04:05 GLOBAL
Because a system that calculates incorrect data perfectly does not eliminate what is wrong. Sometimes, payroll’s most important job is not calculation, but checking reality. Payroll is not just a system of record. It also has to be a reality- check system. We can take this a Payroll is a ‘reality layer’ that connects the employee, the employer, the employment relationship and the movement of money. Artificial intelligence can calculate payroll in seconds. But the real question is: Does what it is calculating actually exist? I think the true value in the payroll systems of the future will come not from calculation, but from verification. Because calculating a false reality perfectly does not make it real. little further still... Payroll is a ‘Reality Layer’ So, if payroll is to become a reality layer, what should it check? There are actually many signals within payroll data that can indicate that something in the real world is not as it should be.
Because payroll is not simply about “calculating salaries.” Payroll is a control mechanism that connects the employee, the employer, the employment contract, salary payments, tax, social security and bank transactions.
that connects the employee, the employer, the employment contract, salary payments, tax, social security and bank transactions. If an organisation really exists, it leaves a trace in payroll. If an organisation does not actually exist but has a payroll, then a much more important question arises: Who was the payroll processed for, and who received the money? I think this is where the truly striking part of the Nigerian case lies. In the age of artificial intelligence, we are talking about fully automating payroll. But there are essential questions that we have to ask: Does the person entered into the system actually exist? Does the employer actually exist?
And is the salary being paid actually going to the right person?
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GLOBAL PAYROLL MAGAZINE ISSUE 28
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