What this means for your practice
Agree a shared export definition and responsibility for adjustments. A downloadable spreadsheet is not useful if payroll must reinterpret its columns every month.
An example to discuss with your team
Export the same approved period twice and compare the files. If the process imports them into payroll, ask the supplier to demonstrate in an authorised test setup that a repeated import does not create duplicate entries.
What to ask before you choose
Ask the supplier to use a sample approved rota that includes a late correction and work at two locations. Compare its export with what payroll actually needs. Agree how a revised file is labelled so it does not get mistaken for an additional batch. Keep a record of corrections that belong to an already exported period.
Agree how a corrected export is recognised
Use the same sample period when the rota manager and payroll team review the proposed file. Include a normal shift, work at another location and a correction made after approval. Ask payroll to explain which columns they need and what an unexpected value would mean. The aim is a file they can use consistently without relying on the person who originally designed it.
Decide how you identify the period and version of an export. If a corrected file replaces an earlier one, that relationship should be clear before somebody imports it. Ask the supplier to demonstrate what prevents the same work being added twice. Keep a record of adjustments made after the normal export so they are included through the agreed route. At the next cycle, review rejected entries and manual fixes with both teams; those exceptions reveal whether the export is reducing administration or moving it elsewhere.
How to check the result
Count rejected rows and time spent explaining export differences.
Turn reading into a next step
Your action checklist
Work through these checks with your team or supplier. Tick the ones you have resolved and leave unknowns open.
Record what you know, what is still missing and the answer you need from your team or supplier.
Use project decisions only, without personal, patient or confidential details. Entries stay in this page and are not submitted to Kay & Co. Copy or download before leaving; this page does not save your notes.
Further reading
These sources provide background for the topic. The practice examples and checklist are illustrative planning suggestions from Kay & Co.
Related guides
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