HR & Staffing Companies: Here’s the Secret to Faster Payments & Better Cash Flow
Joe Sweeney
Mar 25, 2025
If you’re a finance leader at a company in the HR consulting, staffing or talent marketplace industry, you know how stressful managing cash flow can be.
The specifics of your business model mean you’re constantly juggling payroll, contractor payments, and operating costs—while waiting on clients to pay their invoices.
And when those payments are late? It puts a serious strain on your business, making it harder to keep things running smoothly.
That’s where Upflow comes in. Our platform helps HR and staffing companies like yours take control of Accounts Receivable (AR), automate payment collection, and reduce overdue invoices—so you can focus on growing your business instead of chasing payments.
In this article, we’ll cover:
Overview of the Cash Flow Challenge in HR and Staffing
In your industry, cash flow can be unpredictable.
You’re paying employees and contractors on a set schedule, but clients? They don’t always pay on time.
That gap between outgoing payroll and incoming payments creates financial stress—and if it’s not managed properly, it can disrupt your entire business.
“As a hyper-growth company, it was even more important to tackle this subject [cash collection]...If we couldn't do it, we simply couldn't continue the business.” - Audrey Brunet, Client Operations Team Lead, Malt
Sound familiar? Here are some of the biggest cash flow challenges you’re likely facing:
Delayed customer payments – You’re on the hook to pay employees and contractors, even when customers drag their feet on invoices.
Payroll pressures – A missed payroll deadline doesn’t just create headaches—it can damage trust and your company’s reputation.
If these challenges sound all too real, you’re not alone. The good news? You don’t have to keep dealing with these cash flow headaches.
“[Before Upflow] we’d send the invoices through QuickBooks and just hope and pray they pay.” - Darrnell Long, Corporate Controller, Carver
How Upflow Helps HR and Staffing Companies Get Paid Faster
Upflow is built to help businesses like yours take control of Accounts Receivable, ensuring you get paid faster and more consistently. Here’s how we do it:
Get Real-Time Financial Insights
No more guessing games - Upflow’s analytics dashboards give you real-time visibility into your key AR metrics (like DSO, Aging Balance and much more), so you can make informed financial decisions and stay ahead of cash flow issues.
Communicate & Follow-Up Overdue Accounts Seamlessly
Tired of awkward “Hey, just following up on this invoice” emails? Upflow enables you to create advanced cash collection workflows, with a mix of internal notifications, automated emails and manual actions, tailored to each client’s payment history and terms. Say hello to keeping cash flow steady while reducing disputes.
Enable Flexible Payment Options
Make it easy for clients to pay you. Paper checks and unpredictable wire transfers are so last century. Accelerate payments and step into the modern era by offering a range of flexible and secure online payment methods, all in one simple user interface.
Real-World Success Stories: HR & Staffing Companies Thriving with Upflow
Here’s how some of our HR and staffing clients have leveraged Upflow to streamline their AR processes, improve cash flow, and achieve impressive results:
Workmotion
What they do: WorkMotion is a leading global Employer of Record (EoR) offering global HR solutions to help companies navigate new ways of working.
Why cash flow matters: As an EoR with 10-day payment terms, timely cash flow is essential for meeting WorkMotion’s payroll obligations. Delays in payment collection could have a cascading effect on WorkMotion's operations. It was clear that WorkMotion not only required a centralized system that could serve as the single source of truth for their essential AR information and cash collection history, but also needed to introduce a robust structure to their collections processes.
79% reduction in invoices 31+ days overdue, in under a year.
Best Possible DSO (BPDSO) achieved in June and July 2024. Best Possible DSO (BPDSO) refers to the fastest achievable payment collection time.
98 hours saved per month (over 12 days per month), thanks to over 14000 automated follow up actions.
Read the full WorkMotion case study.
Carver
What they do: Carver is a specialist hospitality task force agency connecting the finest talent with the right hospitality industry jobs.
Why cash flow matters: Connecting professionals with work opportunities means Carver often pay out to contract workers in anticipation of receiving payment from their hotel customers. “We're fronting the work and anticipating getting paid 30 days later. And in some cases, we don't”, summarizes Darrnell Long, Corporate Controller at Carver.
20% reduction in DSO from 46 days in September 2023 to 37 days in August 2024.
49% decrease in total overdue balance in less than a year (September 2023 to August 2024).
15 hours saved per month through automation.
Read the full Carver case study.
Iziwork Italy
What they do: Iziwork is the digital employment agency revolutionizing the temporary work and recruitment market by reinventing the work experience, with the support of technology.
Why cash flow matters: Paying workers' salaries every month, their business model thrives on timely client payments since their clients' invoices are typically due 60-90 days later.
17 finance team hours saved per month through automating follow up.
50% of follow-up emails automated, leaving the other half for manual intervention to ensure a personal touch where needed.
+10% better email open rate on automated collection emails vs. industry standard.
Read the full Iziwork Italy case study.
Malt
What they do: Malt is Europe’s leading freelance marketplace, connecting businesses with independent professionals.
Why cash flow matters: With the company experiencing rapid growth throughout Europe, the volume of invoices became increasingly difficult to track and manage. Malt's business model also adds complexity, as they pay freelancers upfront before receiving payment from customers. This unique structure further emphasized the need for efficient cash collection and invoicing practices.
160+ hours saved every month, thanks to a monthly average of 2000 automated actions.
58% decrease in DSO since Malt started using Upflow in 2022 (124 days to 52 days).
Read the full Malt case study.
Staffmatch
What they do: Staffmatch is a next generation interim and temp agency.
Why cash flow matters: As a temporary employment agency, Staffmatch's business model involves rapidly matching temporary workers with client companies, often on short-term contracts. This rapid turnover and reliance on timely payments to compensate temporary workers necessitates a robust and efficient collections process.
35 hours saved per month, thanks to 2000 automated actions in Upflow.
300 letters sent annually, in the click of a button, as part of a true multi-channel collections strategy.
Read the full Staffmatch case study.
Take Control of Your AR Process with Upflow
Late payments shouldn’t be a constant headache.
With Upflow, you can automate cash collection, track payments in real-time, and improve cash flow—without spending hours on manually chasing overdue invoices.
As your business grows, an efficient, scalable AR system ensures you can manage higher invoice volumes while keeping cash flowing smoothly.
Ready to get your AR sorted and get paid faster? Sign up for our free Discover plan, connect your ERP or billing tool in just a couple of clicks and get instant access to real-time analytics. After all, the first step to improving your business cash flow is understanding where you are today.
