Reading's Ciphr further boosts payroll business with Shape acquisition

Ciphr, the Reading-based HR software-as-a-service provider, has further bolstered its payroll business by acquiring Shape - a platform used by 1,500 UK firms, which was established by husband and wife team Alex and Cheri Bartlett.

Since April this year Ciphr has added over 20 new payroll customer and already processes more than £2 billion in payroll and BACS salary payments a year for its clients.

READ MORE: Marlow’s Ciphr acquires Marshall E-Learning

Sion Lewis, CEO of Ciphr, said the deal would " truly enhance" the company's payroll proposition.

"We’re thrilled to welcome Alex and Cheri to the Ciphr team," he said.

"Shape is a cutting-edge, API-first payroll solution that has a great reputation in the payroll sector. Shape’s applications are extensive and well-suited to medium and large-sized organisations, like Ciphr’s customers.

“We have great HR solutions, we are HR experts – it’s what we do best – and we have more than 40 years’ experience in the HR and payroll industry. Building out Ciphr’s payroll business is a key focus for us this year, and part of our longer-term growth strategy. And Shape is a perfect fit to take our payroll tech to the next level."

Meanwhile, Shape’s clients can expect a seamless transition.

Co-founder Alex Bartlett said: "Cheri and I founded Shape with a vision to build the most flexible payroll software possible, allowing integration at any level via our Open API and backing that up with an intuitive user interface and fantastic customer support.

"We’re immensely proud of what we have achieved over the last five years, and it has been a privilege to work with all the fantastic people we have met along the way. The relationships we have built, and the feedback we’ve received from our customers,has been amazing.

“We are both extremely excited about Shape becoming part of the Ciphr Group and taking the next step in this journey."

Ciphr Group is a privately held company backed by ECI Partners and headquartered in Reading. It provides integrated HR, payroll, learning and recruitment solutions.

More than 200 employees work across the group, which includes Ciphr and Marshall E-Learning – a specialist diversity and inclusion learning provider.