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83% businesses use ‘outdated’ payroll software
New research has found the vast majority of Aussie businesses are using payroll technology developed 20 years ago, or more.
Emma Musgrave
The 2019 Payroll Benchmarking Report, commissioned by the Australian Payroll Association, found four in five (or 83 per cent) are using the same payroll software they have since the late-90s.
“These days, technology is being developed at a rate unlike we have seen before, and there is now payroll software being delivered on handheld devices and smart phones,” Australian Payroll Association CEO Tracy Angwin said.
“Despite these developments, our benchmarking report has found that many companies still have manual tasks in their payroll processes. The increased security and human error risks associated with these types of processes [are] concerning.
“With more and more companies facing employee underpayment scandals, it’s crucial that organisations minimise the incidence of payroll errors by ensuring their software is configured based on current legislative requirements and preferably delivered via cloud-based applications.”
According to Ms Angwin, there are several factors one should weigh up when adopting new payroll software.
The first consideration is that the software is fit for purpose.
“Good payroll technology should be relevant to the organisation’s industry, to the organisation’s employee payment model (fortnightly or monthly, wage based or salary based, casual or full time), and should be able to grow as the organisation’s employee numbers grow,” she explained.
Secondly, it’s important to ensure the software creates a “highly efficient payroll office”.
“Good payroll technology should minimise human error, and eliminate most manual processing to create a more efficient payroll office. This will enable payroll managers to devote more time to interpretation of legislation and awards, and payroll strategy,” Ms Angwin said.
Thirdly, a good payroll platform should “streamline everything to do with employee payments and entitlements” via the one server.
“Modern cloud-based payroll platforms come with secure integration options that enable payroll managers to streamline all payroll components on the one platform – this includes employee time sheeting, leave record-keeping, entitlements, and employee award information,” according to Ms Angwin.
Holding a good user experience interface and offering greater support services are also essential when determining the payroll system worth upgrading to, Ms Angwin noted.
“A modern integrated payroll technology makes it easier for employers and payroll managers to share data, work remotely, manage leave and automate award interpretation. These systems are specifically designed to support the payroll function and are more hassle-free than using manual planning and budgeting tools, such as Excel,” she said.
“Good payroll technology should be customer oriented by offering remote and phone support. The support services of these technologies should understand the need for fast problem-solving, accuracy and the legal requirements that must be met by employers.”
Finally, a good payroll system will offer more flexible working arrangements for employees, according to Ms Angwin.
“Modern payroll technology will include a self-service payroll portal. This enables employees to enter their timesheets, check and confirm their rosters, update their personal information, and even apply for sick and annual leave – all at their own convenience,” she said.
“This limits the possibility of confidential employee information being sent via email or other non-secure data exchanges, does away with a paper trail, and gives employees some ownership of their working schedules.”
Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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