沛齊 (PAYX) 2022 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day, everyone, and welcome to Paychex Q2 FY 2022 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Please note, this call may be recorded.

大家好，歡迎參加Paychex 2022財年第二季財報電話會議。 （操作說明）請注意，本次電話會議可能會被錄音。

It is now my pleasure to turn today's program over to Martin Mucci, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Paychex.

現在我很高興將今天的節目交給 Paychex 董事長兼執行長 Martin Mucci。

Thank you, Emma, and thank you for joining us for our discussion of the Paychex Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2022 Earnings Release. Joining me today is Efrain Rivera, our Chief Financial Officer. And this morning, before the market opened, we released our financial results for the second quarter ended November 30, 2021. You can access our earnings release on our Investor Relations website, and our Form 10-Q will be filed with the SEC within the next day. This teleconference is being broadcast over the Internet, will be archived and available on our website for approximately 90 days.

謝謝艾瑪，也謝謝您參加我們關於Paychex 2022財年第二季財報發布的討論會。今天與我一同出席的還有我們的財務長埃弗雷恩·裡維拉。今天上午，在市場開盤前，我們發布了截至2021年11月30日的第二季財務表現。您可以在我們的投資者關係網站上查閱這份財報，我們的10-Q表格將於明天提交給美國證券交易委員會（SEC）。本次電話會議將透過網路直播，並將在我們的網站上存檔約90天。

I will start today with an update on the business highlights for the second quarter, then Efrain will review our financial results for the quarter and provide an update on fiscal '22. We will then open it up for your questions.

今天我將先報告第二季的業務亮點，然後Efrain將回顧本季的財務業績，並提供2022財年的最新情況。之後我們將開放提問環節。

Today, we reported strong financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2022 as both Management Solutions and PEO and Insurance revenues increased double digits year-over-year and adjusted diluted earnings per share increased 25%. We continued to have strong momentum from the first quarter with positive trends across the entire business.

今天，我們公佈了2022財年第二季強勁的財務表現。管理解決方案及PEO及保險業務的營收均較去年同期成長兩位數，調整後稀釋每股收益成長25%。我們延續了第一季的強勁成長勢頭，整個業務都呈現積極態勢。

Client bases across all major solutions have continued to grow. Sales performance for the second quarter was strong across the board, resulting in our highest year-over-year growth in new annualized revenue in over 5 years and in fact, a record high level of annualized revenue sold for the second quarter and the first half of the year.

所有主要解決方案的客戶群持續成長。第二季銷售業績全面強勁，實現了五年多來最高的年度新增收入年增，事實上，第二季和上半年的年度營收均創歷史新高。

The investments we've made in our technology, product, sales and digital marketing have positioned us well for success in today's environment. Our client retention remains near record levels. This is reflective of both the resilience of small businesses in the U.S. and the value provided by our unique blend of software solutions and HR expertise. Macroeconomic tailwinds persisted and resulting in strong growth in checks per payroll and increases in worksite employees in our HR outsourcing clients. The tight labor market and war for talent has been very challenging for all businesses. In response, Paychex, ourselves, we've taken proactive steps implementing incentives and programs to compete for talent, and we've made significant progress in hiring over the past quarter, and we're well prepared heading into the calendar year-end and selling season.

我們在技術、產品、銷售和數位行銷方面的投入，使我們在當今環境下擁有了成功的有利條件。我們的客戶留存率保持在接近歷史最高水準。這不僅體現了美國小型企業的韌性，也反映了我們獨特的軟體解決方案和人力資源專業知識相結合所帶來的價值。宏觀經濟的利多因素持續存在，促使我們的人力資源外包客戶的每筆薪資金額和現場員工人數均實現強勁成長。勞動市場緊張和人才爭奪戰對所有企業來說都是巨大的挑戰。為了應對這一挑戰，Paychex 和我們自己都採取了積極措施，實施激勵措施和計劃以吸引人才，並在過去一個季度取得了顯著的招聘進展，我們已為即將到來的年末和銷售旺季做好了充分準備。

COVID-19 and its variance continue to pressure businesses of all sizes, and we constantly enhance our robust set of COVID-19-related solutions. Most recently, within 10 days of the legislation surrounding COVID-19 vaccination and testing, we introduced a digital solution that businesses can leverage to confidentially capture and store employee vaccination status and request testing results for the unvaccinated. To help our clients stay up to date on all federal and state regulatory changes, we continue to introduce new methods of communication to proactively keep them informed and educated through white papers, webinars, videos and our podcast series On the Mark.

新冠疫情及其各種變化持續對各種規模的企業造成壓力，我們也不斷完善我們強大的新冠疫情相關解決方案。最近，在新冠疫苗接種和檢測相關法規出台後的10天內，我們推出了一項數位化解決方案，企業可以利用該方案安全地記錄和儲存員工的疫苗接種情況，並為未接種疫苗的員工申請檢測結果。為了幫助客戶隨時了解所有聯邦和州級法規的變化，我們不斷推出新的溝通方式，透過白皮書、網路研討會、影片和播客系列節目「On the Mark」等形式，主動為客戶提供資訊和指導。

We closely monitor topics that may have a significant impact on our clients such as vaccine management, updated guidance on employee retention tax credit, or ERTC, and the return of mask mandates in specific states. We remain a trusted resource to support small and midsized businesses.

我們密切關注可能對客戶產生重大影響的議題，例如疫苗管理、員工留任稅收抵免（ERTC）的最新指南以及部分州重新實施口罩強制令等。我們始終是中小企業值得信賴的支持夥伴。

The trends we saw accelerate during the pandemic continue, including the need for HR advice, the need to upgrade employee benefits and retirement solutions to attract and retain talent and the acceleration of digital technology solutions to support a distributed workforce and tools to help businesses maximize available stimulus from the government. We've seen the benefits of these trends and strong demand for our HR solutions, another business that is benefiting from strong demand is our retirement business, where we have reached the 100,000 client milestone. As a leader in this space, we are uniquely positioned to help businesses meet the growing number of state mandates for retirement plans and provide a critical benefit offering to drive employee retention and satisfaction.

我們在疫情期間觀察到的加速發展趨勢仍在持續，包括對人力資源諮詢的需求、升級員工福利和退休方案以吸引和留住人才的需求，以及為支持分散式辦公模式和幫助企業最大限度利用政府刺激資金而加速發展的數位化技術解決方案。我們已經看到了這些趨勢帶來的益處，以及對我們人力資源解決方案的強勁需求。另一個受益於強勁需求的業務是我們的退休業務，我們已達到10萬客戶里程碑。作為該領域的領導者，我們擁有獨特的優勢，能夠幫助企業滿足日益增多的州政府退休計畫強制性要求，並提供關鍵的福利方案，以提高員工留任率和滿意度。

In fact, in January, we were one of the first to release a PEP plan or pooled employer plan and 11 months later, not even a year later, we now have over 10,000 PEP clients. The access to stimulus funding has been a powerful retention tool for Paychex. We're proud that we've been able to help clients obtain billions in Paycheck Protection Program loans, and approximately 90% of our clients have leveraged our award-winning PPP forgiveness tool to gain some or all level of forgiveness for those loans, effectively transitioning the PPP loan into a grant.

事實上，今年1月，我們率先推出了“薪資保護計劃”（PEP）或“雇主聯合計劃”，僅僅11個月後，不到一年，我們的PEP客戶就已超過1萬家。獲得刺激資金一直是Paychex強而有力的客戶維繫工具。我們很自豪能夠幫助客戶獲得數十億美元的「薪資保護計畫」貸款，其中約90%的客戶利用我們屢獲殊榮的PPP貸款豁免工具，獲得了部分或全部貸款豁免，有效地將PPP貸款轉化為贈款。

We've also helped businesses gain access to over $6 billion in employee retention and paid leave tax credits. Returns for clients, leveraging our ERTC service represent a significant amount for any business. Two of our most recent technology innovations focus on employee retention. Our Retention Insights offering use -- our Retention Insights offering uses predictive analytics based on a few dozen unique data elements to help employers identify employees who may be more likely to consider leaving their organization. This is Paychex's first client-facing predictive analytic and could not come at a better time given today's competitive labor market.

我們還幫助企業獲得了超過 60 億美元的員工留任和帶薪休假稅收抵免。對於任何企業而言，利用我們的員工留任稅收抵免 (ERTC) 服務所帶來的收益都相當可觀。我們最新的兩項技術創新都專注於員工留任。我們的「留任洞察」服務利用基於數十個獨特資料元素的預測分析，幫助雇主識別那些更有可能考慮離職的員工。這是 Paychex 首個面向客戶的預測分析服務，鑑於當今競爭激烈的勞動力市場，它的推出可謂恰逢其時。

We also introduced a completely enhanced total compensation summary that can be used by employers to communicate the impact of their total pay and benefits packages for employees. These are just 2 examples of the powerful technology and use of information we're providing to help employers compete and retain talent.

我們也推出了全面升級的薪資總覽，雇主可以利用它向員工清楚地展示其薪資福利方案的整體影響。以上僅是我們提供的強大技術和資訊應用方案中的兩個例子，旨在幫助雇主提升競爭力並留住人才。

We continue to enhance our technology solutions to deliver efficiency for our clients, their employees and Paychex through self-service and chat bots. Use of our cloud-based applications continues to grow with double-digit increases in both desktop and mobile devices. During our recent open enrollment period for our PEO clients, for example, 99% of our PEO worksite employees completed their open enrollment digitally, resulting in a 26% reduction in call volume.

我們持續改善技術解決方案，透過自助服務和聊天機器人，為客戶、客戶員工和Paychex本身提升效率。我們的雲端應用使用量持續成長，桌面和行動裝置的使用量均實現了兩位數的成長。例如，在近期面向PEO客戶的開放註冊期間內，99%的PEO現場員工透過線上完成了註冊，從而使呼叫量減少了26%。

Our continued emphasis on expanding the digital capabilities of Paychex Flex was validated by several recent awards. We were named by NelsonHall, a leading global analyst research firm as a leader in their Annual NEAT vendor evaluation report for human capital management. Paychex placed in the leader quadrant of the next-generation, HCM technology report. This designation was based on our ability to deliver immediate client benefits and meet clients' future requirements.

我們持續致力於提升 Paychex Flex 的數位化能力，並因此獲得多項獎項。領先的全球分析研究公司 NelsonHall 在其年度 NEAT 人力資本管理供應商評估報告中將我們評為領導者。 Paychex 在下一代 HCM 技術報告中位列領導者象限。這項殊榮源自於我們能夠為客戶帶來立竿見影的效益，並滿足客戶未來的需求。

In addition, Brandon Hall Group was just -- has just recognized Paychex Flex with 2 excellence and technology awards. Our ERTC service was recognized in the category of Best Advance in HR and Workforce Management Technology for small and midsized businesses, and Paychex Pre-Check was recognized in the category of business strategy and technology innovation. This is our ninth consecutive year we've been recognized for our technology in this award program, the largest and longest-running award program in the HCM space.

此外，Brandon Hall Group 剛剛授予 Paychex Flex 兩項卓越與技術獎。我們的 ERTC 服務榮獲“中小企業人力資源和勞動力管理技術最佳進步獎”，而 Paychex Pre-Check 則榮獲“商業策略與技術創新獎”。這已是我們連續第九年憑藉科技在該獎項評選中獲得認可，該獎項是人力資本管理 (HCM) 領域規模最大、歷史最悠久的獎項評選活動。

Before closing, I'd like to take a moment to discuss the recent change in executive leadership roles that took effect on December 1. I have assumed the role of Chairman of the Board and will continue to serve as Chief Executive Officer. Tom Golisano, our founder and prior Chairman, will remain a Board member and will continue to play a role in the governance and oversight of the company. John Gibson, our Senior Vice President of Service since 2013, has been promoted to the role of President and Chief Operating Officer. John has been an integral part of our executive team and has led the service and operations of all Paychex businesses divisions, including HR outsourcing, payroll, retirement and insurance. There remains continuity in leadership to drive Paychex to the future, and I'd like to thank Tom for his leadership and for his continued support as we move forward and wish John well in our future growth.

