Steven Watmore, Payroll & HR Product Manager at Sage UK&I:

“This is National Payroll Week’s twenty-first birthday. Payroll has grown up. In the last two decades, company finance professionals have gained access to deeper data insights and progressed to a more strategic role – payroll is benefiting from new technologies to become far more than just a go-between.

“From cradle to retirement, we’re supported by payroll. The NHS that brings us into the world and the schools that educate us are funded by national insurance collected by the payroll industry. As we work, we contribute to that same system and then, when we retire, our sunset years are funded by the pension our payroll teams have paid into for us over the years.

“Payroll is the unsung hero of the economy, the essential gear that makes the engine turn. But as business goes digital, payroll professionals need to ensure they continue to upskill to remain at the top of the curve. Data analysis and flexible payment schedules are changing the way payroll works, while employee needs and individual company requirements now play an increasingly central role in payroll management.

“For example, one of the biggest changes of the last two decades is the requirement for Real Time PAYE Information (RTI) in payroll. RTI requires companies to report to HMRC every time they pay employees – not just once a month. That means a much deeper picture of tax payments is available in real time, but it also brings a significant increase in admin work. Automated payroll technology has become essential to the smooth running of a modern payroll department.

“As a result, teams need to be able to work with new technologies to ensure that payroll can evolve with the rest of the business. Data visibility, automated processes and predictive management are all essential to the future of the role – only by integrating with other departments and using wider organisational data can teams ensure they provide the service that digital-first companies require.

“This twenty-first National Payroll Week is an opportunity to recognise the work of an under-appreciated group of people – and a chance to plan for a more integrated, digital-led future.”