COMPLIANCE
has set a very rigid approach and need to control as payrollers. The net result is that the benefits payroll can bring to an organisation could be degraded, as it’s seen as a blocking or restrictive function, new technologies which could benefit the employees are withheld and, ultimately, the true strategic benefits payroll can offer are never realised. Evolving processes Another factor to consider is that many of the associated processes which used to dictate deadlines to payroll have also evolved over time, for example: l with the arrival of real time information, the need for significant downtime over the tax year end has now gone l Bacs, with its three-day processing time, isn’t the only way to pay employees today, and faster options exist l there’s no longer a requirement to provide paper copy payslips, P45s or P60s, removing postage deadlines. However, with an ever-changing compliance landscape, we also have more deadlines which are directly linked to the employee and not necessarily specific dates in the calendar, for example: l the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s holiday pay guidance, requiring payment to the worker at the point of taking holiday l pension automatic enrolment processes and notifications. Today, the technology does exist and continues to emerge. This not only provides greater support for hitting the deadlines we cannot control but also enables us to flex and remove many deadlines which have, to a degree, been self-inflicted. The growth of cloud-based solutions by their very nature has seen traditional regular downtimes removed and more control placed into the hands of the pay team regarding when they run processes. Many cloud solutions are built on single platform approaches, thus removing integrations and introducing true real time data feeds. The initial benefit here is the deadlines by which changes need to be with payroll tend to be significantly pushed back, meaning more time to process data. This reduces follow-on adjustments and incorrect payments or reporting. Taking this further, we see less supplementary payments, less time spent correcting issues
and ultimately less employee frustration, which is becoming especially important in a growing competitive jobs market. Cloud-based technology offers so much more than this initial greater control. With the very popular on-premise technology solutions, the innovation process moves much slower due to restrictions in the overall technology, but also the ability to deploy complex upgrades on local networks. However, with cloud solutions, new innovation can be delivered straight to you, meaning even more opportunity to control deadlines. There are many examples here: l automation is now available with solutions which can continually calculate payroll for you, even as changes come in, removing the concept of that final pay run on x date l pay on demand or earned wage access solutions offer one of the biggest shifts in how we approach payroll and the impact of deadlines. There’s still great reluctance to uptake such functionality but by freeing up earnings to employees outside of the normal pay cycles (especially monthly), we’re removing the need for costly pay day loans and also delivering a very welcome benefit to employees with little to no extra cost l as artificial intelligence evolves, many vendors are now offering messaging bots built into their products, which can support workers in answering simple questions. This is particularly beneficial for pay teams during key payroll deadline points l one of the biggest wins for cloud solutions is the access offered to employees through their own personal accounts. This means paperless distribution of payslips and other forms, significantly reducing the timeframes needed to provide. These can also be automated in most solutions and reduces the number of deadlines pay teams need to manage. Could mobile applications be the future? Despite the many benefits, cloud-based solutions aren’t the total end game. Mobile applications continue to grow and it’s here we’ll potentially see some of the biggest impact to the way deadlines drive so much of payroll. Mobile opens up access to payroll like never before, as employees in many industries wouldn’t have access to a desktop / laptop, but they’ll certainly have
access to a mobile phone. As workforces demand more flexibility in the way they work and control as to when they’re paid, engagement with payroll mobile offers the route to this. Notifications can also be sent, even if the worker doesn’t have a corporate email account. “Mobile applications continue to grow and it’s here we will potentially see some of the biggest impact to the way deadlines drive so much of payroll” The result here could be a major shift from the very traditional ‘paid once a pay period’ offering we expect and a freer following service to our workforces. To support this solution, automation could potentially undertake downstream processes, like full payment submissions, as payments are issued. Also, with banking transfer times shrinking with more options available, we wouldn’t be restricted as with Bacs. This might sound like chaos, especially when you look back to that mainframe period. But the offer factor here is that this is enabling payroll to drop its transactional image, which potentially holds it back, and allows it to make the real shift to strategic. It can highlight the fact payroll is a vital function in helping to retain employees and support them during times of financial hardship. Ultimately, the technology exists and continues to evolve which can significantly reduce the way deadlines drive so much of payroll. n “This is enabling payroll to drop its transactional image, which potentially holds it back and allows it to make
the real shift to strategic”
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| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward |
Issue 90 | May 2023
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