IT managers must start preparing their corporate payroll systems now if they are to take advantage of the Faster Payments Service due to be rolled out by the UK banking industry in November, business process automation specialist Albany has advised.

The new system will enable firms to pay temporary staff on time, according to Albany managing director Adrian Stafford-Jones. It could also be a useful alternative to using credit cards for corporate purchases, which can be difficult to manage on a month-by-month basis, he added.

However, although the latest version is likely to be based on the same infrastructure as the current three-day Bacs model, firms will need to deploy new software to connect to the upgraded system.

“The Faster Payments Service is a stronger business tool, at a cost that’s workable. It will use the same IP communications infrastructure and smartcard security [as Bacs] but will involve software changes,” Stafford-Jones said.

IT managers should also be aware of the single European payments system (Sepa), which is slated for introduction in 2008 although open standards have yet to be agreed.

“There is a wonderful infrastructure on the bank-to-bank side, but the challenge is that there is no standard way for corporates and individuals to connect into it to transact,” Stafford-Jones argued. “Many companies are saying Sepa will happen, but they need to get involved at this stage of the discussion if they are to derive any benefit from it.”