How Angel Trains reduced payroll from weeks to days with IRIS Payroll Services
Payroll processing time reduced from 2–3 weeks to just 4 days per month
Full visibility and real-time access through the employer portal
Describe moving to IRIS Payroll Services as “life-changing!”
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Angel Trains is the UK’s leading rolling stock company, driving innovation in the rail industry through cutting-edge train refurbishment and investment programmes. With a team of around 160 employees, Angel Trains needed a payroll solution to replace their outdated, manual system and better support their day-to-day operations. After encountering inefficiencies and errors with their previous provider, they turned to IRIS Payroll Services to transform their payroll operations.
A new perspective on payroll
Chika Eze, HR Advisor at Angel Trains, joined the company just under two years ago after working at a much larger organisation. Despite the smaller workforce at Angel Trains, she was surprised by how time-consuming and error-prone payroll processing had become.
“Running payroll each month was an incredibly manual process which was both time-consuming on our side, and on the provider’s side,” Chika explains. “We had no visibility of payroll, and there were frequent mistakes, which meant it took a very long time – we had to check every individual’s payroll each month due to the high risk of errors. It took longer to do payroll for 160 employees than it had taken at my previous company, where we had over 1,000 employees.”
The inefficiencies quickly became unsustainable, prompting Angel Trains to seek a more agile and reliable solution.
A smart shift to IRIS Payroll Services
After evaluating their options, Angel Trains chose IRIS Payroll Services and immediately saw the benefits. One of the standout advantages was the integration with their existing HR system, which enabled seamless data transfer and eliminated the risk of manual input errors.
“There were a lot of reasons we chose IRIS Payroll Services,” says Chika. “We could integrate our HR system, maintain a managed service, and gain full visibility via the employer portal. We could see changes in real time, run reports whenever needed, and our payroll advisor was very responsive.”
Support that goes the extra mile
The transition to IRIS Payroll Services was smooth and fully supported by the training team. Chika recalls the experience positively: “The integration was brilliant – the trainer took the time to understand our needs, ensure we understood everything, and answered all our questions. She was so fantastic that we even asked if she could be our payroll advisor! Luckily, the payroll advisor we were given is also brilliant.” This consistent, high-quality support has made a significant impact on Angel Trains’ confidence in the payroll process.
Efficiency and trust restored
Where payroll once took up to three weeks each month, it now takes just four days – a drastic improvement. More importantly, Chika shares that the trust in the process has grown substantially: “Where I used to spend hours checking every single line of payroll, I now trust that the same mistakes won’t be made.”
The HR system integration has also brought welcome relief, removing the manual steps that once introduced errors and delays. “Having the HR system integrated is a huge benefit because we’ve now removed that risk of human error, bringing both relief and major time savings,” says Chika.
A life-changing move to IRIS Payroll Services
Angel Trains has not only gained time and peace of mind but also a reliable partner in IRIS Payroll Services. The service and platform together have empowered the HR function to focus on more strategic goals rather than administrative burdens.
“I would 100% recommend IRIS Payroll Services – our payroll advisor has gone above and beyond with our payroll and nothing is too much trouble. It has honestly been a life-changing move over to IRIS Payroll Services”
A flexible, trusted solution for payroll
IRIS Payroll Services is a fully managed payroll solution designed to support organisations of all sizes. With built-in integration, real-time reporting, and a responsive support team, it helps businesses like Angel Trains streamline payroll operations and eliminate costly errors. Whether simplifying compliance or saving time through automation, IRIS Payroll Services delivers a trusted, flexible solution that grows with your organisation.
