Jobs boon for Wicklow as HR firm to create 40 new roles at its Bray HQ

SD Worx Ireland, a HR solutions provider, is to create 40 new jobs over the next two years, as part of a €2.9m investment in its workforce at its HQ in Bray. The company, formerly Intelligo expects to grow to a team of 115 by year-end 2025.

The firms seeks to address new legislation and procedures such as gender pay gap reporting, statutory sick pay, GDPR and auto-enrolment for pensions, while being universally welcomed, which it says “can be a headache for payroll departments as they require extensive administration and changes to technology systems”.

SD Worx’s Payroll Proficiency in Ireland report has found that one in four companies say that legislation is making payroll more difficult. Regarding the most challenging legislation, 63pc of respondents said the complexity of the taxation system, 54pc cited the complexity of the social system and 49pc said the speed of changes to social legislation. However, 55pc of businesses reported that partnering with an external payroll service provider is making their job easier.

Using automation and machine learning, SD Worx’s MegaPay payroll software addresses the challenges faced by payroll teams. The SaaS solution enables reliable, scalable payroll management that can be tailored to meet a company’s changing needs and geographical footprint, as well as external factors such as payroll legislation, taxes and privacy laws.

With the ability to securely store employee information – and integrate with other company departments, such as finance – the software can also provide HR managers with valuable insights into important HR issues such as gender pay gaps, helping them to tackle the issue if needed.

The increasing need for such software and demand for SD Worx’s services has now led to the company making a significant investment in its workforce. Over the next two years, the company will be hiring for roles in software development, marketing, payroll processing and project implementation. The new roles will help SD Worx to continue to innovate its MegaPay offering, while also providing capacity for a fast-growing customer base.

The new hires will be based in the SD Worx Ireland headquarters in Bray, Co. Wicklow.

SD Worx has been operating in Ireland for more than 10 years and in 2022 it acquired Intelligo, which was established in Bray in 1996.

Last year, SD Worx was named the ‘Best Place to Work’ at the Workplace Excellence Awards in Ireland. The company was recognised for its commitment to employee wellbeing, fun and togetherness, as well as its policy of recognition for outstanding work and a range of benefits that support diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.

Eimear Byrne, Country Lead, SD Worx Ireland, said: “Payroll and HR departments play a vital role in employee satisfaction and wellbeing. Beyond the timely payment of salaries, their scope can cover everything from employee reward schemes and Government entitlements, to making progress in narrowing gender pay gaps. It is a huge responsibility and consistently delivering on this can be complex and stressful.

“As businesses and the Government put increasing emphasis on employee welfare, we are witnessing a growing demand for our services. Our existing and new team members will be vital in helping us to grow our business, while also helping other businesses to foster a culture that truly cares for the wellbeing and success of their employees.”