The 2025 Reward & Payroll Summit on November 18 explored some of the biggest challenges facing the sector today, from tightening regulatory pressure to AI-driven transformation.

Central to the discussion was the enduring human core of payroll work. Across the sessions, there were three emerging themes: compliance risk is rising, technology is accelerating, and people and culture must remain at the centre of every decision.

Compliance and the Real Cost of Getting Pay Wrong

Compliance risk dominated early discussions, with speakers stressing that reputational damage now outweighs fines as the greatest threat. Leakage remains a major industry issue, with up to 3.5% of payroll lost when overpayments go unreported or when terminated employees continue to be paid. While many teams track errors closely, panellists emphasised that leadership needs to understand the right metrics, not just the ones that look clean on a dashboard.

Securing investment remains a stubborn challenge. Payroll is still often seen as a back-office function rather than a strategic engine. Speakers described the need to position payroll initiatives within wider business and GBS strategies, using staged, methodical business cases that uncover hidden costs, not just obvious ones. The question, “Why do we need to change, and what happens if we don’t?” was framed as the key to unearthing operational risk.

Regulatory change added urgency to these discussions. The new Fair Work Authority, the tightening of National Minimum Wage enforcement, payrolling of benefits (now mandatory from 2027), and significant SSP reforms will require organisations to re-evaluate processes, data flow between HR and payroll, and employee communication. With HMRC placing increased scrutiny on salaried workers and fixed penalties for unintentional breaches, panellists warned employers to prepare now, not later.

AI: Opportunity, Over-Expectation and the Skills of the Future

The influence of AI was felt throughout the summit. Across sessions, speakers agreed that AI won’t replace payroll professionals, but will reshape roles through automation, faster processing, and richer insights. Several organisations shared transformations where multi-day manual tasks were reduced to hours, with significant reductions in payroll queries and employee advances.

It became clear that AI is not a magic compliance solution. “You can’t just throw AI at it and expect it to sort it out,” one panellist warned. Data quality, governance and realistic expectations are essential to avoiding risk, particularly with external solutions. Many emphasised that the workforce of the future needs deeper analytical capability, not just familiarity with payroll systems.

Despite enthusiasm, there was caution around the human impact. Delegates stressed that AI must not de-humanise payroll operations. Instead, with more data visibility, payroll will increasingly influence employee wellbeing, financial inclusion and business strategy. As one speaker put it, “Payroll has always been invisible. AI might actually give it a louder voice.”

Neurodiversity and the Human Heart of Payroll

One of the most powerful threads throughout the summit was the focus on inclusion, particularly neurodiversity. Speakers shared personal experiences of navigating workplaces that were technically compliant but practically unsupportive. A significant portion of young workers expect employers’ DEI values to be lived, not written, with 42% turning down jobs that don’t align.

Discussions highlighted the need for personalised performance assessment, adaptive communication, and low-cost adjustments such as clearer documentation, accessible benefit platforms, and recognition of individual strengths. Inclusion cannot be a tick-box exercise. It must be continuously nurtured, measured and transparently acted upon.

The Strategic Future of Pay and Reward

The summit closed with a reminder that payroll is the function employees rely on most. Speakers stressed that payroll is the lifeblood of organisations, something felt viscerally during the cost-of-living crisis. Case studies on payroll-linked savings showed how small interventions can strengthen financial wellbeing and reshape employee identity around money.

Ultimately, the summit showed a profession standing at a pivotal moment as it balances deepening compliance demands, accelerating technology, and a growing responsibility for human experience. The future of payroll will not simply be more automated or more regulated, it will be more visible, more strategic, and more human than ever before.