Throughout the development process of AE in a Box, and now as the system is now being actively used by a decent number of our hundreds of partner businesses, we did one thing more often than anything else….

We listened.

We listened to what was going on in the marketplace, we listened to what SME employers told us what they believed their challenges were going to be when complying with auto enrolment….

….We listened to our partners when they told us what needs improving, what would be useful on platform and the challenges they faced when helping the hundereds of thousands of employers comply with auto enrolment regulation.

There were a number of challenges both employers and the professionals they worked felt they were going to be faced with where we believe AE in a Box can help. So today I’d like to talk through some of these challenges, particularly those which relate to accountancy businesses and payroll bureaus

The challenge : Whilst many professionals were happy with pension selection, when we listened to the market we were told that many accountancy and payroll bureaus told us that they didn’t want to get actively involved in the pension selection process for their clients.

The solution : AE in a Box provides a pension selection tool designed to help employers confirm whether their existing scheme is ‘fit for purpose’ and if not guides them through a process which empowers employers to select a pension and apply in a straightforward way.

The challenge : Many professionals (including financial planners, accountancy firms and payroll bureaus) didn’t want to spend potentially nonchargeable time answering questions about auto enrolment compliance

The solution : AE in a Box provides both a fully dynamic FAQ section which is constantly updated and access to both an ‘ask the expert’ service which pledges to answer queries as and when needed.

The challenge : Many professionals don’t want the existing administrative burden of having to manage the regulatory processes required to comply with auto enrolment for all of their clients and needed a solution which systematised auto enrolment in a way which works.

The solution : At it’s core, AE in a Box is a project management tool designed to provide employers and the professionals they work with a framework which empowers employers with the tools they need to comply with auto enrolment. For employers this makes the process far easier. For professionals it allows them to avoid the potentially huge administrative burden of taking on the jobs for all of their clients.

Now there are plenty more challenges professionals and the employers they work with face in this market (too many to write on this blog, which is the reason I’ve provided three pertinent examples).

However at AE in a Box we’ll continue to make improvements, continue to innovate and most important of all….

Continue to listen.