在結束演講之前，我想花一點時間談談最近於12月1日生效的高階主管人事變動。我已就任董事會主席，並將繼續擔任執行長。我們的創辦人兼前主席湯姆·戈利薩諾(Tom Golisano)將繼續擔任董事會成員，並繼續參與公司的治理和監督工作。自2013年以來一直擔任服務資深副總裁的約翰·吉布森(John Gibson)已晉升為總裁兼營運長。約翰一直是公司高階主管團隊的重要成員，領導了Paychex所有業務部門的服務和運營，包括人力資源外包、薪資、退休和保險。領導層的穩定將確保Paychex的未來發展，我衷心感謝湯姆的領導和持續支持，並祝福約翰在未來的發展中一切順利。

In summary, we are proud of our performance during the second quarter. We are well positioned with our set of innovative technology and service solutions for the selling season and to continue providing industry-leading value to our clients.

總而言之，我們對第二季的業績感到自豪。憑藉我們一系列創新技術和服務解決方案，我們已為銷售旺季做好充分準備，並將繼續為客戶提供領先業界的價值。

I will now turn the call over to Efrain to review our financial results for the second quarter. Efrain?

現在我將把電話交給埃弗雷恩，讓他回顧一下我們第二季度的財務表現。埃弗雷恩？

Thanks, Marty, and good morning to everyone. I'd like to remind you that today's conference call will contain forward-looking statements that refer to future events and therefore, involve some risk. In addition, I will periodically refer to some non-GAAP measures referred to the customary disclosures.

謝謝馬蒂，大家早安。我想提醒各位，今天的電話會議將包含一些前瞻性陳述，這些陳述涉及未來事件，因此存在一定的風險。此外，我會不時提及一些非GAAP財務指標，這些指標已在慣例揭露中列出。

So let me start by providing key points for the quarter, follow up with greater detail in certain areas, and I'll finish with a review of our fiscal 2022 outlook.

首先，我將介紹本季的要點，然後針對某些領域進行更詳細的闡述，最後，我將回顧我們 2022 財年的展望。

Our second quarter results reflected strong internal execution and continued economic recovery. Both service revenue and total revenue increased 13% to $1.1 billion. Within service revenue, Management Solutions revenue increased 14% to $832 million, driven primarily by growth in client bases across our portfolio of solutions, higher revenue per client and improved employment levels.

第二季業績反映了公司內部強勁的執行力和持續的經濟復甦。服務收入和總收入均成長13%，達到11億美元。在服務收入中，管理解決方案收入成長14%，達到8.32億美元，主要得益於我們全線解決方案客戶群的成長、單一客戶收入的提高以及就業水準的改善。

Client-based growth resulted from both strong sales performance and high levels of client retention. In particular, our HR Solutions business continues to benefit from strong demand as businesses look for more HR support. PEO and Insurance Solutions revenue increased 11% to $262 million. Our PEO has benefited from higher average worksite employees, state unemployment insurance revenue and health insurance attachment.

客戶成長主要得益於強勁的銷售業績和較高的客戶留存率。尤其值得一提的是，隨著企業尋求更多人力資源支持，我們的人力資源解決方案業務持續受益於強勁的需求。專業雇主組織 (PEO) 和保險解決方案收入成長 11%，達到 2.62 億美元。我們的 PEO 業務受益於平均工作場所員工人數的增加、州失業保險收入的成長以及健康保險附加險的增加。

Interest on funds held for clients decreased 5% for the quarter. The $14 million is the impact of lower average interest rates and realized gains was partially offset by a 9% increase in average investment balances. Total expenses were up 6% to $668 million. The growth in expenses resulted from higher PEO direct insurance costs and increased in benefit costs to our employees and continued investment in our products, technology, sales and marketing.

本季客戶資金利息下降了5%。這1,400萬美元的損失主要受平均利率下降和已實現收益的影響，但部分被平均投資餘額9%的成長所抵銷。總支出增加6%至6.68億美元。支出成長主要源自於PEO直接保險成本的增加、員工福利成本的上升以及對產品、技術、銷售和行銷的持續投入。

Op income increased 24% to $440 million with an operating margin of 39.7%. Adjusted operating margin was also 39.7% in the second quarter compared with 36.1% for the prior year period, an expansion of 360 basis points.

營業收入成長24%至4.4億美元，營業利益率為39.7%。第二季調整後營業利益率也為39.7%，去年同期為36.1%，成長了360個基點。

Our effective income tax rate was 24% compared to 22.1% for the same period last year. Both periods reflect net discrete tax benefits related to stock-based compensation payments. Adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share increased 25% for the quarter to $330 million and $0.91 per share, respectively.

本季實際所得稅率為24%，而去年同期為22.1%。這兩個時期均反映了與股權激勵相關的淨非經常性稅收優惠。經調整後的淨利和經調整後的攤薄後每股收益分別成長25%，達到3.3億美元和每股0.91美元。

Year-to-date results, I'll touch on the highlights briefly here. This is for the 6-month period, obviously, ending November 30. Total service revenue and total revenue increased 15% and 14%, respectively, to $2.2 billion. Expenses, excluding onetime costs incurred during the prior year increased 5%. Op income and adjusted op income were $883 million, increases of 38% and 32%, respectively. Diluted earnings per share increased 37% to $1.83 per share. Adjusted diluted earnings per share increased 32% to $1.80 per share.

年初至今的業績，我將在此簡單介紹一些亮點。顯然，這是截至11月30日的六個月期間的業績。總服務收入和總收入分別成長15%和14%，達到22億美元。扣除上年發生的一次性成本後，支出增加5%。營業利潤和調整後營業利潤均為8.83億美元，分別成長38%和32%。稀釋後每股收益成長37%至1.83美元。調整後稀釋後每股收益成長32%至1.80美元。

Let's talk about financial position. It remains strong with cash, restricted cash and total corporate investments over $1.1 billion and total borrowings of approximately $800 million as of November 30. Cash flows from operations were $555 million during the first 6 months, an increase of 29% from the same period last year. Free cash flow generated was $459 million, up 21% year-over-year. The increases were driven by higher net income, partially offset by fluctuations in working capital. We've paid out quarterly dividends at $0.66 per share for a total of $476 million during the first 6 months, our 12-month rolling return on equity was 43%.

我們來談談財務狀況。截至11月30日，公司財務狀況依然穩健，現金、受限現金及公司總投資超過11億美元，總借款約8億美元。上半年經營活動產生的現金流量為5.55億美元，較去年同期成長29%。自由現金流為4.59億美元，年增21%。成長主要得益於淨利的提高，但部分被營運資本的波動所抵銷。上半年，我們派發了每股0.66美元的季度股息，總計4.76億美元。過去12個月的滾動淨資產收益率為43%。

Now I'll turn to guidance for the current fiscal year ending May 31, 2022. The outlook reflects the current macro environment, which saw improvement in the quarter. We've taken that into account in the second quarter results, and our second quarter results actually exceeded expectations. We have some conservatism given the macroeconomic uncertainty that prevails during the remainder of the year. We provided the following updated guidance, as you saw. Management Solutions revenue is now expected to grow in the range of 10% to 11%. We've previously guided to a growth of approximately 8%.

現在我將談談截至2022年5月31日的本財年的業績展望。展望反映了當前的宏觀經濟環境，該環境在本季有所改善。我們在第二季業績中已將此因素考慮在內，而第二季的業績實際上超出了預期。鑑於今年剩餘時間宏觀經濟仍存在不確定性，我們採取了較保守的預測。正如您所看到的，我們提供了以下更新的業績展望。管理解決方案收入預計將成長10%至11%。我們先前的預期約為8%。

PEO and Insurance Solutions is expected to grow in the range of 10% to 12%. We previously guided to grow in the range of 8% to 10%. Interest on funds held for clients is expected to be flat year-over-year. Total revenue expected to grow in the range of 10% to 11%. We previously guided to growth of approximately 8%.

PEO和保險解決方案業務預計將成長10%至12%，高於我們先前預測的8%至10%。客戶資金利息預計將與去年持平。總收入預計將成長10%至11%，高於我們先前預測的約8%。

Adjusted op income is expected to be in the range of 39% to 40%, up from the previous guidance of 38% to 39%. Adjusted EBITDA margin is expected to be approximately 44%, up from the previous guidance of approximately 43%. Other expense net is expected to be in the range of $15 million to $18 million. Our previous guidance was in the range of $23 million to $26 million, with the change due to certain nonoperating income received during the second quarter.

調整後營業利益率預計介於39%至40%之間，高於先前預期的38%至39%。調整後EBITDA利潤率預計約44%，高於先前預期的約43%。其他費用淨額預計在1500萬美元至1800萬美元之間。我們先前的預期為2,300萬美元至2,600萬美元，此次調整是由於第二季收到了一些非經營性收入。

Our effective income tax is still expected to be in the range of 24% to 25% and adjusted diluted earnings per share is expected now to grow in the range of 18% to 20%. We previously guided the growth of 12% to 14%.

我們預計實際所得稅率仍將維持在24%至25%之間，調整後稀釋每股盈餘預計將成長18%至20%。我們先前的預期成長率為12%至14%。

Turning to the third quarter. We currently anticipate total revenue growth to be approximately 9%, and we are expecting an adjusted operating margin of approximately 42%. So note that in your models. PEO and Insurance Solutions revenues for the third and fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 were impacted by timing of notification of changes in state unemployment insurance rates. This creates comparability issues for the third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2022, doesn't affect the whole year. You'll look at our investor presentation when we post it in a little bit, and we provided additional details so you can get the split of the quarters correct.

接下來是第三季。我們目前預期總營收成長約為9%，調整後營業利潤率約為42%。請在您的模型中註意這一點。 2021財年第三季和第四季的PEO和保險解決方案收入受到各州失業保險費率變更通知時間的影響。這導致2022財年第三季和第四季的數據可比性有問題，但不會影響全年。稍後我們將發布投資者演示文稿，您可以在其中查看，我們提供了更多詳細信息，以便您正確劃分各季度。

Of course, everything that I just said is subject to our current assumptions, which could change given the current environment. We'll update you again on the third quarter call.

當然，我剛才所說的一切都基於我們目前的假設，而這些假設可能會隨著當前環境的變化而改變。我們將在第三季財報電話會議上再次向您報告最新情況。

And with that, I'll turn the call back over to Marty.

好了，現在我把電話轉回給馬蒂。

Thank you, Efrain. Emma, we'll will now open the call for questions or comments, please?

謝謝你，埃弗雷恩。艾瑪，現在我們開始接受提問或評論，可以嗎？

(Operator Instructions) And we will take our first question from Kevin McVeigh with Credit Suisse.

（操作員說明）我們首先來回答來自瑞士信貸的凱文·麥克維提出的問題。

Congratulations on the results. Marty, I reckon, it looks like you delivered a 44.7% margin in the quarter. I think that's the highest on record and even going back to '07 when kind of the float income was half of what it was today. Can you maybe talk to just some of the structural changes? Marty, you talked to kind of the chatbots, things like that, but maybe just can you help us frame it? Is there a new range of margins? Just any thoughts as to just the leverage in the model because obviously just you're seeing outsized margin expansion and really still some headwinds around floating some things like that? So I just wanted to start there if we could.

