How do you think you are perceived in your company?

There’s no doubt that payroll is essential to maintaining a happy and engaged workforce. If people don’t get paid, they don’t work.

Today, while payroll has always been seen as a back-office function, simply there to ensure staff are paid correctly and on time, something is changing.

More and more payroll professionals are taking on increasingly strategic roles, supported by their analytics of payroll and HR data.

CIPP describes payroll professionals as the custodians of a company’s most valuable data – its people’s details – and this custodianship is exactly what gives the profession its strategic clout.

Workforce analytics is no longer treated as an administrative by-product and, as such, there is a huge opportunity for payroll professionals to capitalize on their data.

What does HR and payroll data contain?

It’s no exaggeration to say that a gold mine of information can be found in the areas of human resources and payroll.

Payroll has an eye on the financial situation of your staff; everything from hours worked and overtime to statutory payments and expenses, not forgetting deductions such as tax codes, national insurance, pension contributions and student loan repayments.

HR data analysis, on the other hand, tells you who your employees are: job titles, salary types, start dates, absences, vacations and more.

Individually, everyone is useful.

But where it gets exciting is when the data works together.

Payroll data becomes exponentially more valuable when connected to the employees behind it.

This shared vision forms the basis for the transition to a more strategic role.

Use your HR and payroll data analyzes

When data produced by HR and payroll is simply stored for auditing and compliance purposes, you bury its value.

But when evaluated, examined and used for decision making, the possibilities are endless.

A data-driven payroll professional can inform decisions far beyond payroll processing, including:

• Labor costs and overtime: Data shows the true cost of labor and where overtime quietly signals a resource gap.
• Absence and well-being models: An increase in statutory sick pay (SSP) claims, unpaid leave or constant overtime can signal employee strain long before it appears elsewhere.
• Retention risks: salary growth, overtime and absences, considered together, can give an idea of ​​the people who are at risk of leaving.
• Pay equity and remuneration: Payroll data forms the basis for equal pay audits, gender pay gap reporting, and broader commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and environmental, social, and governance (ESG).
• Capacity and recruitment needs: headcount, hours worked and cost trends help companies plan hiring before it becomes urgent.
• Financial well-being: an increase in salary advances or pension denials can indicate financial pressure on all staff, giving the company an early signal to offer greater support to employees.
• Use of services: Using salary sacrifice, fringe benefits, and allowances highlights the parts of your rewards program that employees actually value.
• Cost by department and location: Payroll and human resources data allows the company to know the true cost of labor, broken down by shift or location.
• Trends in Legal Payments: Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP), Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) and Statutory Sick Pay models help predict current and future coverage needs and budget.

What’s Holding Back Payroll Professionals?

If the value is so clear, why isn’t everyone using the data?

Well, a few things get in the way.

Manual effort is the first major blocker.

For many payroll professionals, gathering information about payroll and HR data means searching different systems/locations, finding missing information, and putting it together in a usable format.

This process can often take days, and by the time the information is ready, it is usually out of date and the initial request has already been accepted.

Data quality is another obstacle.

Workforce analytics are only as good as the quality of the data behind them.

If the information isn’t accurate and available in real time, even the most savvy payroll professionals will struggle to use it.

Then there is trust.

Many payroll professionals have never been positioned as “data people”.

The shift to viewing data as a story rather than a spreadsheet can seem like overkill, requiring a mindset shift.

HR and payroll software: how to start using data

The good news is that you don’t need to be a technical expert to get the most out of your payroll and HR data.

You just need a good foundation.

Start by reducing the manual burden associated with data extraction by implementing modern payroll software.

Staffology Payroll, for example, offers over 40 ready-to-use reports, ranging from P11D and gender pay gap to cost of employment and pension contributions.

In Staffology Payroll, this information is accessible directly within the platform for quick reference, or you can download it for further analysis and recordkeeping.

Next, to take your data analysis to the next level, integrate your payroll system with HR.

When payroll connects to HR analytics, the information on both systems is live, meaning a change in one software is transferred directly into your reports without the need for manual entry.

Become a storyteller

Stop thinking of yourself as a gatekeeper of data and start thinking of yourself as the teller of their story.

Let’s return to our initial question: how do you think you are perceived in your company?

If the answer still leans toward the “back office,” your data is the quickest way to change that perception.

You already hold the value and now you need to start displaying it.

If you want to get a more comprehensive idea of ​​where the payroll profession is heading and how to get there, our guide looks at trends, opportunities and practical steps for moving from operational to strategic.

Payroll Staffology

Good workforce analysis requires an adequate foundation.

Staffology Payroll gives you the power to turn data into real business insights.

Learn more about Staffology Payroll here or download the product brochure below.

Stephanie Coward

Managing Director, HCM

Stephanie Coward is Managing Director of HCM at IRIS, where she leads the strategy, innovation and growth of the organization’s HR and payroll portfolio. She is responsible for positioning IRIS as a trusted partner for human resources professionals and ensuring its solutions meet the evolving needs of the modern workforce.

With over 25 years of experience in the technology sector, Stephanie brings deep business and operational expertise, with a passion for improving the employee experience through technology.

Stephanie is committed to advancing IRIS’ HCM offering and helping organizations build a more resilient and empowered workforce.

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