Can I Do Payroll Myself or Should I Hire Someone?

Short answer: DIY payroll works when one accountable person owns a simple monthly rhythm and you are willing to learn the basics of deductions and records. Hire help when growth, complexity, or risk makes your time and error budget too tight.

DIY payroll: strengths and limits

Strengths

• Speed for micro teams: fewer handoffs.
• Cost control at the earliest revenue stages.
• Founder visibility into every naira if you stay disciplined.

Limits

• Bus factor: if only you know the steps, illness or travel breaks pay day.
• Skill ceiling: promotions, leave policies, and multi-state logic add fast.
• Emotional load: chasing your own mistakes is exhausting.

Hiring "someone" can mean three different roles

• Internal finance or HR coordinator: owns payroll monthly inside your team.
• Fractional accountant: reviews filings and supports month-end.
• Outsourced payroll bureau: runs execution end to end.

Match the hire to the gap you actually have.

A simple decision scorecard

Give each statement 0 or 1 point:

• We have more than five employees or contractors on regular pay.
• We run commissions or variable components monthly.
• We already missed a statutory deadline once.
• The founder spends more than three hours monthly on payroll admin.

0 to 1: DIY or software-first is still reasonable with documentation.

2 to 3: add fractional help or a part-time owner for payroll.

4: strongly consider dedicated internal time or outsource.

If you stay DIY, non-negotiables

• Written pay schedule everyone trusts.
• Dual control on approvals if possible (preparer versus approver).
• Archive of each month's pay file the day you pay.

If you hire, non-negotiables

• They use your system of record, not shadow spreadsheets forever.
• You still review a summary before money moves.
• Access is least privilege for bank and payroll tools.