恭喜你取得這樣的成績。馬蒂，我估計你這季的利潤率達到了44.7%。我認為這是有史以​​來最高的，甚至超過了2007年，當時的浮動收益只有現在的一半。能談談其中的一些結構性變化嗎？馬蒂，你談到了聊天機器人之類的東西，但你能不能幫我們梳理一下？利潤率是否有了新的區間？你對模型中的槓桿有什麼看法？因為很明顯，利潤率大幅擴張，但浮動收益方面仍存在一些阻力。所以我想先從這裡開始聊聊。

Sure. And I'll let Efrain jump in, too. I think there's really 2 parts to it. One is we've been down some head count temporary as a challenging hiring, but we really picked up a lot of hires in the second quarter due to some creative things we did. But I would say, overall, the bigger impact is that we have automated a lot of the service models. When you look at it and you think about chatbots, when someone comes on the web, now to ask a question, over 60% of the questions are being answered in an automated fashion with a chatbot before they go to anyone live.

當然。我也讓埃弗雷恩補充一下。我認為這主要包含兩方面。一方面，由於招募困難，我們暫時減少了一些員工，但第二季我們採取了一些創新措施，成功招募了不少人。但總的來說，更大的影響在於我們實現了許多服務模式的自動化。想想聊天機器人，現在有人上網提問，超過 60% 的問題在轉接給真人客服之前，就已經由聊天機器人自動解答了。

And also, as I mentioned in my comments, if you just think about the things we've done with Flex in our PEO offering, almost 100% of PEO employees, worksite employees handled open enrollment online digitally now, and that reduced calling in for questions and issues by over 25%. So a lot of the things we're doing not only with the product but with the service models themselves have reduced the number of calls that are coming in, not only are the clients happier, they're getting a faster answer and it's being done the way they want to receive it, which is either automatically or through chat, et cetera, but also we're saving expense and time in allowing our specialists to handle more value-added calls for the clients.

而且，正如我在評論中提到的，想想我們在PEO服務中對Flex所做的改進，幾乎100%的PEO員工和工作場所員工現在都通過線上方式完成了開放註冊，這使得諮詢電話減少了25%以上。因此，我們不僅在產品方面，而且在服務模式方面所做的很多工作都減少了來電量，這不僅讓客戶更滿意，他們能更快地得到答复，而且答複方式也更符合他們的期望，無論是自動回復還是在線聊天等等。此外，我們也節省了成本和時間，使我們的專家能夠處理更多對客戶有價值的諮詢。

So is there a wider range? I think there's always a little bit wider range. And that's our DNA is to kind of drive margin as best we can. I would say a little is temporary, but most of it is the things that we've been doing year after year.

所以，是否存在更廣泛的範圍？我認為始終存在一些更廣泛的範圍。我們的企業基因就是盡可能地提高利潤率。我認為部分波動是暫時的，但大部分波動都源自於我們多​​年來一直在做的事情。

Yes. There's no -- I thought to add there, Kevin. I mean I'd just say that you know this very well and I think many of the analysts that cover us, we have evolved significantly from a technology standpoint. We have evolved significantly in terms of our digital capabilities. And the model shows it. The margins show it. We will put up our margins against anyone in the business because, to Marty's point, it's durable, it's sustainable and it's technology-based.

是的。沒有——我本來想補充一點，凱文。我的意思是，你很清楚這一點，而且我認為很多關注我們的分析師也都認為，從技術角度來看，我們已經取得了顯著的進步。我們在數位化能力方面也取得了顯著的進步。我們的模型和利潤率都證明了這一點。我們可以和業內任何一家公司比拼利潤率，因為正如馬蒂所說，我們的利潤率是持久的、可持續的，而且是基於技術的。

No, I get that. And just a follow-up on that, and then I'll get back in the queue because the numbers kind of speak themselves. But is that the same level of success on the front end too in terms of the implementation? Like is there any way to think about when you're implementing a client for the first time, how much of that is to fully digitized as opposed to more a human component to it? Or is that to -- that's right?

不，我明白。我再跟進一下，然後我會重新排隊，因為數據已經說明了一切。但是，在前端實作方面，成功率也一樣高嗎？例如，在首次為客戶實施系統時，有沒有辦法考慮其中有多少是完全數位化的，又有多少是更依賴人為因素？或者說——沒錯吧？

No, I know what you're -- yes, what you're saying is exactly where we're heading. There's more and more clients that can self-onboard themselves. I'd say we're still more -- we're newer into that process. But that is happening not only because it's good for our expenses, it's really good for the clients. The clients want to self-onboard. Share Payroll division has been doing this for some time and Flex is continuing to grow into that. So if it's particularly a smaller client, they want to start onboarding themselves.

不，我知道你的意思——是的，你說的正是我們未來的發展方向。越來越多的客戶可以自行完成註冊。我想說，我們在這方面還比較新。但這不僅有利於降低我們的成本，對客戶也大有裨益。客戶希望自行註冊。 Share Payroll 部門已經這樣做了很長一段時間，Flex 部門也不斷成長。所以，如果是規模較小的客戶，他們也希望開始自行註冊。

There's a couple of benefits, not only does it reduces costs, it allows the client to onboard themselves at their pace. And it also really it creates a lot fewer errors and interactions with the service team because the client is doing it at their own pace and when they want to do it and how they want to do it. And the last thing is that, frankly, many times is a better sale if you're buying online digitally and then you start self-onboarding yourself, and you might need to help. But if you don't, you complete that, it's better than multiple salespeople and service people talking to you to implement you. So we're definitely headed -- we're definitely down that path, more on the share payroll side, but Flex is increasing as well.

這樣做有幾個好處，不僅可以降低成本，還能讓客戶以自己的步調完成註冊。而且，由於客戶可以按照自己的步調、時間和方式進行操作，因此大大減少了錯誤和與服務團隊的互動。最後一點是，坦白說，很多時候，如果你在線上購買產品，然後開始自助註冊，銷售效果會更好。當然，你可能需要一些幫助。但如果你不需要幫助，自己完成註冊，也比多個銷售和服務人員跟你溝通來幫你實施要好得多。所以我們肯定會朝著這個方向發展——我們肯定會朝著這個方向努力，尤其是在共享薪資方面，但彈性辦公模式也在不斷發展。

And again, congrats on the promotions.

再次恭喜你們升職。

Thanks. Thanks, Kevin.

謝謝。謝謝你，凱文。

Thank you.

謝謝。

We'll go next to Bryan Bergin with Cowen.

接下來我們將採訪科文的布萊恩·伯金。

Happy holidays. I wanted to start with retention. Can you just talk about what you're seeing there? It sounds like it's still record, but you did expect some moderation in the year. So any change on that front? And can you talk about some of the underlying factors you would typically see that drive retention as it relates to out-of-business closures or normal client switching behavior? And just also beyond 2Q, if you can help us a little bit into the December month as well.

節日快樂！我想先談談客戶留存率。您能談談您觀察到的情況嗎？聽起來客戶留存率仍然創歷史新高，但您預計今年今年會有所放緩。那麼，這方面有什麼改變嗎？您能否談談通常影響客戶留存率的潛在因素，例如公司倒閉或客戶正常流失？另外，能否也談談第二季之後的情況，特別是12月份的情況？

Yes. I think so far -- yes, in Q2 was still near record levels. It wasn't quite as high as the record and that we saw in Q1, but it's very close to that. I really still think, as I said last quarter, that we will kind of even out at some place better than we were prepandemic. And I think a number of things that are helping that. There is fewer out of business. But there is also just the value of the product.

是的。我認為到目前為止——是的，第二季度仍然接近歷史最高水平。雖然沒有達到第一季創下的歷史最高紀錄，但也非常接近了。我仍然認為，就像我上個季度說的那樣，我們最終會達到一個比疫情前更好的水平。我認為有很多因素在推動這一點。倒閉的企業減少了。但產品本身的價值也起了作用。

What we're seeing is the value -- we're not seeing as many leaving for price value kind of category because they're seeing the value of the product, especially at the time of COVID with all the value we're bringing them from the product side, from the technology, handling a distributed workforce with all of the mobile apps that we have and ability and now the retention tools that we're giving them and the paycheck Pre-Check, where we're allowing the employees to review and approve kind of their own pay before it even gets processed.

我們看到的是價值——我們沒有看到那麼多人因為價格而離開，因為他們看到了產品的價值，尤其是在新冠疫情期間，我們從產品方面、技術方面為他們帶來了所有價值，利用我們所有的移動應用程序和能力來管理分佈式員工隊伍，以及我們現在提供的留任工具和工資預檢功能，我們允許員工在工資處理之前查看和批准自己的工資。

All these things we're getting back from clients are adding value, and that is doing exactly what we hoped, which is not only adding value to the client but improving retention. So we're near record levels in Q2. Don't see anything changing at this point in December. Of course, December, January is really where we'll see the number for year-end. And -- but right at this point, we expect things to even up certainly better than prepandemic levels.

我們從客戶收到的所有回饋都體現了價值，這正是我們所期望的，不僅為客戶創造了價值，還提高了客戶留存率。因此，我們第二季的業績接近歷史最高水準。目前來看，12 月的情況不會有太大變化。當然，12 月和 1 月才是最終確定年終數據的時候。但就目前而言，我們預計情況會比疫情前的水平好得多。

Okay. Okay. That's good to hear. And then the -- I understand the conservatism and the outlook given everything that's going on with Omicron. Any -- have you seen an actual impact in any sales activity or pipeline yet? Or was it just conservatism making sure you may see some actual impact?

好的，好的，很高興聽到這個消息。至於──考慮到歐密克隆目前的情況，我理解你們的保守態度和前景展望。你們是否已經看到銷售活動或銷售管道受到實際影響？還是說這只是為了確保能看到一些實際影響而採取的保守策略？

I think we're always trying to be conservative, especially in an environment like this, like you said. But right now, record levels of par annualized revenue we're seeing and growth in the first half of the year and in the second quarter. It still seem strong, but selling season is really when we know how that will be. But right now, really all areas; retirement, HR solutions, midsized business, our mid-market business and virtual sales, digital sales all going strong.

正如您所說，我們一直都力求保持保守，尤其是在當前這種環境下。但就目前而言，我們看到年度化營收創下歷史新高，上半年和第二季也實現了成長。目前看來依然強勁，但銷售旺季才能真正檢驗最終結果。不過就目前而言，所有業務領域，包括退休金業務、人力資源解決方案、中型企業業務、中端市場業務以及虛擬銷售和數位銷售，都表現強勁。

Our next question comes from Andrew Nicholas with William Blair.

下一個問題來自安德魯·尼古拉斯和威廉·布萊爾。

I guess my first one is kind of sticking with the technology theme from the responses to the first couple of questions, just as it relates to kind of paying for that kind of talent, my sense is that engineering, software building talent is getting more and more expensive, has for some time. Just wondering how you think about that, both from an expense perspective, but also a labor supply perspective as you move forward here through the rest of the year and beyond?

我的第一個問題其實也和前幾個問題的回答一樣，都圍繞著科技這個主題，也就是如何支付這類人才的薪酬。我的感覺是，工程和軟體開發人才的成本越來越高，這種情況已經持續了一段時間。我想知道您對此有何看法，既包括成本方面，也包括勞動力供應方面，尤其是在您展望今年剩餘時間和未來更長遠的未來時？

Yes. I think one thing, we've got a very tenured team, and Mike Gioja and the team have done just a great job. Mike has been in charge of that for over 10 years now and has just done a great job with that team. And I think one of the things, yes, the costs go up and you have to compete in this market. And I think we've done that very effectively. We also make it a great place for them to work. They can all -- they all can work from home, yet they also have great office space that's available to them to come in and they meet regularly, but they're all working from home.

是的。我認為有一點很重要，那就是我們擁有一支經驗豐富的團隊，Mike Gioja 和他的團隊做得非常好。 Mike 負責這個專案已經超過十年了，他帶領團隊取得了巨大的成功。我認為還有一點，成本確實在上升，你必須在這個市場中競爭。我認為我們在這方面做得非常有效。我們也為員工創造了一個良好的工作環境。他們都可以居家辦公，同時我們也為他們提供寬敞的辦公空間，他們可以定期來公司開會，但他們目前都是居家辦公。

They're also working on some of the latest technology and digital services, and that adds a lot of retention as well. Years ago, I'd say, 10 plus, 15 years ago, there was always an issue, are we working with the latest technology. Well, we've blown well past that. We're a leader from an innovative product development, not only in the products that we have, but the way we develop them and the infrastructure and architecture that we use. And so I think that is very attractive to candidates and attractive to the employees to stay here. So we're very proud of the tenure we have, and I think we pay very competitively, and that's why we've had good retention.

