Thank you!

Thanks you utilizing my blog and providing your feedback /inputs. It has been great journey. I am sure we will go long further from this point.

235 visits came from 23 countries (India, Singapore, United States, Brazil, United Kingdom, China, Japan
, United Arab Emirates, Netherlands & Germany) with 121 visitors from the day it started on 23rd February 2009.

20 minutes to meeting success!

During my past years of experience in meeting I have realized, any meeting will show its color within 20 minutes of its start. In other words after 1st 20 minutes you will know what you will end up by end of the meeting. In very effective meeting you will get the results, go-no go or bring people to common understanding or get agreement on agenda or what ever the result you expect, within 20 min.

Why this has to be 20 minutes I don’t know. I found no scientific answer to this question. Other than the below one …J

"Calendars are based on the earth’s motions: around its own axis, and around the sun in its orbit. But the axis has a slight wobble. In relation to the stars, the earth takes 365 days, six hours, nine minutes and 10 seconds to complete one revolution. This is the sidereal year. With respect to its orbit, the earth takes 365 days, five hours, 48 minutes and 46 seconds to complete one tropical year. This difference of 20 minutes and 24 seconds every year is caused by the earth’s wobble."

When I say you will get the result in 20 min…it is for sure not by magic but with lot of effort and preparedness:

1. Preparing sufficient research on the subject.
2. Ensuring you connect the participants to keep them ready for the meeting. No shockers thrown at them during the meeting.
3. Clear understanding of where we can hit the road block and what are win-win options.
4. Giving enough opportunity of the participants as well to do the above the 3.

Let me know if you have anything else as your learning.

Automation of variable payroll data logistics

One of the main issues in Payroll optimization is Variable Data, which doesn’t flow through the HR data base. This end up in …..Data flowing through multiple modes from multiple people in multiple formats.

Need of automation of data over and above HR data base may be due to:
1. Non localization of the HR databse
2. Payroll required data is not part of HR data base
3. Data originating from business
4. Time data

Some of simplest data automation I can see is using shared server folder which act as junction to combine data automatically. This will be a most cost effective solution especially with technologies like SharePoint.

Usage of much advanced web interface to source data originator along with interface with HR data base can be much more efficient but can be expensive.

Real payroll optimization is not complete without automating variable data logistic to the source of the data. Sometime there can be temptation to semi automate by pushing for unsustainable standardization with just complex data format set or cross subsidizing the effort of pulling the data by payroll team themselves.

Requirement gathering – Red zone area

Requirement gathering is one of most challenging and complicated part of any payroll project or Process improvement initiative.

The challenge stems from multiple perspectives:

1. Pre conceived notion of the process being complex.

2. Notional statutory ghosts.

3. Miscommunication of requirement.

4. Cultural issues in understanding & agreeing.

5. Confusion between understanding the requirement and agreeing to requirement.Misunderstanding the “I understand” with “I agree” or “I agree” with “I sign off” will lead to disastrous issues at very critical points in the project.

Tools to mitigate red zone:

1. Cultural diversities play a very important part in understanding this red zone.

2. Presence o functional knowledge

3. “Equidistance player” during requirement gathering.

Payroll workload & work ethics during recession policy executions

Recession and its impact of business bottom line will lead companies to make changes in its operating cost. Payroll cost will be the obvious the target for different business reasons.
This focus on payroll cost brings lot more stress on payroll work. In this situation it is very important to maintain few fundamental principals of payroll:
1. Never dilute the ownership on the input which will stay always outside payroll. This will ensures there is optimal level of ownership on movement of data and related employee experience.
2. Look very carefully at any new changes you plan to make into payroll process or payroll system with very legal perspective. I am not referring to statutory deduction or calculation. I am referring to how well these changes reflect in your lawyers fact file if an employee files a case in labor court.
a. Avoid out of pay slip calculation which will end up as single amount in pay slip.
b. Avoid short cuts in executing recession driven comp and Benefit policies.
c. Payroll is not a statutory expert ….contact your legal department on final decision.
d. Execution approach which works in one country may not work in another from future legal risk mitigation perspective. Be very mindful of this.
3. Crete at least 2 layers of checks and balance while processing these cases to avoid any over payment or underpayment. Both can lead to very bad press and or attention from regulatory bodies.
4. Never attempt any sort of short cut in calculation, execution or communication.

Good Cultures & bad attitudes

One common rather very common topic in payroll is “cultural issues”.
I hate this negative term which puts a beautiful thing called culture in a negative shade. I am very much for discussion on cultural differences…..it make sense and it is real. But no culture can be an issue. Cultures are beautiful, they have history, they are embedded in every festival of the country, they have parental value, they are spiritual, and they are more long term…..
But what we get hear is 3 folded:
1. Personal attitude issue, we get carried away those few people we meet during our project or work.
2. If Culture X is issue to Culture Y …than Culture Y is also an issue to Culture X.
3. Cultural requirements and professional requirements. Concerned stake holder never attempt to differentiate these 2 especially in a environment like payroll which encompasses personal .

ROI?

ROI (Return on Investment) at country level or ROI at Global level or ROI at regional level………..which is the right parameter to look at executing business excellence driven transformation projects in HR and Finance process in a multinational?