HR & Payroll Configuration in NetSuite

From hire to payslip — configured for Africa. Configure NetSuite HR and payroll — employee records, payroll items, African statutory deductions, leave management, and payroll runs — from Awatay HR implementation experience. 9 hrs · 3 sessions · Intermediate. Overview NetSuite HR and payroll is a capable but complex configuration challenge — particularly in the African context where statutory payroll requirements differ country by country and are updated regularly. Getting the payroll configuration wrong results in incorrect statutory deductions, compliance exposure, and employee dissatisfaction that is difficult and expensive to correct after go-live. This course is built directly from the Awatay HR implementation — a real professional services firm configuring NetSuite HR, payroll elements, fast formulas for custom calculations, leave management, and the payroll run process. All examples include African statutory requirements: Mauritius (MRA, NPS, CSG), Kenya (KRA, NHIF, NSSF), and South Africa (SARS PAYE, UIF, SDL) as the three primary reference jurisdictions. Learning outcomes • Set up the employee record structure for accurate payroll and HR administration in NetSuite • Configure payroll items for earnings, deductions, and African statutory requirements for at least two jurisdictions • Run a payroll, review the pre-calculation, resolve exceptions, and post the payroll journal • Manage leave types, accrual, and entitlements in compliance with African labour law • Produce the statutory reports required for PAYE filing and social insurance returns Prerequisites • Chart of Accounts, Accounting Periods & Financial Settings course • Basic understanding of payroll concepts (elements, gross-to-net, statutory deductions) • Familiarity with African labour law is helpful but not required Modules 1. Employee records, organisation structure & HR administration (3 hours) The employee record in NetSuite: the standard fields and their purpose — personal information, employment information, compensation information, and the custom fields that African businesses typically need to add (national ID, work permit number, emergency contact, bank account details for payroll). The difference between the employee record and the user record: an employee can exist without being a NetSuite user, and a user cannot exist without an employee record. Job and position configuration: how NetSuite structures the organisation below the subsidiary level — departments, jobs, job requisitions, and positions. Employment types: permanent, fixed term, part-time, and contractor — how each affects payroll calculation and leave entitlement. The HR list setup: the custom lists that must be configured before employees can be entered (departments, locations, job functions, employee types, termination reasons). Custom fields on the employee record: when to use a standard NetSuite field and when to create a custom field — the tradeoffs. The HR dashboard for HR managers: headcount by department, new starters, leavers, and the open position count. Topics: Employee record standard fields; Custom field requirements; Employee vs user record; Department configuration; Job and position setup; Employment type setup; HR list configuration; Custom field vs standard field; HR manager dashboard; Headcount reporting 2. Payroll setup — earnings, deductions & African statutory compliance (3 hours) NetSuite payroll structure: pay schedules (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly), payroll items (the building blocks of every payroll calculation), and the calculation sequence that runs when a payroll is processed. Earnings setup: basic salary (flat amount versus hourly rate), housing allowance, transport allowance, overtime (rate-based calculation), and bonus (fixed or formula-driven). Deduction setup: employee pension contribution (percentage of basic), medical aid (fixed amount), and the order in which deductions are applied in the gross-to-net calculation. Statutory deductions for Mauritius: PAYE (the MRA tax table and the progressive rate calculation), NPS (National Pension Scheme — employee and employer rates), and CSG (Contribution Sociale Généralisée — the calculation basis and exemptions). Statutory deductions for Kenya: PAYE (KRA tax bands), NHIF (National Hospital Insurance Fund — the income-based contribution table), and NSSF (National Social Security Fund — the contribution cap). Statutory deductions for South Africa: PAYE (SARS tax tables, the rebate, and the threshold), UIF (Unemployment Insurance Fund — 1% employee, 1% employer), and SDL (Skills Development Levy — 1% of the monthly payroll). Employer contributions: pension, medical aid scheme, and the GL accounts for both employee and employer sides. Topics: Pay schedules; Payroll item types; Calculation sequence; Basic salary setup; Allowance configuration; Overtime calculation; Bonus setup; Deduction order; Mauritius PAYE, NPS, CSG; Kenya PAYE, NHIF, NSSF; South Africa PAYE, UIF, SDL; Employer contribution GL accounts 3. Leave management, payroll runs & HR reporting (3 hours) Leave types in NetSuite: annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, study leave, and the custom leave types mandated by specific African labour laws. Leave entitlement: setting the annual entitlement by employment type and seniority, the carry-forward rules (maximum days carried, expiry of carried days), and leave encashment at year end. Leave accrual: the accrual method (monthly accrual versus annual grant), how NetSuite calculates the accrued entitlement, and the leave liability that appears on the balance sheet. The payroll run: creating the payroll batch, the pre-calculation review (checking each employee's gross and net pay before posting), identifying and resolving exceptions (employees with negative pay, missing salary details, incorrect PAYE calculation), approving the payroll, and posting the payroll journal. The payroll journal: the GL entries that record the salary expense, the PAYE liability, the pension liability, and the net pay payable — and how each maps to the correct GL account. Statutory reports: the monthly PAYE return schedule, the annual earnings certificate (P60 equivalent), and the social insurance contribution schedule. HR reports from the Awatay implementation: the payroll cost by department report (for budget holders), the leave balance summary (for HR), the staff turnover analysis (for management), and the headcount versus plan report (for the board). Topics: Leave types; Custom leave setup; Annual entitlement configuration; Carry-forward rules; Leave encashment; Accrual method selection; Leave liability; Payroll run creation; Pre-calculation review; Exception identification; Payroll journal; GL account mapping; PAYE return report; Annual earnings certificate; Social insurance schedule; Management HR reports Delivery Best attended by the HR director, the payroll manager, and the system administrator together. Three sessions over three days. The payroll element design decisions in session two build on the employee record structure from session one — do not skip ahead. Certification Certificate of completion Price USD 900 · per participant per person · indicative · group pricing available HRDC eligibility Up to 75% refundable Mauritius-registered employers may claim this training via the HRDC levy. We provide full documentation to support your claim. Languages English Provider reference SIMPLIT-043-NS_HR_PAYROLL

• NetSuite administrators configuring the HR and payroll modules • HR directors responsible for the system design of their NetSuite HR instance • Payroll managers who will own the configuration and run the monthly payroll • Implementation consultants configuring NetSuite for a client's HR and payroll requirements • Finance controllers who need to understand how payroll flows through the GL • IT leads responsible for the HR module configuration on a new NetSuite instance