他們也致力於一些最新的技術和數位服務，這也大大提高了員工留任率。幾年前，大概十多年前吧，我們總是會擔心自己是否在使用最新科技。現在，我們早已超越了這個問題。我們在創新產品開發方面處於領先地位，這不僅體現在我們現有的產品上，也體現在我們開發產品的方式以及我們使用的基礎設施和架構上。因此，我認為這對求職者和員工都極具吸引力，促使他們留在這裡。我們為員工的穩定性感到非常自豪，而且我認為我們的薪資也極具競爭力，這也是我們員工留任率高的原因。

That's helpful. And then just for my follow-up, a different topic. Just on the PEO Insurance business, could you maybe break down the PEO performance versus Insurance performance in the quarter? I think your expectation last time we spoke was that insurance was going to be a bit slower this year. Just wondering if that's played itself out to this point. And if second quarter helps speak to that any further there.

這很有幫助。接下來我想問另一個問題。關於PEO保險業務，您能否分析一下本季PEO業務和保險業務的業績對比？我記得上次我們談話時，您預計今年保險業務的成長速度會放緩一些。我想知道目前來看，這種預期是否已經實現。第二季的業績是否也印證了這一點？

Yes, yes. Thanks, Andrew, for the question. So when you look at the PEO business versus the insurance business, the insurance business moderated the overall growth of PEO and insurance PEO was solid double digits, growing nicely, good client adds, good client wins. Insurance is a tale of 2 cities. The health and benefit side grew upper single digits and -- but work comp still remains a really tough compare because that market continues to be soft.

是的，是的。謝謝安德魯的提問。所以，當我們比較PEO業務和保險業務時，保險業務抑制了PEO的整體成長，而保險PEO業務則保持了兩位數的穩健成長，發展勢頭良好，新增客戶和贏得客戶都很可觀。保險業務的情況則截然不同。健康和福利業務的成長接近兩位數，但工傷賠償業務仍然難以比較，因為該市場持續疲軟。

I probably am going on 4 or 5 years of talking about softness in workers' comp. It is good to say it at least has moderated to the point where you were flat year-over-year. But increasingly, it's a smaller and smaller part of the business, but it hasn't bounced back yet. So PEO doing very well. Let's say, health and benefits on the insurance side doing well. Workers' comp kind of creating a situation that moderates the overall amount. Hopefully, as we get into next year if that -- that will start to turn around. But I've said that before, and [haven't] been wrong before. So -- though I take it to the bank. Thanks.

我大概已經說了四、五年關於工傷賠償業務疲軟的問題了。值得慶幸的是，至少現在情況有所緩和，與去年同期持平。但工傷賠償業務在整個業務中所佔的比重越來越小，而且尚未完全恢復。所以，專業雇主組織（PEO）業務表現非常出色。比如說，保險方面的健康福利業務也表現良好。工傷賠償業務在某種程度上起到了調節整體業務量的作用。希望到明年，情況能夠開始好轉。但我之前也說過類似的話，而且之前也從未失算過。所以，我對這個預測深信不疑。謝謝。

We'll go next to Eugene Simuni with MoffettNathanson.

接下來我們將採訪尤金·西穆尼和莫菲特·納森森。

I wanted to ask first about Management Solutions, very impressive performance this quarter, outperforming, I think, everybody's, including your expectations. You listed out a number of drivers that are behind that outperformance. Can you give us a little bit of color of which of these drivers are more onetime kind of temporary in nature and which can be sustained as we're moving forward?

我首先想問管理解決方案方面的問題，本季業績非常出色，我認為超出了所有人的預期，包括你們的預期。你們列舉了一些推動業績超預期的因素。能否詳細說明一下，哪些因素是一次性的、暫時性的，哪些因素可以持續下去？

Let me start and then maybe Marty can add some further color. So if you look at Management Solutions and you kind of apply kind of a broad umbrella of what's in that revenue stream, you really have 3 important components, as many of you know. You've got HCM solutions that are roughly about a little bit under half of that revenue stream. But then I would say there's 2 other parts that we don't talk about as much, but increasingly have become very, very important, which are the combination of retirement services and also what we would call ASO or HR outsourcing. This is not PEO.

我先來，然後Marty可以補充一些細節。如果你看一下管理解決方案，並大致了解其收入來源，你會發現它實際上包含三個重要組成部分，很多人都知道。首先是人力資本管理（HCM）解決方案，它大約是收入的一半。但我想說，還有另外兩個部分我們很少提及，但它們的重要性卻與日俱增，那就是退休服務以及我們所說的ASO（應用服務外包）或人力資源外包。這裡說的人力資源外包不是PEO（專業雇主組織）。

So if you look at that -- those 2 in comparison to HCM, they're now almost 50% of what HCM is. And they're growing at rates that are faster than HCM. Now HCM had a very strong quarter. It's not that it didn't. It's just that retirement services and HR outsourcing had even stronger, even stronger quarters.

所以，如果你看一下這些數據——與HCM相比，這兩項業務現在幾乎佔HCM的50%。而且它們的成長速度比HCM更快。當然，HCM上個季度表現非常強勁。並不是說它表現不好，只是退休服務和人力資源外包業務的季度表現更強勁。

Now those are not onetime things. There's demand in the environment for both retirement services. I think Marty mentioned PEP plans, et cetera and our success there. We are -- it's pretty clear we're leading the market in terms of selling that product. If you look at -- if you trace that back, we didn't release it, but you trace that back to our sales, sales have been very strong. And on the HR outsourcing area, solution side, that's been very strong, too. Both of those are driven by unique factors in the market, HR, because of the uncertainty of the environment, the demand is -- the value proposition has never been higher. And as a consequence, demand is very strong. And on the retirement side, there are increasing amounts of states that are mandating retirement plans for employees that have benefited our business, and that continues to just grow strongly.

這些並非一次性事件。市場對退休服務的需求一直都很旺盛。我想馬蒂提到了員工退休計劃（PEP）等等，以及我們在該領域的成功。很明顯，我們在銷售這類產品方面處於市場領先地位。如果你追溯一下——雖然我們沒有公開宣布，但你可以追溯到我們的銷售數據，你會發現銷售額一直非常強勁。在人力資源外包領域，也就是解決方案方面，我們的表現也非常出色。這兩方面的成長都受到市場獨特因素的驅動。在人力資源領域，由於環境的不確定性，其價值主張達到了前所未有的高度。因此，需求非常強勁。而在退休方面，越來越多的州強制要求員工參加退休計劃，這對我們的業務大有裨益，而且這一趨勢仍在持續強勁增長。

So whatever I just said. I've said that a lot of the demand forces within Management Solutions, obviously have benefited from a pandemic rebound. But if I isolate HR outsourcing and retirement services, those are responding to other forces in the economy that we think are pretty durable. So long story short, there isn't a lot of onetime in there. There are some things. The rebound certainly is part of it, but there are also structural demands -- or structural factors that are driving demand higher.

所以，我剛才說的都對。我說過，管理解決方案領域的許多需求顯然都受益於疫情後的反彈。但如果單獨來看人力資源外包和退休服務，它們的需求則受到經濟中其他一些我們認為相當持久的因素的影響。簡而言之，這其中並沒有太多一次性因素。當然，疫情反彈是其中一部分，但也有結構性需求──或者說是推動需求成長的結構性因素。

Yes, I think that's very true. And as Efrain went through, there's -- every product is strong. We didn't necessarily expect retirement to be as strong as it is. And as I mentioned, our PEP product, we are one of the first that come out with the PEP product, the pooled employer plan back in just January of this year, so not even a year later, we're at 10,000 clients. We have sold that extremely well.

是的，我認為這非常正確。正如埃弗雷恩所說，每款產品都很強勁。我們當初並沒有預料到退休產品會如此強勁。正如我所提到的，我們的PEP產品，也就是今年1月份推出的集合雇主計劃，我們是最早一批推出該產品的公司之一，不到一年時間，我們的客戶數量就達到了1萬。這款產品銷售得非常好。

And when you look across the board, Efrain mentioned, between time and attendance, but HR Solutions in a COVID environment is so critically important and the technology that we've introduced on the mobile app, so the ability to really handle distributed workforces to be able to track vaccinations and those who are unvaccinated. All these things are part of a digital experience that clients are really seeing. So I think most of it is sustainable growth that we're seeing.

埃弗雷恩提到，從整體來看，考勤固然重要，但在新冠疫情環境下，人力資源解決方案至關重要。我們在行動應用上引入的技術，能夠真正有效地管理分散的員工隊伍，追蹤疫苗接種情況和未接種情況。所有這些都構成了客戶正在體驗的數位化服務的一部分。因此，我認為我們所看到的成長主要體現在永續發展上。

Even the macro that you're seeing, more checks and so forth, should be sustainable unless there's a drop-off because of the variant in the next year, but we don't see that. And still there's room to grow. There's a lot of people that are still not employed. And we expect that could pick up next -- in the first part -- half of the next calendar year.

即使是目前宏觀層面的措施，例如增加檢查等等，只要明年不出現疫情波動導致的下滑，都應該是可持續的，但我們預計不會發生這種情況。而且，仍有成長空間。目前仍有大量失業人口。我們預計這種情況將在明年上半年有所改善。

Got it. Got it. And then for my follow-up, I wanted to quickly ask about inflation impact. So with inflation being the word of the day. Could you just remind us quickly of the kind of puts and takes of high inflation for your business?

明白了，明白了。接下來，我想快速問一下通貨膨脹的影響。既然通膨是今天的熱門話題，您能否簡單回顧一下高通膨對貴公司業務的影響？

So inflation in general is a net positive. Hard to say it that way. But what it does is because of the segment of the market that we're in, we have relatively more pricing power than if you were in the enterprise space. Although I suspect they'll have more pricing power. So it gives us, in terms of our model, a measure of ability to price than may be a little bit higher than we have experienced in previous years to the extent that inflation also drives interest rates higher, that also has a benefit to the business.

所以整體而言，通貨膨脹是利大於弊的。雖然這麼說可能有點誇張，但事實是，由於我們所處的市場區隔領域，我們比企業級客戶擁有更大的定價權。當然，我估計企業級客戶也會擁有更大的定價權。因此，就我們的模式而言，通貨膨脹推高了利率，從而使我們的定價能力比往年略高，這對企業來說也是有利的。

So obviously, there's a balance there in terms of if interest rates and inflation surge too high, could have a dampening effect on economic growth. But assuming it's under some reasonable level, it's going to be a net positive for the business.

顯然，這裡存在一個平衡點：如果利率和通膨飆升過高，可能會抑制經濟成長。但假設它們處於某個合理水平，那麼對企業來說總體上是利好的。

We'll go next to Bryan Keane, Deutsche Bank.

接下來我們請德意志銀行的布萊恩‧基恩發言。

Congrats on the quarter here. I want to break down kind of my favorite topic, looking at the revenue per client. I know that's been going higher. Just thinking about the drivers, specifically on that and then price realization, I know that's almost a separate thing. What you guys are doing on that front?

恭喜你們本季業績出色。我想深入探討我最喜歡的話題—每位客戶的收入。我知道這個數字一直在增加。我想了解驅動因素，特別是收入成長和價格實現這兩個方面，我知道價格實現幾乎是兩個獨立的話題。你們在這方面採取了哪些措施？

Bryan, yes, I'll start and then I'll let Efrain jump in. I think one -- I think we're just selling, Bryan, more services. The revenue per client is really been helpful when you think about things like we've talked about time and attendance and some of the other ERTC things that are driving the revenue and even really doing much stronger even though the client growth is solid as well, we're really seeing more revenue because of more adoption of different services that the client is taking.

