JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- Every day payroll administrators handle large volumes of data and apply meticulous attention to handling company information in order to successfully complete processes and procedures. Their role, while always important, becomes mission-critical during tax season.

It is at this time of the year when payroll administrators are tested in terms of their knowledge of- and ability to manage - compliance with tax legislation and its relevance to considerations such as payment schedules, benefits, deductions, bonuses and much more.

The job of the payroll practitioner has always involved intense pressure and little room for error. However, today, with the introduction of new tax laws and the stringent requirement for compliance with data management, archiving, application and transfer, there is more pressure on the payroll administrator than ever before.

Experts in the field refer to the impact of legislation such as the Protection of Personal Information (POPI) law as well as changes in tax legislation that payroll administrators have to be aware of – particularly because these laws influence information management practice, processes and procedures.

One of the major contributions the payroll administrator makes during tax season is the correlation and management of employee and employer data. This has to be done with the security of data and its integrity foremost in the minds of administrators.

Teryl Schroenn, CEO of Accsys, says that because tax and inland revenue services is a government domain, there are challenges when engaging the corporate sector in terms of the expediency of information transfer, the accuracy of this data and the need to always protect the integrity of the information.

“The fact is that people’s attitude to privacy has changed - social networks and mobility have played a key role in steering this change. We talk about structured and unstructured data, but there is also a need to differentiate between sensitive data and non-confidential data. Information about people and businesses is searchable and accessible these days. It adds a new dimension to privacy and finance,” she continues.

The Accsys viewpoint is that security will remain the number one priority going forward, particularly in light of increasing data volumes, and issues such as Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and Bring Your Own App (BYOA).


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Liza du Plessis