The Challenge
Losing Certified Payroll Capability During a System Transition
When Schindler transitioned to a new internal HR and payroll system, they lost the capability to generate the certified payroll reports their previous, heavily customized environment had produced. The legacy system could output only a single, generic report format, requiring office staff to manually work from that output to meet varying submission requirements. It was a time-intensive process, and with report submission responsibility spread across many roles and office locations, consistency was difficult to maintain.
A Compliance Partner Needed Before Go-Live
As the new system came online, Schindler needed a compliance reporting partner in place before they went live. For a contractor operating across nearly every state, the scope of certified payroll obligations is significant and constantly evolving as new projects are awarded and completed. Part of getting the new process right meant conducting a thorough audit of active and recent projects to ensure every reporting requirement was accounted for, including retroactive filings where needed.
The situation called for a partner who could handle ongoing certified payroll submissions while also supporting the work of getting a large, multi-state operation fully organized and current from day one.
"Before Points North, our offices were handling certified payroll submissions on their own, working off a single generic report and figuring out the rest themselves. Now the reports are generated in the right format for each jurisdiction and submitted on our behalf. It has completely changed how we manage this.
The Solution
Schindler engaged Points North Managed Services to take on the day-to-day work of certified payroll reporting, with payroll data flowing directly from ADP to eliminate an additional integration burden for Schindler's team.
Multi-Format, Multi-Portal Reporting The Managed Services team handles report generation in the formats required by each jurisdiction, as well as direct submission on behalf of Schindler through portals including eMars and other state and local platforms. For a contractor operating in nearly every state, this kind of multi-format, multi-portal capability was not available through their previous process.
Comprehensive Project Audit and Retroactive Filing As part of the transition, the Points North team worked through a thorough review of Schindler's project history to ensure all reporting requirements were captured and filed correctly. The team handled this additional volume without disruption to ongoing submissions, and through process improvements developed along the way, turnaround time on file processing dropped from nearly a week to one to two days.
Streamlined Fringe Benefit Processing The Points North team also identified opportunities to streamline how fringe benefit data was processed, developing a more efficient approach that reduced what had previously been a multi-day effort to a fraction of the time.
Ongoing Training Support Points North has provided ongoing training support, conducting multiple sessions with Schindler's office staff since the engagement began, with additional training planned as new team members come onboard. This kind of consistent, accessible support has been important to keeping their team equipped through staffing changes.
The Results
The shift to Points North Managed Services delivered both immediate operational relief and a long-term compliance infrastructure that can scale with Schindler's national footprint.
- Certified payroll reports are now submitted on behalf of Schindler in the required format for each jurisdiction, eliminating manual report modification by office staff
- Report submissions are handled directly through required portals, a capability Schindler did not have before engaging Points North
- Retroactive filing turnaround improved from approximately one week to one to two days
- Fringe benefit loading, previously a multi-day process, was streamlined through process improvements developed by the Points North team
- Four training sessions have been delivered to Schindler's team since August, with ongoing training support built into the relationship
- Internal staff time previously spent on report preparation and submission has been redirected to other work
"What used to take close to a week now gets done in a day or two. The team found a better way to process our fringe benefit data, and it has made the whole operations faster. I was genuinely impressed by that."
Why Points North
For a contractor with Schindler's geographic footprint and operational complexity, certified payroll reporting is not a back-office formality. It is an ongoing, multi-jurisdictional compliance obligation that requires specialized knowledge of format and submission requirements that vary by state, county, and project.
Points North Managed Services gave Schindler something their internal team could not easily replicate: dedicated certified payroll specialists who know the requirements, manage the submissions, and remain responsive to staff across a distributed organization. When field staff, project managers, or office administrators have questions, they have a knowledgeable team to turn to rather than figuring it out on their own.
The relationship also gave Schindler flexibility. As their team continues to grow and turn over, Points North serves as a stable resource that can onboard and support new staff without starting from scratch. That consistency has real value in a business where compliance knowledge does not always travel with the people who leave.
Ready to Offload Certified Payroll Compliance?
See how Points North Managed Services can take certified payroll reporting off your team's plate, handle multi-jurisdictional submissions directly through required portals, and give your offices a dedicated compliance partner.
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