布萊恩，好的，我先說，然後埃弗雷恩再補充。我認為，布萊恩，我們現在銷售的更多服務。考慮到我們之前討論過的考勤系統以及其他一些ERTC服務，每位客戶的收入確實很有幫助。這些服務不僅推動了營收成長，而且表現更加強勁。儘管客戶成長也很穩健，但客戶更採用不同的服務，這才是收入成長的主要原因。

From a price standpoint, I think we feel like we still have good price realization. And I don't think there's some pressure on it. But as Efrain mentioned, in this inflationary kind of time frame, I don't think it's, one, probably is difficult to get it as it was. And also, while it's still very competitive in the market, but also the value that we're bringing, I think will -- it's just not challenged as much given how much we've been able to do.

從價格角度來看，我認為我們目前的定價仍然很合理，而且我認為價格方面沒有太大壓力。但正如埃弗雷恩所提到的，在當前通膨環境下，我認為，一方面，要恢復到之前的價格可能比較困難。另一方面，雖然我們的產品在市場上仍然很有競爭力，但我們所提供的價值——考慮到我們已經取得的成就——我認為它受到的挑戰並不大。

If you just take something like employee retention, tax credit, we're bringing so much to our client at a relatively low cost that they're benefiting a lot. I think at that point, they're start -- they see more and more value that we bring through COVID that has helped us get even better price realization.

就拿員工留任、稅收抵免這些項目來說，我們以相對較低的成本為客戶帶來了許多益處，他們從中獲益匪淺。我認為，到了那時，他們開始意識到——他們越來越明白我們在疫情期間帶來的價值，而這些價值也幫助我們實現了更優的價格。

Efrain?

埃弗雷恩？

Yes. So Bryan, to your point, I think that we've had very, very good average revenue price per client, especially on our HCM clients. It's been very positive. And our price realization in this environment when you triangulate the retention plus the extra -- the additional value added in terms of services sold, we've been able to do very, very well.

是的。布萊恩，你說得對，我認為我們每位客戶的平均收入價格非常非常高，尤其是在我們的人力資本管理（HCM）客戶方面。情況非常樂觀。在當前環境下，當我們把客戶留存率加上額外服務帶來的增值收益綜合考慮時，我們的價格實現情況非常好。

One thing we haven't talked about, which I don't want to forget in this process, one of the strengths of our model is that we are really very, very quick. And Marty mentioned this earlier. We're very, very agile in terms of responding to 2 new opportunities that come up as a result of changes in legislation. So we mentioned that there's this service we call, employee retention tax credit.

還有一點我們還沒談到，但我不想在這個過程中忽略它，那就是我們模式的優勢之一就是速度非常快。馬蒂之前也提到過這一點。我們能夠非常靈活地應對因立法變更而產生的兩個新機會。我們之前提到過一項叫做「員工留任稅收抵免」的服務。

We have, I think, throughout the pandemic, shown agility in terms of responding very quickly and creating value-added products and services for our clients. That's helped both, to raise our average revenue per client, also helped us to get -- to justify the price realization that we've done. Marty said that we've been losing very few clients, too, because of the dissatisfaction with value and price in its part because we keep raising the value of what we're providing the clients, and they've responded very well.

我認為，在整個疫情期間，我們展現了極強的靈活性，能夠迅速回應並為客戶創造增值產品和服務。這不僅提高了我們每位客戶的平均收入，也幫助我們證明了我們目前的定價策略是合理的。馬蒂說，我們幾乎沒有因為客戶對產品和服務價值的不滿而流失客戶，因為我們不斷提升產品和服務的價值，而客戶也給予了非常正面的回饋。

Got it. And then the success you guys are having in the mid-market, is there something driving that, that difference? Or is there a competitive thing going on there?

明白了。那麼，你們在中端市場的成功，又是什麼因素促成了這種差異？還是說，那裡存在競爭因素？

I think, Bryan, it's really -- we've got a very much more tenured sales force now, great leadership that's been driving that now for a few years. I think the last year or so we ran into great presentations, but people are not making decisions. And I think we're now going back at those, and we're winning a lot of these deals against competitors. Just won a big one yesterday and really doing well against the competitors that are out there. I think because of the product work that's been done and the technology that is really fitting exactly what they need at the moment.

布萊恩，我覺得，我們現在擁有一支經驗更豐富的銷售團隊，而且領導階層也一直非常出色，已經推動公司發展好幾年了。過去一年左右，我們做了很多精彩的演示，但客戶並沒有做出決定。現在我們重新審視這些演示，並且成功拿下了許多來自競爭對手的訂單。昨天剛拿下了一個大單，在與競爭對手的較量中表現出色。我認為這要歸功於我們所做的產品研發工作，以及我們開發的技術能夠真正滿足客戶當前的需求。

As Efrain said, the agility to be able to turn around things like employee retention insights, the fact that we can give them new compensation summaries for their clients or for their employees, whatever they needed, we're feeling like we're kind of a step ahead. And in the mid-market, in particular, they're really feeling the pinch and retention and attraction of new employees, and we're able to do that.

正如埃弗雷恩所說，我們能夠靈活地應對諸如員工留任洞察之類的問題，能夠為他們的客戶或員工提供新的薪酬概要，滿足他們的任何需求，這讓我們感覺自己領先一步。尤其是在中端市場，他們確實感受到了留住人才和吸引新員工的壓力，而我們能夠幫助他們做到這一點。

And remember, we talked about it on other calls, this partnership we have with Indeed where you are connected digitally through Paychex Flex to Indeed, the world's largest job posting site, you get a credit on Indeed. Indeed, you can post the job electronically, digitally, then if they respond to the post. It goes right into their system. If you hire them, everything is paperless. These are all things that mid-market clients in particular right now need, and we've been ahead of it and really hats off to the product management and development teams. I mean we have just been a step ahead of everything they need. So I think that is -- and then the power of the sales team really has come through.

別忘了，我們之前在電話會議中也提到過，我們與Indeed建立了合作關係。透過Paychex Flex，您可以連接到全球最大的招聘網站Indeed，並獲得Indeed積分。您可以在Indeed上發布招聘信息，如果有人應聘，信息會直接進入他們的系統。如果您最終錄用了他們，所有流程都將實現無紙化。這些都是目前中型市場客戶特別需要的功能，而我們一直走在產業前沿，這要歸功於我們的產品管理和開發團隊。我的意思是，我們始終領先一步，滿足了他們所有的需求。我認為，銷售團隊的強大實力也發揮了關鍵作用。

The other thing I'd add, Bryan, is that before in previous years, we talked a lot about client sizes trending down in terms of clients sold. In the last year, what we've seen is the client sizes, especially, in our mid-market business are trending up, not down. And I think that part of it is, there -- in this environment, the ability to bundle the right level of value-added services to a mid-market client. It's valued very highly. And not all of the competition can do that because not all of the competition has an integrated platform plus world-class service. And I think that, that's a winning proposition in the marketplace right now.

布萊恩，我還要補充一點，往年我們經常討論客戶規模（以銷售客戶數量衡量）呈下降趨勢。但去年，我們看到客戶規模，尤其是在中階市場業務中，呈現上升趨勢，而非下降。我認為部分原因是，在當前的市場環境下，能夠為中端市場客戶提供適量的增值服務至關重要。這種服務非常有價值。並非所有競爭對手都能做到這一點，因為並非所有競爭對手都擁有整合平台和世界一流的服務。我認為這才是目前市場上的致勝之道。

We'll go next to Jason Kupferberg with Bank of America.

接下來我們連線美國銀行的傑森·庫柏伯格。

Happy holidays. So as we entered fiscal '22, I think the expectation you guys had was per net client base growth to return to kind of the more normalized historical levels of 1% to 3%. But based on how things have gone through the first half of the year, do you think that figure could come in higher? And to the extent that it does, would you attribute it more to the gross client adds or to the retention outperformance?

節日快樂。進入2022財年時，我想你們都預期淨客戶成長率會恢復到1%到3%的歷史正常水準。但根據上半年的情況來看，你們認為這個數字有可能更高嗎？如果真的更高，你們認為這更多是歸功於新增客戶數量，還是客戶留存率的超預期表現？

So yes, I think we're certainly trending at the high end of that range. We'll see whether we actually beat the high end, Jason. I think the second part of that is that it's really balanced performance. I'd say last year, when I reflect back, in this quarter last year, I think Management Solutions was up 1% and PEO and Insurance was up about 3% or 4%, we were pleasantly surprised that actually we had started to see a return -- a quick return to revenue growth.

所以，是的，我認為我們目前的趨勢確實處於該區間的高端。傑森，我們拭目以待，看看最終能否超越這個高端。我認為第二點是，我們的業績表現非常均衡。回想去年同期，管理解決方案業務成長了1%，而PEO和保險業務成長了3%到4%，我們驚訝地發現，營收成長已經開始回升——而且是迅速恢復成長。

But it really was fueled an important measure by retention, which, as Marty mentioned earlier, was at record levels. We still continue to have very good retention. That's been great, but our sales performance has been really strong this year. So a combination of both of those is really what's driving. I would say it tilts a little bit more towards the sales side rather than the retention side, but both have been strong.

但真正推動業績成長的，是客戶留存率這一重要指標，正如馬蒂先前提到的，客戶留存率達到了歷史新高。我們目前的客戶留存率依然非常出色。這固然很好，但我們今年的銷售業績也十分強勁。因此，這兩者的共同作用才是真正的驅動力。我認為，銷售業績的貢獻可能略大於客戶留存率，但兩者都表現強勁。

Yes. Absolutely.

是的，絕對的。

Okay. Maybe just picking up on the topic of sales since you are kind of entering the key selling season here. So just in light of the new variant, is that having any bearing on your sales strategy here, virtual versus in person over the next couple of months?

好的。既然你們現在正進入銷售旺季，那我們就來聊聊銷售的話題吧。鑑於新版本的推出，未來幾個月你們的銷售策略，例如線上銷售和線下銷售哪個比較好，會受到什麼影響呢？

Really, Jason, it's not. I mean we've been very successful selling from virtually, and I think that will continue. They have the option if the client and the rep agree to get together, more of them are doing that. And I think even with the variant, I think they're still doing that. But so many of the presentations, now particularly in the mid-market even, can be done virtually and really I think we've really fine-tuned that through this time.

傑森，真的不是。我的意思是，我們透過線上銷售取得了巨大的成功，而且我認為這種趨勢還會繼續下去。如果客戶和銷售代表都同意見面，他們可以選擇線下見面，現在越來越多的人都這麼做了。我認為即使有了線上模式，他們仍然會這樣做。但現在很多演示，尤其是在中端市場，都可以透過線上完成，而且我認為我們在這段時間裡已經把這方面做得非常完善了。

And the sales engineering team and so forth, they've just done a great job in kind of building out sandboxes and different examples for a client that are very personalized for the client to say, this is what you're going to get, this is how you work through it. And frankly, it's probably easier to do it virtually and digitally than it is in front of the client because they can all see it right in front of them, and they can take them through it.

銷售工程團隊等等，他們做得非常出色，為客戶建立了沙盒環境和各種示例，這些示例都非常個性化，讓客戶清楚地了解將會得到什麼，以及如何操作。坦白說，虛擬和數位化演示可能比當面演示更容易，因為客戶可以直觀地看到演示內容，並進行講解。

So yes, I don't think it will affect us. We're well staffed. We're -- great products, everything is really moving very well. So it feels very strong right now. But we'll know at the end of the selling season, but we feel pretty good right now with the momentum.

所以，是的，我認為這不會影響到我們。我們人員配備充足，產品也很棒，一切進展順利。所以目前感覺情況非常強勁。不過，銷售季結束時我們才能知道結果，但就目前的勢頭而言，我們感覺相當不錯。

We'll go next to James Faucette with Morgan Stanley.

