explains Hartman.

In response to this trend, and in an attempt to aid local companies in their expansion plans into Africa, Sage VIP Payroll has partnered with BDO Audit, Advisory and Tax services and Sage Pastel Evaluation to provide local companies with all they need when entering a new country of operation.

One of Sage VIP Payroll’s main strategic goals is expansion into Africa – with Sage VIP now being available in 24 African countries. The VIP Payroll Africa Division has offices in Gaborone; Windhoek and Nairobi, with active alliance partnerships in Zimbabwe; Zambia; Malawi; Nigeria; Ghana; DRC; Kenya; Tanzania; Uganda; Angola; Mozambique and Rwanda.

“Companies in Africa are beginning to realise the importance of automation and how VIP Payroll can help them make more informed decisions which creates more efficient environments for company growth and return on investment,” says Hartman. “Salaries continue to be one of the biggest expenses in any organisation. The market for employment is becoming more competitive making HR part of any company’s strategic advantage. VIP Payroll provides an integrated solution for any size business to manage salary payments and HR strategies. The system enables statutory compliance with local authorities in other African countries and local support is provided through alliance partners in the country of operation.

BDO has a large amount of experience servicing multi-national companies from across the globe. The organisation aids companies to build a country specific business model for operations in Africa. BDO also has in country contacts and alliance partners in every country in Africa, except Somalia, making it the best business to partner with when expanding into Africa. BDO’s three phase process includes advising companies on the implications of doing business in another African country, implementation of licensing and permits, registrations and applications in that country, and setting up compliance and business controls for payroll, auditing and accounting.

“The most common mistakes companies make when expanding into Africa include not having sufficient knowledge about the country they are entering, and a lack of planning about how to go about operations in that country,” says BDO’s Mark Stewart. “Companies need to prepare properly and make sure they understand the local tax laws and company legislation. They also need to educate themselves on the foreign exchange regime in that country, the economic environment, the legal system and the foreign company processes,” explains Stewart. BDO is able to help companies with all this information so that they are adequately prepared for their new venture,” he says.

Pastel Evolution has been operating in Africa since 2001 and has offices in South Africa and Kenya. The organisation has over 2500 corporate customers in Africa and over 70 business partners on the continent, as well as 15 project implementation consultants and 50 call centre support staff. Pastel Evolution empowers business management through finance, inventory management, relationship management, payroll and business intelligence. These systems streamline business processes and enable employees to make informed decisions.

“Many companies purchase systems for accounting, HR, payroll and auditing for use in their new ventures, but this software never goes live as they do not have the in-country support to help implement the software, or the software does not comply with the local legislatory environment,” says Pastel’s Wesley Ekman. “VIP, BDO and Pastel have a support base of local partners to give advice on what to look out for and provide on-site support to African businesses. In addition, all VIP, BDO and Pastel software is customised to comply with local legislative requirements, taking the hassle out of setting up branches in other countries,” Ekman explains.

Africa’s population of 1 billion people currently makes us 14% of the global population, half of which are under 35 and nearly half live in cities. The African economy of $1,6-trillion is expected to grow to 2,6-trillion by 2020. Since 2009, Angloa; Nigeria; Ghana; Zambia and DRC have been top investment destinations. In 2012 Ghana is expected to show the strongest GDP growth, with Nigeria in 4th position. New investment destinations also include Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Madagascar, Gabon, Cameroon, Mozambique, Liberia and the Congo. The main sectors for investment include mining, construction, property development, retail, supplier services to the oil, gas and mobile telephone industries, ICT, security, agriculture, tourism and hospitality.

Editorial contacts
Deidre Beylis
011 425 6290
Deidre@wattcommunications.co.za

About
Softline VIP is a leading supplier of payroll and human resource management solutions in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. Coupled with an extensive service offering, Softline VIP is the only payroll and HR solution geared to meet the challenges of the modern payroll office. The VIP Products are synonymous with ease of use, stability and reliability, with the flexibility to cater to the unique needs of every client. VIP promises long-term sustainability over and above legislative compliance. VIP understands the Human Resources and Payroll environment and offers the client peace of mind by providing a total solution.
Softline VIP achieved an overall fourth place in the top 10 for medium businesses in the Deloitte Best Company to Work For Survey 2009 and a second place in the industry category “business and professional services”. Softline VIP also emerged one of 48 participants out of an overall 98 to score above the standard of excellence threshold of more than 75 percent.

Softline VIP products include:
VIP Premier - Softline VIP also supplies leading technology to service large and corporate clients. VIP Premier is geared towards increasing the functionality of payroll systems and provides an uncomplicated solution for medium to large organisations. One of the key features of this product is that it is quick to implement in comparison to similar solutions. Meeting the needs of any payroll office and supplying the most suitable solution is important for Softline VIP as it strives to ensure practical solutions for all users. Our products are easy to use and reliable and the information produced is accurate and complies with all statutory requirements.
VIP Classic - VIP Classic is the perfect solution for clients with bigger operations than the one-man business. VIP Classic provides the same flexibility as larger systems but is aimed at the small to medium sector. This software offers a total solution to users.
VIP Essentials - VIP Essentials is geared to small businesses and contains the same ease of use and stability of all VIP's products. VIP Essentials is an affordable product making it an ideal solution for the small business paying less than 30 employees.
Softline has a solid track record of profitability and cash generation. The group delivers quality accounting, payroll and CRM software solutions that improve the efficiencies of businesses around the world.

Softline
Softline is a leading provider of business software and related services. Founded in 1988 by Ivan Epstein, Alan Osrin and Steven Cohen, Softline was established during the formative years of the business software industry. Whilst Softline’s heritage is in the SME market the group also offers expertise and solutions that meet the needs of specific industries and larger organisations. In 2003 Softline was acquired by The Sage Group plc, a FTSE 100 company. Softline has a solid track record offering customers local expertise backed by the global Sage brand. The group delivers quality software solutions to make customers’ business lives easier.

The Sage Group plc
The Sage Group plc is a leading global supplier of business management software and related products and services, principally for small to medium-sized enterprises. Formed in 1981, Sage was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1989. Sage has 6.3 million customers and 13,600 employees worldwide. We operate in over 24 countries covering the UK, Europe, North America, South Africa, Australia, India and China. For further information please visit www.sage.com.

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