The New Role of Payroll in Modern Businesses

This episode is sponsored by Deel

Managing a global team is complex, Deel makes it simpler with payroll, HR, IT, and compliance all in one place. That's why over 35,000 businesses trust Deel to hire, pay, and manage their teams worldwide.

See how Deel works at www.deel.com/nickday


Payroll is no longer just a back office function. It has become the foundation of compliance, employee trust, and organizational credibility.

In this episode of the Payroll Podcast, host Nick Day is joined by payroll thought leader and compliance expert Simon Parsons to unpack why HR, employment law, and payroll are rapidly converging and what this shift means for modern businesses.

Simon shares how increased government enforcement, evolving employment rights, and rising expectations around pay accuracy are forcing organizations to rethink where payroll sits and how it operates. You will hear why separating HR and payroll now creates real risk, how payroll data has become critical to employee experience and retention, and why compliance can no longer be treated as a reactive process. The conversation also explores earned wage access, real time and any day pay models, the rise of misinformation in payroll technology, and how leaders can innovate without creating new compliance or data risks.

If you want to understand the future of payroll, avoid costly compliance mistakes, and position payroll as a strategic driver of trust and performance, this episode is for you.


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Stay tuned for the next episode of The Payroll Podcast, brought to you by Nick Day, CEO at JGA Recruitment, landing soon!


0:56 Preview & Intro
3:18 Payroll and Employment Law
6:03 Why Payroll Is Changing
9:57 HR and Payroll Silos
12:40 Payroll and Employee Experience
14:31 HR vs Payroll Data
21:42 Misinformation and AI Risks
25:07 Earned Wage Access
32:09 Any Day Pay Future
34:04 UK Compliance Reality
36:35 Holiday Pay Failures
38:48 Simon’s Payroll Background
44:03 Innovation and Due Diligence
49:05 Where Payroll Belongs
52:01 Career Advice and Lessons