接下來我們來採訪摩根士丹利的詹姆斯‧福塞特。

I wanted to follow up quickly on Retention Insights. You mentioned that is the key tool for you and your customers. Is the retention stability partly a function of Retention Insights integration right now into the Flex platform generally? And can you give some idea on client adoption of that product to date?

我想快速跟進一下關於用戶留存洞察的問題。您提到這是您和您的客戶的關鍵工具。使用者留存的穩定性是否部分得益於目前 Flex 平台對使用者留存洞察的整合？您能否介紹一下客戶迄今為止對該產品的使用情況？

Yes, James, it's pretty early, but we're getting a lot of great feedback from clients because everyone is looking for that kind of information. And I mean, we certainly use the same kind of thing, and have for some time internally, and now it's much more build for mid-market and small clients to be able to use. It's using a number of factors just to look at what -- which employees do you think are most likely to leave, that gives them some insight into that and it can help them with the retention.

是的，詹姆斯，現在還處於早期階段，但我們從客戶那裡收到了很多正面的回饋，因為大家都在尋找這類資訊。我的意思是，我們內部也一直在使用類似的工具，現在它更適合中小型客戶使用。它會綜合考慮多種因素，分析哪些員工最有可能離職，從而幫助客戶了解情況並提高員工留存率。

So it's pretty early in the adoption, I guess, early innings of this thing, I would say, but it's really been very well accepted. And I think they feel like it's an easy way to use Flex to get that insight. So I would say it's still early, but great feedback with what we're doing from a predictive analytic basis.

所以我覺得現在還處於早期階段，或者說還處於起步階段，但它確實得到了很好的認可。而且我認為他們覺得這是使用 Flex 獲取洞察的簡單方法。所以我覺得現在還處於早期階段，但我們基於預測分析所做的工作已經獲得了非常好的回饋。

Great. And then just a quick macro question from me. One of the big lingering uncertainties in the economy overall right now is just labor force participation and being able to fulfill and fill openings. Can you give a little view into what you're seeing from that perspective? Are you seeing people come back to the labor force? Are there any particular areas or industries that are responding better than others? Or are there industries that aren't responding? Just some macro insight there, just as we try to get a grasp on kind of what's happening generally.

好的。接下來我還有一個關於宏觀經濟的簡短問題。目前整體經濟中一個揮之不去的重大不確定因素是勞動參與率以及能否填補職缺。您能否從這個角度談談您觀察到的情況？您是否看到人們重返勞動市場？是否有某些特定領域或行業比其他領域或行業反應更好？或是是否存在反應不佳的行業？我想了解一些宏觀層面的情況，以便更好地掌握整體經濟情勢。

Yes, sure. Obviously, from our small business index, and that really looks at the clients of ours that are under 50 employees. We're seeing continued growth, job growth for 6 months in a row now. So the job growth is good. Now we're still, as you know, what around a 61% participation rate, I think, which is down a couple of percentage points from prepandemic. We're still short around 4 million jobs from prepandemic, 1.5 million of those are in leisure and hospitality.

是的，當然。從我們的小型企業指數來看，該指數主要針對員工人數少於50人的客戶，我們看到就業人數連續六個月增加。所以就業成長情勢良好。目前，如您所知，我們的勞動參與率仍在61%左右，比疫情前下降了幾個百分點。我們仍然比疫情前少了大約400萬個工作崗位，其中150萬個在休閒和酒店業。

So I would say the ones that are still struggling the most are the restaurants and you probably know everyone kind of sees that anecdotally from cutback hours or even closed a few more days than they normally would. I think that's where still the biggest struggle has been. And it's a combination of the pay, which has gone up dramatically. We're seeing average part-time pay for our client base, part time pay per hour is $19.62 last month. It's an amazing thing when you think 2 years ago, everybody was arguing about getting to $15.

所以我覺得目前處境最艱難的還是餐飲業，大家可能也從一些案例中看到了這一點，例如縮短營業時間，甚至比平常多關幾天門。我認為這仍然是餐飲業面臨的最大挑戰。這其中既有薪酬方面的原因，也有薪酬大幅上漲的問題。我們客戶群的兼職員工平均時薪上個月達到了19.62美元。想想兩年前，大家還在爭論時薪能不能達到15美元，真是難以置信。

So it is more costly. The supplies are more costly as well. But I think from an employment perspective, that's probably the one that's suffering the most. But I do think that as things change now and some of the stimulus money dries up, the unemployment has changed, of course, back to more normal levels. The child tax credit may end up going away as well. That's in arguments. You got to pay your tuition payments. Now they've been deferred, many of them, rent. I think you're going to see more people come back in the first and second quarter, would be our guess based on what we're hearing from clients.

所以成本更高了。物資也更貴了。但我認為從就業角度來看，這可能是受影響最大的領域。不過，隨著情勢的變化，一些刺激資金逐漸耗盡，失業率當然也會回落到更正常的水平。兒童稅收抵免最終也可能取消。這還有待商榷。你得支付學費。現在很多學費和房租都被延後了。根據我們從客戶那裡了解到的情況，我們猜測第一季和第二季會有更多人重返工作崗位。

So they've seen growth, but there's still a lot of people that are still sitting on the sidelines. But I think as -- depending on what the market does and of course, just kind of overall cash balances, as things all come together, we expect more people to be higher in the next 6 months as that continues to pick up.

所以他們看到了成長，但仍有許多人持觀望態度。但我認為，隨著市場走勢以及整體現金餘額等各種因素的綜合影響，我們預計未來6個月會有更多人持有更高比例的股票，因為市場將持續回升。

We'll go next to Kartik Mehta with Northcoast Research.

接下來我們將訪問來自 Northcoast Research 的 Kartik Mehta。

Efrain, I wanted to go back to a little bit of a comment you made when you were answering a question on inflation and just pricing. I know usually you changed pricing around May. And I'm wondering with the current environment, will you stay with the same strategy? Or is there an opportunity to change the timing and maybe get 2 price increases, 2 smaller ones that add up to a larger price increase?

埃弗雷恩，我想稍微補充一下你之前在回答關於通貨膨脹和價格問題時提到的一點。我知道你通常會在五月左右調整價格。我想知道在目前的情況下，你會繼續沿用同樣的策略嗎？或者有沒有可能調整一下漲價的時間，例如分兩次漲價，兩次小幅漲價加起來就是一次更大的漲價？

Yes, it's a good question. So I'd say 2 things. One is, I'll make a statement of philosophy about what the company does and then answer the question. The first thing is that I think you're right, Kartik. Typically in the late spring, we actually used to broadcast that, which I was not a big fan of, but we typically would look at it in late spring and raise it. I would say in the pandemic, we really have adopted a little bit more flexible timing. So we don't necessarily say we're going to do it in April, May or we're going to do it in June, July, and we look at what the circumstances are and then decide when it's right to plug in a price increase. So that's the first part.

是的，這是一個很好的問題。所以我想說兩點。首先，我會先闡述我們公司的經營理念，然後再回答這個問題。首先，我認為你說得對，Kartik。通常情況下，我們會在春末公佈價格調整，雖然我不太喜歡這種做法，但我們通常會在春末考慮並提高價格。我想說的是，在疫情期間，我們採取了更靈活的時間表。所以我們不會刻意宣佈在四月、五月或六月、七月進行價格調整，而是會根據實際情況來決定何時漲價。這是第一點。

I think that from our perspective, we think it's important to be fair to customers. I think we're guided by that thought. The fact that we can take 2 or even more price increases does not determine whether we will because in the end, we value our relationship with clients. Our job is to create value that supports the price increase. And much of what Marty has been saying during this call, I think, is an indication of that.

我認為，從我們的角度來看，公平對待客戶至關重要。我們始終秉持著這項理念。即使我們有能力進行兩次甚至更多次的價格上漲，但這並不決定我們是否會這樣做，因為歸根結底，我們珍惜與客戶的關係。我們的職責是創造足以支撐價格上漲的價值。我認為，馬蒂在這次電話會議上的許多演講都反映了這一點。

And so we'll take a look in the spring, figure out what makes sense. We certainly don't want to create a situation where clients perceive that they're not getting the value for what we're charging. On the other hand, we task ourselves with creating greater and greater value for clients so that when we do pass them increases along, they don't complain about it. And generally, that's what occurs.

所以，我們會在春天好好檢視一下，看看什麼才是合理的。我們當然不希望客戶覺得我們收取的費用與他們獲得的價值不符。另一方面，我們致力於為客戶創造越來越大的價值，這樣當我們提高收費時，他們就不會抱怨。通常情況下，結果確實如此。

And then, Marty, I think -- and this is a difficult question, but maybe you have some insight. You talked a little bit about employees coming back to the workforce in the next 6 months. If you look at your client base, is there a way to tell maybe how many openings there really are? And if people do come back, what that could mean to your kind of pace per check?

然後，馬蒂，我想——這個問題可能有點難，但也許你有一些見解。你剛才提到員工會在未來六個月內重返工作崗位。如果你看看你的客戶群，有沒有辦法判斷實際的職缺有多少？如果人們真的都回來了，這對你的每筆交易的結算速度會有什麼影響？

Interesting. I think we could tell with some of them because, of course, they use our products for posting jobs and so forth and we can see, and we actually give them kind of a notice that says, hey, if you've just let someone -- if you've just reduced an employee, would you like to post this, would you like to do something with it?

有意思。我想我們能從其中一些人身上看出端倪，因為他們當然會使用我們的產品發布招聘信息等等，我們能看到，而且我們還會給他們發個通知，比如，如果你剛剛裁員，你想發布一下嗎？你想做點什麼嗎？

I don't have that number right in front of me, Kartik, but I think we continue to try to watch that to see and we know the average employees. I think that definitely, we have some sense that it would obviously continue to benefit us from where it is. We're seeing the tailwind of the economy and that our employees -- that our clients are hiring. And as Efrain said, that would -- that we've seen the average size of the clients grow as well. So we still think there's some room to grow there and that would obviously give us continued tailwind.

卡爾蒂克，我手邊沒有那個具體數字，但我們會持續關注，而且我們也了解員工的平均情況。我認為，我們肯定能感受到，從目前的情況來看，這無疑會繼續對我們有利。我們看到了經濟的順風，而且我們的客戶也在招募員工。正如埃弗雷恩所說，我們也看到客戶的平均規模正在成長。所以我們仍然認為還有成長空間，這顯然會繼續為我們帶來利好。

And I'd say, Kartik, we obviously -- to put our plan together as we get into the spring of next year, we'll create a more detailed estimate of what we think. It will be really important to see where we end up in the January and February time frame. Last year, it seems like many, many years ago, there was an outbreak that was the post-Thanksgiving or winter outbreak, like we're having now in New York, and it did have a little bit of impact. We're not seeing that right now, but we'll have to get through the next month, 1.5 months to get a better sense of where we're at.

卡爾蒂克，我想說，顯然，為了製定明年春季的計劃，我們會做出更詳細的評估。觀察一月和二月的情況至關重要。去年，感覺好像是很多年前的事了，感恩節後或冬季爆發了一次疫情，就像我們現在在紐約經歷的那樣，而且確實造成了一些影響。目前我們還沒有看到類似的情況，但我們需要觀察接下來一個月到一個月半的時間，才能更了解目前的情況。

Yes. The other thing with that is even if we knew because we have some sense of how many openings there are, you don't know if that restaurant or that business is going to backfill them or not. They may have become more efficient. We certainly have seen our clients become more efficient during this period and realize that they could do without this employer or that one in that hire back after an extended period of time and not being able to get somebody. So it's a little hard to predict, but we still think there's certainly room for that to grow.

