Payroll Outsourcing Reduces Vulnerability at EFKT Group

Less time on payroll. More resilience in the team.

At EFKT Group, it became clear that the payroll function had grown too vulnerable. With five companies, employees in both Copenhagen and Oslo, and a large number of freelancers, payroll had become complex — and in practice, dependent on a single key person.

Payroll was also only one part of the bookkeeper's role. Alongside running payroll, they also handled other finance tasks, which left the function exposed during holidays, sick leave, and questions about current legislation. This prompted EFKT Group to look at how payroll could be organised more securely, flexibly, and with less dependency on any one individual.

Concerns About Payroll Outsourcing

Since availability, accuracy, and fast response times matter so much to the employee experience, it's essential that payroll runs correctly and on time. Drawing on past experience with outsourcing in other areas — where availability hadn't always been satisfactory — EFKT Group was particularly focused on finding a solution that combined specialist expertise with accessibility, flexibility, and fast support whenever needed.

"We were hesitant to outsource our payroll, having previously dealt with limited opening hours and slow response times elsewhere. That's not a risk we can take with payroll — it's essential that we can act quickly," says Magnus Erikstrup Madsen, Head of Finance for Retail at EFKT Group.

A Dedicated Team for Payroll Outsourcing

After careful evaluation, EFKT Group chose Azets. Through the partnership, they gained a dedicated team for payroll — one that knows their setup and workflows inside out.

"Having a dedicated Azets team assigned to us creates real value. It means we don't have to explain everything from scratch — especially with five companies involved. At the same time, we're no longer dependent on one person, but instead have access to a whole team of specialists. It's taken pressure off us and brought a lot more calm to our day-to-day," says Magnus Erikstrup Madsen.

A Simple Handover

The transition was far simpler than expected. EFKT Group was already using Zenegy Payroll, a system Azets works directly in through a structured partnership. The handover therefore only required system access and a few points of clarification — employees never had to learn a new system.

"Being able to stay on Zenegy was a huge advantage for us. It creates a shared structure around payroll and absence data and ensures consistent handling across countries. Employees also use it daily for holiday, absence, and sick leave, so there was no reason to change something that was already working well," highlights Magnus Erikstrup Madsen.

Less Time Spent on Payroll

Today, payroll takes up significantly less of EFKT Group's time. Where payroll work once demanded considerable effort — especially in the run-up to deadlines — the process is now consolidated into a simple setup: one monthly meeting and ongoing dialogue with Azets.

"Before we outsourced payroll, we'd easily spend a full working day each month leading up to the payroll deadline. Now it's just a meeting with Azets, no more than an hour, where we make sure all changes are registered correctly. We're also seeing clearly fewer errors — and the few that do occur are typically down to internal reporting," says Magnus Erikstrup Madsen.

Less Vulnerability Through Payroll Outsourcing

For EFKT Group, payroll outsourcing was never just about saving time. The goal was to reduce dependency on any one person, strengthen operational reliability, and ensure access to specialist knowledge. Today, they see fewer errors, less internal strain, and a solution that simply works.