FEATURE INSIGHT
Automation, AI and robotics - the impact
Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward invited several industry luminaries to participate in a virtual roundtable articulating their views on the issue of artificial intelligence (AI): how automation is affecting payroll and the profession
Participants Vince Ashall MSc FCIPP, proprietor VA Payroll Services Julie Hodgskin BSc (Hons) ACIPP FMAAT PGCE EQA, t echnical material author, CIPP policy team; and provider of services to micro employers Dianne Hoodless MSc FCIPPdip FHEA , EMEA payroll manager, Hyperion Insurance Group Karen Thomson MSc ChFCIPP FHEA, director of Payroll Services, Armstrong Watson LLP; and director CIPP Automation has over the years transformed payroll. Do you think there is much scope for further transformative automation in payroll? Vince: Being of a certain age, I can remember moving from data being ‘processed’ by comptometrists, to entering data on paper sheets that were then keyed into the computer by data entry clerks, to direct input via visual display units. So transformative automation isn’t exactly new. Probably most parts of payroll, the transactional elements, have already been subjected to transformative automation. Perhaps the question should be, to what extent have organisations adopted transformative automation in order to benefit from the cost savings that accrue from transformative automation? What tends to be forgotten is that not all processes are suitable for automation. For instance, what about checks and balances,
to ‘inhouse support’ day to day and annual changes. Karen: I would like to see the more mundane, transactional processes further automated; self-serve input, verification automated and even processed automatically, leaving the payroll specialist to concentrate on the business requirements, key performance indicators, compliance etc. Vince: If it hasn’t already happened, the area of expenses and benefits appears ripe for automation. With the payrolling of benefits, the taxable value of benefits in kind could be automatically fed through into the payroll system. This could include company cars since all the necessary details to calculate the benefit need to be input to the payroll system for inclusion in the full payment submission. One complication of course is where optional remuneration arrangements are in place. A means of indicating that such arrangements are in force, and what their value is, would need to be put in place. Do you think automation is good for payroll professionals and what might be the impact? Karen: I do believe more automation would be beneficial to allow the payroll professional to concentrate on the business and the employees, but leave the transactional processing to the computer. Obviously, I would always be an advocate of knowing what the computer is doing, so knowing the technical ‘stuff’ will always be vital. However, the data at our fingertips is
separation of duties and so on? This may appear a bit blasé, but most areas that can be automated have been; areas that are ‘black and white’ and which have rules that can be readily codified and incorporated into computer programmes. Julie: I don’t use much automation at present. Dianne: All computer systems will continue to develop therefore payroll systems will have to use up to date technology. Improved technology will be faster and easier to use, so yes there will be further scope but who knows what the next ten years will bring. Karen: I believe more can be done. Over the last few years the payroll knowledge required has increased substantially due to changes in legislation and/or practices. Payroll is still a transactional process in as far as the actual calculations; however, the expertise required to ensure what is to be processed is where the big change has happened. What parts of payroll can be further transformed? Dianne: In my opinion the ease of use, report writing, changes to benefits, interaction with other systems and the ability
Vince Ashall MSc FCIPP, proprietor VA Payroll Services
| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | February 2018 | Issue 37 44
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