是的。還有一點，即使我們大致了解了空缺職位的數量，也無法確定那家餐廳或企業是否會填補空缺。他們可能已經提高了效率。我們確實看到一些客戶在這段時間提高了效率，意識到他們可以不用依賴某些雇主，或者在長時間找不到人之後又重新招聘。所以很難預測，但我們仍然認為這方面肯定還有成長空間。

We'll go next to Mark Marcon with Baird.

接下來我們將採訪貝爾德和馬克馬爾孔。

Happy holidays, Marty and Efrain. And Marty and John, congratulations on the promotions. I had several questions. On the Paychex Pre-Check, what sort of adoption are you getting? And how much is that actually helping in terms of the accuracy of the payrolls?

祝馬蒂和埃弗雷恩節日快樂。也祝賀馬蒂和約翰升職。我有一些問題。關於Paychex預檢系統，你們的採用情況如何？它在提高薪資準確性方面究竟有多大幫助？

Yes. It's early innings for Pre-Check, but we're getting very good feedback that it's very easy for them to check, that the accuracy -- that from a client perspective, they feel the accuracy is helping them from the standpoint that their employees are going to complain that something -- they got something that they didn't expect in the paycheck, that they got a chance to see their hours, that they got a chance to approve those or be able to say from a digital standpoint, hey, I disagree with this and I have a question that the employer can take care of. So it's early. Mark, I'd give you a better sense probably in a quarter or 2, but really good feedback on the early clients that we've seen from that standpoint.

是的。預檢功能目前還處於早期階段，但我們收到了非常好的反饋，用戶表示使用起來非常方便，而且準確率很高——從客戶的角度來看，他們認為準確率對他們很有幫助，因為員工如果發現工資單上有不預期的項目，可以隨時查看自己的工時，並有機會進行審核或提出異議，這樣雇主就可以處理。所以現在還處於早期階段。馬克，我可能要過一兩個季度才能給出更詳細的信息，但就目前來看，我們從早期客戶那裡得到的反饋確實非常好。

Great. And then what are you seeing in terms of on-demand payroll and the demand for that at the small end?

很好。那麼，您如何看待按需薪資服務以及小型企業對這項服務的需求呢？

Yes, it's been steady, but still, I'd say, pretty light. There are certain clients, more the hourly and restaurants, things like that. And they're still a little bit slow to adopt it, I think. I think we can -- we still got a lot of opportunity really to advance that as more people get used to it, and there's more demand for it.

是的，業務一直比較穩定，但我覺得仍然比較少。有些客戶，像是按小時計費的商家和餐廳之類的，他們接受這種模式的速度還是有點慢。我認為隨著越來越多的人習慣這種模式，需求增加，我們仍然有很多機會來推動它的發展。

I think clients are a little concerned sometimes about offering it because they're not sure if that's going to have a cash flow impact, which it doesn't. And then the employees are not aware of it, and so they don't ask for it. I think you're going to see over the next -- it will take, I think, the next couple of years, but I think there'll be a very big demand for that as employees just say, hey, look, I want to get paid today. And I think you'll see a resurgence of more gig economy kind of thing where I'm working 2 or 3 jobs. And -- but they're all -- I want the money now because it's 8 hours here and 8 hours there.

我認為客戶有時會有點擔心提供這種服務，因為他們不確定這是否會影響現金流，但實際上不會。員工也不了解這種服務，所以他們不會主動要求。我認為在接下來的幾年裡——可能需要幾年時間——你會看到這種服務的需求非常大，因為員工們會說：「嘿，我想今天就拿到工資。」我認為你會看到零工經濟模式的復興，例如一個人同時做兩三份工作。而且──但他們都──想要立刻拿到錢，因為工作時間是零零散散的，一會兒8小時，一會兒8小時。

So I'd say it's still pretty light success for those who do it. They like it. And we're trying to find new ways to build that out and grow that business because we think it's really going to be a big demand in the future.

所以我覺得對從事這項工作的人來說，目前還只能算是小有成就。他們喜歡這份工作。我們正在努力尋找新的方法來擴展和發展這項業務，因為我們認為未來它真的會有很大的市場需求。

Great. And then in terms of the gross sales, you mentioned how strong things are. Obviously, you're in the middle of the key selling season. But I'm wondering in terms of what you've seen thus far this season, how would you describe it between the micro versus the small versus your more medium-sized clients? And what are you seeing in terms of the differences between established versus brand-new business formations?

太好了。關於總銷售額，您提到情況非常強勁。顯然，現在正值銷售旺季。我想了解一下，就本季至今的銷售情況而言，您如何描述微型企業、小型企業和中型企業之間的差異？此外，您認為成熟企業和新成立的企業之間又有哪些不同？

Yes. I mean really strong on all sizes. I would say, right from share payroll side, very strong growth. And from share -- strong growth on the Flex side from small to midsize. And the mid-market, really, we're doing very well. This is one of the best years we've had in years, and I talked a little bit about that. Some of that is clients that got presented to last year that really were ready to decide. But I just think the overall package, as Efrain said, we're really the only -- one of the only, maybe of 2 major competitors of the bunch that can offer everything in an integrated fashion with the latest technology.

是的。我的意思是，各個規模的企業都表現強勁。就薪資管理業務而言，成長非常強勁。靈活辦公業務方面，從小到中型企業，成長也很強勁。中端市場，我們真的做得非常好。這是我們近年來業績最好的一年之一，我之前也稍微提到過。部分客戶是去年我們向他們展示過產品，並且已經準備好做出決定的。但我認為，正如埃弗雷恩所說，就整體方案而言，我們是唯一一家——或許是僅有的兩家——能夠以整合的方式，運用最新技術提供所有服務的主要競爭對手。

So you can buy parts from other competitors. But you're going to have to connect to third parties. We can do that too. But if you want it all in one place and the HR expertise to back it up with over 650 HR experts, which people really like to have as a backup now, that's what they're seeing and is very strong. So we're seeing it across the board.

所以你可以從其他競爭對手購買零件。但你需要對接第三方。我們也能做到這一點。但如果你想要所有服務都集中在一個平台上，並且有超過650名人力資源專家提供支援（現在很多人都非常看重這一點），那麼這就是他們所看到的，而且非常強大。所以我們在各個方面都看到了這一點。

Sorry, what was the second part of that? It was all the different...

抱歉，第二部分是什麼來著？完全不一樣…

The established versus the brand-new businesses, but I mean, what you were just saying in terms of like being the only 1 of 2 that can offer everything, are you seeing an increase level of wins with companies coming back to you from some of the newer competitors that are out there?

既有的老牌企業與新成立的企業，我的意思是，就像你剛才說的，作為僅有的兩家能夠提供所有服務的企業之一，你是否看到一些新興競爭對手的客戶重新選擇你，從而提高了你的成功率？

We're seeing some, yes, in the mid-market, and we're winning more on the upfront. I would say it's stronger on the upfront like going head-to-head today than necessarily winning them back, but we're getting some of those as well. And I think -- and we're still seeing a strong growth in, as you know, new business starts. It's still -- I think it's up, year-to-date, maybe 30% to 40%. So we're still getting very small on the low end. There are more typically on the very low end, as you know. But we're still seeing a lot of start-up businesses, and I think it's just part of the economy right now.

是的，我們在中端市場確實看到了一些成長，而且我們在前期合作方面更勝一籌。我認為，在前期合作方面，例如在如今的直接競爭中，我們比爭取回頭客更有優勢，但我們也確實贏得了一些回頭客。而且我認為——正如您所知，我們仍然看到新企業數量強勁增長。我認為，今年迄今為止，新企業數量仍然增加了30%到40%。所以，我們仍然在低端市場獲得大量小規模企業。如您所知，低端市場通常規模較大。但我們仍然看到許多新創企業，我認為這只是當前經濟狀況的一部分。

That's great. Congrats.

太好了，恭喜！

Okay. Thanks.

好的，謝謝。

We'll go next to Tien-Tsin Huang with JPMorgan.

接下來我們將採訪摩根大通的黃天進。

It's Andrew on for Tien-Tsin. I just wanted to ask a question. I know about a year ago and the earlier part of this calendar year, we were talking about ASO outselling the PEO. And I know last quarter, we talked about PEO coming back strong and into this quarter. So I just wanted to ask how that's tilting today. And just more at a high level, how the margins differ across those 2 solutions?

我是Andrew，代表Tien-Tsin。我想問一個問題。我知道大約一年前以及今年年初，我們討論過ASO的銷售量超過了PEO。我也知道上個季度我們討論過PEO強勁反彈，而這個季度也延續了下來。所以我想問一下，現在情況如何？另外，從宏觀層面來看，這兩種解決方案的利潤率有何不同？

Yes. First, I'd say that the sales, Andrew, have evened out pretty good. I mean we're having strong ASO and PEO sales, I think PEO has come on very strong, particularly in those -- the great markets that we're in. Hats off to the sales and service teams there, we're having not only good growth there, but also ASO. So there's really -- we're having good strong growth in both markets, and I think just shows the demand for HR Solutions that not only from a digital solution, but also with the HR expertise that we can bring from both sides and the need for full benefits.

是的。首先，安德魯，我想說銷售情況大致比較均衡。我的意思是，我們的ASO和PEO銷售都很強勁，我認為PEO發展尤為迅猛，尤其是在我們所處的那些重要市場。向銷售和服務團隊致敬，我們不僅在PEO領域取得了良好的成長，ASO業務也同樣如此。所以，我們在兩個市場都實現了強勁增長，我認為這充分錶明了市場對人力資源解決方案的需求，這種需求不僅來自數位化解決方案，也來自我們能夠提供的人力資源專業知識以及全面的福利保障。

One of the things that we just did a survey and it comes out very strong is the need -- if you're going to attract and retain employees, you got to really look out for their well-being, and that from a financial standpoint, that's from benefits, retirement included. They're really looking for that overall perspective. I'll let Efrain, if Efrain, you want to take the...

我們最近做了一項調查，結果非常明確地表明，要吸引和留住員工，就必須真正關心他們的福祉，這其中也包括財務方面的考量，例如福利和退休金。他們真正需要的是這種全面的考量。如果埃弗雷恩想談談這個話題，我就讓他來吧…

Yes. With respect to the question on margins, the margins on PEO are going to be lower, not because the core offering has lower margins, but because of the absence -- or I'm sorry, the inclusion of pass-through revenues on insurance. So to Marty's point, when you sell the full benefit, you've got insurances attached. Those carry lower cost because a portion of them are passed through. So the margin is lower on the PEO, although the revenue can be higher.

是的。關於利潤率的問題，PEO的利潤率會更低，這並非因為其核心產品的利潤率低，而是因為缺少——或者更準確地說，是包含了保險的轉嫁收入。所以正如Marty所說，當你銷售全額福利時，保險是附加的。這些保險的成本較低，因為其中一部分成本會轉嫁給客戶。因此，儘管PEO的收入可能更高，但其利潤率卻更低。

Got it. And I just had one follow-up. I mean we talked a lot about the retention tools you guys are offering to customers. But just on the hiring side, what are some of the ways that Paychex can help SMBs with the actual hiring? I recall last quarter, you talked about the partnership with Indeed. I was just curious also if we could hear how that's trending.

明白了。我還有一個後續問題。我們之前聊了很多關於貴公司提供給客戶的客戶留存工具。但就招募方面而言，Paychex 可以透過哪些方式幫助中小企業進行實際招募？我記得上個季度您曾提到與 Indeed 的合作。我很好奇能否了解一下合作進展如何。

Yes, it's continuing to trend very well. It's a hot market. As everyone knows, to hire, it's very difficult. And I think that, that partnership of being able to do it -- to partner with Indeed, who, as I said, is so many job postings, it's the largest in the world, I think, right now from a job posting site to have that digitally connect to also have a deal with them where they get some credits with Indeed, to be able to post is all very strong.

