Two editions. One method.
Canada edition
CRA remittances on your remitter schedule. ROEs to Service Canada. T4s and T4As. Quebec: Revenu Québec, RL-1s, QPP, QPIP. EHT, WSIB and WCB. Provincial overtime, stat pay and vacation rules. First T4 review.
USA edition
Federal deposits on your schedule. Forms 941, 940, W-2, W-3, 1099-NEC. State withholding and unemployment in every state. Local tax. New-hire reporting. FLSA and state overtime, tip credit, state sick leave. First W-2 review.
Same shape, same gates, same four criteria, same scorecard. Pick your folder.
What is inside each edition
The workbook (PDF, 12 pages)
The shape. Gate 0 and the ladder. Six gates. Four criterion pages with fifty questions, what to check yourself and signs to walk away. Terms page. Scorecard.
The Excel scorecard (8 tabs)
Name five options. Mark gates pass or fail. Rate fifty questions. It averages, weights, totals out of 80, marks fails OUT and ranks.
The group session deck (17 slides)
A one-hour meeting for the owner, the operator, the bookkeeper and a manager. Speaker notes on every slide.
The facilitator's guide (PDF, 7 pages)
Who is in the room, the hour with timings, scripts and traps, scoring as homework, the follow-up and the tiebreaker.
The four criteria
- The pay run, weight 5. Does it run your actual mix without a workaround.
- The filings, weight 4. How much of compliance it does without you, and who pays when it is late.
- The people, weight 4. What staff see on payday and what the owner sees on the first.
- The deal, weight 3. What it costs at your size, next year, and on the way out.
Weights are yours to change.
The questions nobody asks
- Who pays the penalty when the platform files late? In the contract, or in the sales email?
- Can you finish the year-end after you cancel?
- What is the price at your headcount 18 months from now?
- Can the operator correct a run after approval without a phone call?
Frequently asked questions
Is this a review of payroll platforms?
No. Not a review, not rankings, not payroll advice. It is a method: a shape, six gates, four weighted criteria and a scorecard that you run on your own shortlist. No products are named.
Are the Canada and USA editions both included?
Yes. One download, one zip, two folders: Canada and USA. Each folder has the workbook PDF, the Excel scorecard, the group session deck and the facilitator's guide, written for that country's filings.
What is different between the Canada and USA editions?
The method is identical. The compliance layer differs: CRA remittances, ROEs, T4s, Quebec and provincial employer costs in Canada; federal deposits, 941s, 940s, W-2s, 1099s, state withholding and unemployment, and local tax in the USA.
What files are in the download?
Per edition: a 12-page workbook PDF, an 8-tab Excel scorecard, a 17-slide group session deck (PowerPoint) with speaker notes, and a 7-page facilitator's guide PDF. Eight files in total.
Does the Excel scorecard do the arithmetic?
Yes. Name up to five options, mark gates pass or fail, rate fifty questions 1 to 5, and it averages, weights, totals out of 80, marks gate fails OUT and ranks. Opens in Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers.
Who is the group session deck for?
A small business owner, the person who runs payroll, the bookkeeper and one manager, in a one-hour meeting. The facilitator's guide tells you how to run it and what to do after.
Can I change the weights?
Yes. The weights sit at the top of each criterion tab in the Excel and are yours to change. Change them before you score, not after.
How do I get it?
Instant download after checkout. PDF, Excel and PowerPoint. One zip with a Canada folder and a USA folder.
The list is not the decision. It is how you find the one or two things that are.
