With technology reinventing itself every single day, it is not an overstatement to say that the future of payroll activities is already here. Long gone are the days of employers cashing out staff at the end of their shifts.
Today, employees must receive payslips, and salaries are likely to be wired to their bank account, ideally in an automated manner, but most probably digitally. The most critical trends in payroll administration focus on streamlining the process, making it as infallible as possible. Prompt payment is a chief contributor to staff happiness; hence, the better your payroll operations are, the more productive your company is.
Digitalisation
Payroll professionals expect manual payroll to go obsolete in the coming years. As digital solutions quickly spread in payroll—similarly to any other vertical—administration staff works with payroll software solutions more often than not. Such digital tools help streamline payroll operations, make it easier to adjust to amendments required, enable easy reporting, and support searching back in case of audits.
Automation and AI
With the advent of the digital world, automation and artificial intelligence (AI) are quickly gaining ground. Automation comes with significant advantages; processes can be pre-programmed, which significantly speeds up payroll.
Today, payroll systems are likely to be General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliant, which brings peace of mind to both employers and employees. Adhering to the European Union’s GDPR standards is a must for any company that wants to avoid paying hefty fines.
Additionally, AI is picking up so quickly that it has already reached payroll. Reports suggest that in Japan, some basic payroll calculation and data errands are already run by AI solutions.
Cloud Computing
To no surprise, with automation and digitisation comes cloud computing. With improving connectivity not only in-house but also on the go—remember: We are at the dawn of 5G revolutionising mobile internet—we do not have to rely on our data being stored on discs or external drives.
Adopting a cloud-based payroll system gives speed and flexibility to handle this task. Having all your payroll data stored in the cloud, you make it accessible anywhere, which is a unique advantage for giants that operate internationally. This also enables payroll to be handled remotely. Alternatively, you might want to consider outsourcing your payroll activities as it comes with a handful of advantages and is relatively easy to do if you follow our step-by-step guide.
Furthermore, cloud-based payroll is easy to scale, which is excellent news for companies that start small and grow big. Also, a well-calibrated payroll and HR system in the cloud can enable your staff to handle their days off, for instance, in the snap of a finger.
Transparency
Transparency is not an excellent advantage anymore, and it is becoming a must in any industry. Reports globally have confirmed that women earn less than their male counterparts, so much that primarily women stop making money for their work sometime in November, as compared to men.
Today, the number of companies committing to making their remuneration packages and wages public is growing. If your company is conscious about offering payments with no discrimination, publishing your salary packages can support trust in your business, and serve as an excellent example for spearheading the eradication of wage injustices.
Cybersecurity
With payroll handling very sensitive personal data, cybersecurity is of utmost importance to any company. There are a handful of tactics a company can adopt to make sure that its payroll operations are safe.
Educating the staff is an essential step in this war against hackers. At the same time, adopting specific payroll software solutions that are updated regularly is another possible way of staying secure.
You may consider outsourcing your payroll operations to a professional business that specialises in payroll administration, to make sure that all is handled promptly, up to the highest data security standards possible.
