[Global] Can payroll robots unlock people’s true value?

Through remarkable feats of tech innovation robots have transformed production lines across multiple industries, boosting efficiency and cutting costs and they will soon revolutionise health care too. Now robots have a new role to play by providing payroll processing and HR data to help businesses become more productive and allowing them to focus on activity that improves conditions for staff, including employee engagement and care, The HR Director reports.

Monthly payday is an enormous commitment for payroll teams; processing overtime, printing payslips, issuing these out. Communications between HR departments and payroll departments could potentially take days, if not weeks, to filter down to the employee’s bottom line. But in an increasingly fast-paced digital environment, accurate and immediate processing is critical to meeting both staff expectations and, for outsourced payroll functions, client expectations.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) could be the key to operating a truly modern payroll function. In the not too distant past, sending a BACS payment would involve no less than three people spending hours manually processing, validating, and approving payments. Assigning a robot to automate tasks like these saves time and frees up resources to address other priorities.

The benefits of RPA are not only limited to saving a few minutes on repetitive tasks. Used in the right way, smart automation can also facilitate the next part of the process. Payroll expert Michael McAllister says, within its client base the industry is leading the way in working with businesses on cloud-based platforms which utilise RPA software to begin getting next month’s payment ready based on previous activity, and integrate with accounting and HR systems to update the payroll automatically when changes to records are made.

In addition to being able to integrate seamlessly with other software systems, the modern payroll function is tailored to the needs of the individuals within the business. For example, employees in a unionised environment have more complex requirements than in a non-unionised workplace. Overseas workers must undergo more rigorous processes than local staff with the popularity of globally mobile working only continuing to grow. Meaning the question at the forefront of decision-making is what do people need?

People are, and will always be, at the centre of every business and that includes the people within the payroll functions. Despite tech is making leaps and bounds forward, digitalisation is not a replacement for people; in fact, it is now more important than ever to have the right people doing the right jobs.

As digital automation becomes commonplace, McAllister says payroll departments will become advisory instead of transactional. Where businesses have turnover issues because they’ve failed to keep up with the times, payroll specialists can take on a consultancy role to analyse the systems and explain what ‘good’ looks like. As well as providing management information and forecasts, payroll can also advise on pension options, the benefits that staff really want and need, and how employees want their pay supplied, supporting the talent pipeline.

Then payroll teams can potentially begin to help advise employees on whether they are getting the most out of their pay. Financial education is widely acknowledged to be lacking within the current curriculum; as adults how many people check the details of their payslips with any sort of regularity?

Payroll specialists are perfectly placed to partner with banks and financial advisers to provide such education, teaching people exactly where their money is coming from, where it’s going and what to do with it. With the adoption of open banking on the rise and the introduction of open code payslips, API technology could allow payroll teams to work with third parties to help employees compare their income with their mortgage payments and consider whether they’re getting the best deal or look at their spending and saving habits to identify where changes could be made.

The potential is all there, it simply needs to be unlocked. Digitalisation is here and more change will inevitably come but that shouldn’t be a cause for concern, rather it is an opportunity to be embraced. Payroll has already adapted to so much change; now is the time to boldly take the next steps and choose to change for the future.

Source: The HR Director

(Quotes via original reporting)

Through remarkable feats of tech innovation robots have transformed production lines across multiple industries, boosting efficiency and cutting costs and they will soon revolutionise health care too. Now robots have a new role to play by providing payroll processing and HR data to help businesses become more productive and allowing them to focus on activity that improves conditions for staff, including employee engagement and care, The HR Director reports.

Monthly payday is an enormous commitment for payroll teams; processing overtime, printing payslips, issuing these out. Communications between HR departments and payroll departments could potentially take days, if not weeks, to filter down to the employee’s bottom line. But in an increasingly fast-paced digital environment, accurate and immediate processing is critical to meeting both staff expectations and, for outsourced payroll functions, client expectations.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) could be the key to operating a truly modern payroll function. In the not too distant past, sending a BACS payment would involve no less than three people spending hours manually processing, validating, and approving payments. Assigning a robot to automate tasks like these saves time and frees up resources to address other priorities.

The benefits of RPA are not only limited to saving a few minutes on repetitive tasks. Used in the right way, smart automation can also facilitate the next part of the process. Payroll expert Michael McAllister says, within its client base the industry is leading the way in working with businesses on cloud-based platforms which utilise RPA software to begin getting next month’s payment ready based on previous activity, and integrate with accounting and HR systems to update the payroll automatically when changes to records are made.

In addition to being able to integrate seamlessly with other software systems, the modern payroll function is tailored to the needs of the individuals within the business. For example, employees in a unionised environment have more complex requirements than in a non-unionised workplace. Overseas workers must undergo more rigorous processes than local staff with the popularity of globally mobile working only continuing to grow. Meaning the question at the forefront of decision-making is what do people need?

People are, and will always be, at the centre of every business and that includes the people within the payroll functions. Despite tech is making leaps and bounds forward, digitalisation is not a replacement for people; in fact, it is now more important than ever to have the right people doing the right jobs.

As digital automation becomes commonplace, McAllister says payroll departments will become advisory instead of transactional. Where businesses have turnover issues because they’ve failed to keep up with the times, payroll specialists can take on a consultancy role to analyse the systems and explain what ‘good’ looks like. As well as providing management information and forecasts, payroll can also advise on pension options, the benefits that staff really want and need, and how employees want their pay supplied, supporting the talent pipeline.

Then payroll teams can potentially begin to help advise employees on whether they are getting the most out of their pay. Financial education is widely acknowledged to be lacking within the current curriculum; as adults how many people check the details of their payslips with any sort of regularity?

Payroll specialists are perfectly placed to partner with banks and financial advisers to provide such education, teaching people exactly where their money is coming from, where it’s going and what to do with it. With the adoption of open banking on the rise and the introduction of open code payslips, API technology could allow payroll teams to work with third parties to help employees compare their income with their mortgage payments and consider whether they’re getting the best deal or look at their spending and saving habits to identify where changes could be made.

The potential is all there, it simply needs to be unlocked. Digitalisation is here and more change will inevitably come but that shouldn’t be a cause for concern, rather it is an opportunity to be embraced. Payroll has already adapted to so much change; now is the time to boldly take the next steps and choose to change for the future.

Source: The HR Director

(Quotes via original reporting)