Finding value from new technology investments is a big challenge for chief financial officers at multinational companies around the world. It can often involve significant financial investment and it can be hard to assess just which kind of technology is the most needed in the business and has the most longevity in terms of scalability.
It is often down to the CFO to make a decision after they have heard from subject matter experts inside the organisation. The challenge of course is that every department would likely state that their need is the greatest and the technology that they recommend will produce the biggest rewards for the business. CFOs need to be more objective and include some bigger picture analysis in their decision making
As CFOs consider investing in technology in the next 12 months, we are going to examine a few of the reasons they should consider global payroll investment. It might not be the first item on their agenda, and their lack of familiarity with the payroll department will mean they need to have detailed conversations with global payroll specialists, but there are valid reasons why investment in global payroll technology can prove to be worthwhile.
Payroll is the largest company expense
Payroll is the largest company expense, and it is essential to manage it effectively. Investing in payroll technology can help CFOs manage this expense better and improve the overall financial health of the company. It should really no longer be acceptable or considered sustainable for such a large expense to be processed via manual data entry and Excel spreadsheets. No CFO should be satisfied hearing that this is the case inside their organisation. Many other departments have received first citizen technology and investment support, there is no reason why global payroll should not be treated in a similar fashion especially when technology investment can genuinely transform global payroll operations.
Payroll has been underserved by technology for too long
Payroll has been underserved by technology for too long, and it is time for CFOs to invest in better payroll technology. It was simply never considered a priority in the past-the nature of payroll is that it is very task oriented, and deadline focused, so neither global payroll professionals or senior managers in payroll have much in the way of available time to be making a case for investment in front of a chief financial officer. But, continuing to be underserved by technology represents both a business risk and a missed opportunity. The risk comes from the potential payroll data errors arising from manual data entry and overlooking the chance to digitise payroll operations is a missed opportunity.
Better payroll technology means payroll can align better with HR strategy
Payroll and HR strategy are connected and for the best operational performance on both sides it makes sense that these two business critical departments are aligned. Lots of data needed to calculate and process payroll can be found inside HR systems such as HCMs while essential data and reporting needed for a complete view of the workforce is often held inside payroll systems or spreadsheets. A technology investment that allowed for digitised integrations which ensures smooth, bidirectional data flows between HR and payroll systems would be better for both departments. It would remove the unnecessary duplication of data between systems and facilitate much more detailed and accurate reporting. When HR leaders are developing their strategy, they require strong insight into payroll costs and other pay related metrics- an upgrade to payroll system technology is required to provide them with this crucial data.
Automation time and cost savings mean long term value
Investing in payroll technology can help automate payroll processes, which can save time and reduce costs. This automation can help CFOs achieve long-term value and improve the overall financial health of the company. Payroll has been ready for automation for years now and payroll processing without automation is becoming unsustainable.
Digitising and automating payroll processes while integrating them with HR and finance technology stacks it is a great opportunity for a CFO to maximise investment. It is something that would benefit payroll, human resources and the financial services department. When these three core departments can easily share and analyse related data, it immediately strengthens visibility and control and the valuable time of diligent professionals in all three departments is not wasted on manual efforts gathering data.
In conclusion, as CFOs consider investing in technology in the next 12 months, they should consider global payroll investment. Payroll is the largest company expense and has been underserved by technology for too long. Better payroll technology means it can align better with HR strategy, and automation time and cost savings mean long-term value.
