"We handle a total annual volume of around 220,000 payrolls"

Let's start with some prejudices: Payroll accounting, that's boring and dry, isn't it?

We are indeed often confronted with this prejudice – but I can only strongly contradict it. In fact, our work at thyssenkrupp Materials Business Services is very complex and multifaceted. As a unit we currently support 35 thyssenkrupp companies (as of 09/2022). This means that we also have to take into account the various requirements resulting, for example, from a large number of collective agreements and works agreements. These can also change, so we have to be able to respond flexibly. In total, we handle an annual volume of around 220,000 payrolls. However, our service portfolio also extends beyond payroll accounting.

What else is included in the portfolio?

In addition to payroll accounting, we also handle our customers' time management and have a large IT department. In addition to our standard services, we also offer our customers other services. For example, we support our customers' HR departments with various training courses. Refreshing already known knowledge is also part of this.

How do you ensure that your work always remains up-to-date?

Just like the other companies within the thyssenkrupp Group, we are continuously developing our services. On the one hand we have a strong focus on the topic of digitalization and on the other we have a close look at our customers' businesses. We are adapting in line with our strategy and expanding our service portfolio accordingly. Among other things, SAP HR training, training on the subject of time management or organizational management.

In order to constantly expand our service portfolio and to be able to support our customers' HR departments, we have also launched our Innovation Lab.

Can you tell us more about the Innovation Lab?

The colleagues in the Innovation Lab – or Inno Lab, as we like to call it for short – have set themselves the task of leveraging optimization potential for thyssenkrupp Materials Business Services as well as our customers through digital applications and driving forward the topic of digitalization. Together with our customers we discuss certain "pain points" and support them with new solutions so that repetitive and manual tasks can be reduced. This gives colleagues in the stores more time for more value-adding work. As thyssenkrupp Materials Business Services we therefore dive deep into the value chain of our customers and jointly implement processes for day-to-day business.

So the topic of IT and digitalization plays a big role for the business area?

Absolutely. After all, as thyssenkrupp Materials Business Services we are not just an HR service provider, but also run a large IT unit, as mentioned before. We have already carried out numerous customer projects with these two areas. We are particularly in demand for system migrations: Here we standardize system landscapes and migrate companies from SAP or other ERP systems to our standard SAP landscape. In particular, we focus on technical interfaces, time management and HR master data.

Which challenge do you remember most?

Crises like the pandemic naturally have an impact on our business. The operating units for which we provide our services have had to respond to the situation with short-time working, for example. For us, this means that we also have to map and implement this in terms of systems and payroll accounting. Fortunately, our experience enables us to implement changes from laws, collective agreements and company agreements at relatively short notice.