PaidHR and LSETF Launch Initiative to Provide People Management and Payroll Support to Nigerian Businesses
PaidHR, an HR and payroll software company, has announced a new corporate social responsibility initiative in partnership with the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) to provide Nigerian-based businesses with free access to PaidHR’s full software suite, structured business training, and dedicated support.
The initiative is designed to support small and growing businesses in Nigeria by helping them manage their teams more effectively, create better working environments, and build the kind of internal culture that attracts and retains talent and easing the administrative pressure of payroll. The initiative is also about the employees themselves — the thousands of workers across Lagos whose daily experience at work is shaped by whether their employer has the right tools and knowledge to manage them well.
Small and medium-sized enterprises contribute approximately 48% of Nigeria’s GDP and represent the largest share of employment in the country. Yet a disproportionate number of them fail, not for lack of ambition or market opportunity, but because of avoidable operational and administrative breakdowns.
“Small businesses are a vital part of the Nigerian economy — they employ people, generate income, and drive innovation across every sector. But many of them are still managing critical processes like people management and payroll with limited time, tools, and internal capacity, and that holds them back. This initiative is about more than giving businesses a product. It is about giving them a real operational foundation — the tools, the knowledge, and the support they need to run better and grow with confidence. We are proud to be doing that in partnership with LSETF.”— Seye Bandele, Co-founder and CEO, PaidHR
Through LSETF, beneficiary businesses will receive twelve months of free access to PaidHR’s complete software suite, purpose-built to help growing businesses manage their people with structure, fairness, and confidence. The platform includes:
HR and people management tools — a central system for employee records, contracts, leave management, performance tracking, and documentation, giving business owners a clear, organised view of their entire workforce
Automated payroll processing — accurate, timely payroll runs that eliminate manual errors and ensure every employee is paid correctly and on schedule
Statutory compliance management — covering PAYE, pension remittances, and other regulatory obligations, so businesses meet their legal responsibilities to their employees without the administrative burden
Employee self-service tools — giving employees direct access to their pay slips, leave balances, and personal records, reducing friction and building transparency between employers and their teams
“At LSETF, our commitment is to businesses and to the people those businesses employ. This partnership with PaidHR speaks directly to both. It helps business owners build the operational and people management capacity they need to grow sustainably, and it creates better, more structured working environments for the employees who depend on those businesses for their livelihoods. That is exactly the kind of initiative we are proud to stand behind.” – Oyindamola Egbeyemi, Director of Programmes and Coordination of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF)
Beyond the platform, participating businesses will be enrolled in a structured training programme that addresses the knowledge gaps most likely to limit business growth. Training sessions will cover people management and HR fundamentals, financial management and planning, operational efficiency and process improvement, and other areas critical to building a business that can scale sustainably. The combination of tools and training is deliberate: technology changes how a business operates, but knowledge changes how its leaders think.
“People are the most important asset any business has, and yet people management is often the thing small businesses are least equipped to do well. What this initiative gives businesses is not just a product — it is a genuine upgrade in how they relate to their teams. When managers have the right tools and training to manage people fairly and consistently, the whole business performs better. And the employees feel the difference every single day. That is the change we are here to create.”— Olakunle Awosanmi, Head of Business, PaidLife.
The impact of this initiative will be felt most directly by the employees of the 100 businesses selected. For many of them, working for SMEs in Nigeria means navigating uncertainty: inconsistent pay dates, limited visibility into their own records, little formal structure around leave or performance, and no clear channel to raise concerns or access support. This initiative changes that.
This partnership between PaidHR and LSETF reflects a shared conviction that supporting small businesses means supporting the people inside them — owners, managers, and employees alike.
For PaidHR, this initiative is an expression of a core purpose: to make quality people management infrastructure accessible to every business in Nigeria, regardless of size or stage. The businesses served through this programme will leave with stronger operations, more capable leadership teams, and workforces that are better supported and more likely to stay.
PaidHR helps businesses simplify payroll, streamline people operations, and work with greater clarity and control. Built for growing businesses, reducing manual processes and operational stress so teams can spend less time on admin and more time on growth. The company serves businesses across Africa and is committed to making quality people management infrastructure accessible at every stage of growth, including through partnerships with public sector institutions focused on business development and workforce formalisation.
The Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) was established to reduce unemployment in Lagos State by providing financial and non-financial support to residents and businesses.