是的，招募市場持續走強，非常熱門。眾所周知，招募非常困難。我認為，能夠與Indeed合作——正如我所說，Indeed擁有海量的職位發布信息，我認為它是目前全球最大的招聘網站——通過數字化渠道與他們建立聯繫，並達成合作協議，獲得Indeed的積分，從而能夠發布職位，這無疑是一項非常強大的優勢。

And then I think that, that also attracts people. Then the full benefit, the full HR solution that I just said, the benefits of retirement and all of the other benefits, insurance benefits, this is really attracting more people and retaining the clients. So that is all things that we can offer, not only from a full solution set, but from a technology standpoint that really attracts a generation that is out there deciding where they want to work today.

我認為，這也能吸引人。我剛才提到的全方位福利，包括完整的人力資源解決方案、退休福利以及其他各種福利和保險福利，這些都真正吸引了更多的人才，也留住了客戶。所以，我們不僅能提供全套解決方案，還能從技術角度出發，吸引那些正在選擇工作地點的年輕一代。

They want things on their mobile app. The Paychex Flex mobile app is full featured. You can have your retirement, your insurance, your pay stubs, you have now Pre-Check. You're working for somebody who you feel like not only has full benefits, but they're a leader in technology when you use our products. So that's how we're helping our clients, particularly, I guess, I'd say, in the mid-market to succeed, and that drives a lot of value for them and for us.

他們希望所有功能都能在手機應用程式上實現。 Paychex Flex 手機應用功能齊全。您可以管理退休金、保險、查看薪資單，現在還支援預檢功能。您為一家不僅福利完善，而且在使用我們產品時還能感受到其技術領先的公司工作。這就是我們幫助客戶，尤其是中端市場客戶成功的方式，這為他們和我們自己都創造了巨大的價值。

We'll go next to Peter Christiansen from the Citi.

接下來我們來採訪花旗銀行的彼得‧克里斯蒂安森。

Happy holidays. Nice results.

節日快樂。成績不錯。

Thanks.

謝謝。

A couple of questions here. Efrain, you did mention new business formation continues to be strong and certainly been observing that from the charts. And that's been, what, 50% typically of new sales. But I was just wondering if you could talk about the opportunity or maybe the trends that you're seeing from the self-file or maybe from some of the regional perhaps less sophisticated players out there. how are some of the trends there behaving as regards to new sales?

這裡有幾個問題。 Efrain，你提到新創企業成立數量持續強勁，我也從圖表中觀察到了這一點。通常情況下，新企業銷售額佔新銷售額的50%左右。但我只是想問，你能否談談自助申報企業，或者一些區域性、可能不太成熟的企業，它們在新銷售額方面有哪些發展趨勢？

And then my follow-up would be, you've talked for a number of quarters since the pandemic. ASO, HRO has been gaining and it's been really strong. Has that mix shift help them? To what degree is that mix shift helping the margin, I guess, is my follow-up?

接下來我想問的是，您已經連續幾季談到疫情爆發以來，ASO和HRO業務一直在成長，而且表現非常強勁。這種業務組合的轉變是否對他們有幫助？這種轉變在多大程度上提升了利潤率？

So this is -- so I'll start it out with some of the regional players. We're net -- certainly net adding from a regional player perspective, meaning selling versus losing, I think many of the regional players are struggling in this environment to provide as many -- as much value through COVID. The speed at which regulations are changing and demands on small and midsized businesses for vaccination policy, the mandate what's the latest, you're going to get that from someone like us. And in fact, many smaller players try to copy our stuff up, the web we have, a very comprehensive website from marketing that puts all the information out, by state. Telling you what you have to do, where you have to do it. And then here's the products that will help you with that from a technology and a service standpoint.

所以，我先從一些區域企業說起。從區域性企業的角度來看，我們肯定實現了淨成長，也就是說，我們獲利而不是虧損。我認為，在新冠疫情期間，許多區域性企業都在努力提供盡可能多的價值。法規變化迅速，對中小企業的疫苗接種政策和強制接種要求也層出不窮，而像我們這樣的企業能夠提供最新的資訊。事實上，許多規模較小的企業都在試圖模仿我們的做法。我們擁有一個非常全面的網站，從行銷的角度出發，按州發布所有信息，告訴你該做什麼，在哪裡做。此外，我們也提供從技術和服務角度幫助您的產品。

So I think it's really been more difficult on the regional players today that just don't have the breadth of service knowledge or compliance people to be able to keep up with this. We have over 200 compliance experts that follow every single thing that's happening that may happen so that we can be as agile, as Efrain mentioned earlier, on creating these products almost as soon as the issues come out. So very strong from a regional competitor standpoint on the net adds that we've seen year-to-date. Do you want to take the...

所以我覺得，如今那些缺乏廣博服務知識或合規人員的區域性企業確實面臨更大的挑戰，難以跟上情勢。我們擁有超過200名合規專家，他們密切關注著每一個正在發生和可能發生的事件，正如Efrain之前提到的，這樣我們才能像他一樣敏捷，幾乎在問題出現的第一時間就開發出相應的產品。因此，從區域競爭對手的角度來看，我們今年迄今的淨新增用戶數量非常可觀。您想了解更多嗎？

Yes. And Pete, on the margin part, one of the things that I think you've seen in the model certainly over the last 3, 4 quarters or so, is that when you have growth in revenue, you don't have attendant costs associated with it typically. And so you scale nicely and drop a lot to the bottom line. I think that's particularly true on Management Solutions where that's a higher margin -- that's the higher margin portion of the revenue. And so when ASO is growing at the rates that it's growing because of the way that our business model works, a lot of that ends up dropping to the bottom line. So it -- all of the mix shift in terms of the way the business has been growing, has been helpful to margins.

是的。皮特，關於利潤率，我認為你在過去三、四個季度左右的模型中已經看到，當收入成長時，通常不會伴隨相應的成本成長。因此，業務規模可以很好地擴大，並大幅降低淨利潤。我認為管理解決方案尤其如此，因為它的利潤率更高——它是收入中利潤率較高的部分。因此，由於我們的商業模式，當應用程式商店優化 (ASO) 業務以目前的速度成長時，許多成長最終都會計入淨利潤。所以，業務成長方式的轉變對利潤率的提升起了正面作用。

Are any other questions?

還有其他問題嗎？

We'll take our final question from Scott Wurtzel with Wolfe Research.

我們最後回答來自 Wolfe Research 的 Scott Wurtzel 提出的問題。

This is Scott on for Darrin. Just first one, within Management Solutions, you guys called out one of the drivers being improved market conditions for retirement services. I was just wondering if you could give a little more color on that.

我是Scott，替Darrin提問。第一個問題，在管理解決方案方面，你們提到退休服務市場環境的改善是推動因素之一。我想請你們詳細解釋一下。

Yes. I think what's happening there is there's a lot of mandates now that are coming out by state. We still haven't seen necessarily the federal mandate, but that's been discussed a lot. But a lot of states, California, in particular, New York, some others are coming out saying that businesses in some cases, all sizes have to offer a retirement plan of some sort to their employees.

是的。我認為目前的情況是，各州都在陸續推出強制規定。我們還沒有看到聯邦政府的強制令，但這方面已經討論了很多。許多州，特別是加州、紐約州以及其他一些州，都表示，在某些情況下，各種規模的企業都必須為員工提供某種形式的退休計畫。

So there's going to be some -- there's some mandates there that will have penalties that are starting to be enacted. Some are in place already in California, I think, coming up in June. So there's a lot of attraction there to people not only looking at it from that standpoint but also just from a hiring standpoint and of full benefits. There's a lot of interest, as I've mentioned, in having a full suite of benefits for the well-being of the employees that's helping retain them and attract them in a difficult market. So it's retirement, it's insurance, it's what's your work-from-home policy, your hybrid policy of working in office and home, it's all those things kind of combined. It's not just compensation.

所以，一些強制規定──一些有處罰條款的規定──已經開始生效。加州的一些規定可能已經在實施了，大概六月就會生效。因此，這些規定對許多人來說都很有吸引力，不僅是從這個角度來看，也從招募和提供全面福利的角度來看。正如我之前提到的，很多人都非常重視為員工提供全面的福利，這有助於在競爭激烈的就業市場中留住人才並吸引人才。這些福利包括退休金、保險、居家辦公政策、混合辦公政策（辦公室和家庭工作相結合）等等，它們涵蓋了所有這些方面，而不僅僅是薪酬。

So that's really picked up, and we've had -- continue to have a very strong retirement sales and the fact that we offer a multitude of products, and we just went over 100,000 clients I mentioned earlier. It's a great milestone. We're still #1 in new 401(k) plans that are offered. And I think between our PEP plan and our regular 401(k) plans and IRAs, very strong conditions in the market and great success from our selling teams, selling them and servicing them.

所以，這方面確實發展迅猛，我們的退休金銷售一直非常強勁，而且我們提供多種產品，客戶數量也剛剛突破了10萬大關，正如我之前提到的。這是一個重要的里程碑。我們在新推出的401(k)計劃方面仍然排名第一。我認為，憑藉我們的PEP計劃、常規401(k)計劃和IRA帳戶，市場環境非常強勁，銷售團隊在銷售和售後服務方面也取得了巨大成功。

Great. And then just one follow-up. As we think about investments in the business going forward, I know over the course of the pandemic, you guys have been investing a lot on the digital and the self-service side of things. Just maybe as we hopefully approach more of a normalized environment, could you give a little more color on where you may be employing some investment dollars going forward?

好的。還有一個後續問題。考慮到公司未來的投資方向，我知道在疫情期間，你們在數位化和自助服務方面投入了大量資金。隨著我們逐漸恢復正常運營，能否請您詳細說明未來投資的重點方向？

Yes, sure. It will continue, certainly, on the marketing side as well to get -- the leaders are coming in from a digital standpoint. We've been very successful on the work that our marketing team and leadership have done. We expect that to continue. That is accelerated through COVID and how people are buying. But also, you'll continue to see it in the way we sell from a digital standpoint and the way we onboard as well. You're going to see that.

當然，這肯定會繼續下去，在行銷方面也是如此——領導者們正在從數位化角度出發。我們的行銷團隊和領導階層所做的工作非常成功，我們預計這種勢頭會繼續保持下去。新冠疫情加速了這一趨勢，也改變了人們的購買方式。此外，您還會在我們從數位化角度進行的銷售以及客戶引導方面看到這一點。您很快就會看到這些變化。

The self-service we talked about, that's going to be continued because this is the way clients deal. They want to go -- it's no surprise, they want to go online, they want to see your product, test your product, price your product and even start implementing it themselves and be able to do that with a world-class innovative product and mobile experience, and that's what we've got.

我們之前提到的自助服務將會繼續下去，因為客戶就是這樣做的。他們想要——這並不奇怪——他們想要上網，他們想要查看你的產品，測試你的產品，了解你的產品價格，甚至開始自己實施，並且能夠透過世界一流的創新產品和行動體驗來實現這一切，而這正是我們所擁有的。

So you'll see our digital investments continue in that standpoint. We've seen a lot of success from the investment we've put out so far, and that's going to continue.

因此，你會看到我們將繼續在這方面進行數位投資。我們迄今為止的投資已經取得了很大的成功，而且這種成功勢頭還將繼續。

There are no further questions in queue at this time. I'd like to turn the call back over to our speakers for any additional or closing remarks.

目前沒有其他問題需要提問。現在我想把電話轉回給發言人，請他們補充或作總結發言。

All right. Thank you. At this point, we will close the call. If you're interested in replaying the webcast, that will be archived for about 90 days. Thank you for the time you're taking to participate in this second quarter earnings release call and for your interest in Paychex. We wish you and your families a very happy and safe holiday season. Thank you all.

好的，謝謝。本次電話會議到此結束。若您有興趣回放本次網路直播，我們將存檔約90天。感謝您抽空參加本次第二季財報電話會議，也感謝您對Paychex的關注。祝您和您的家人節日快樂平安。謝謝大家。

This does conclude today's program. Thank you for your participation. You may disconnect at any time.

今天的節目到此結束。感謝您的參與。您可以隨時斷開連線。