--- title: "Payroll Solutions Trends: Technologies and Features to Watch" description: What will payroll solutions need to look like to stay competitive? Discover the latest trends, from flexible payment to all-in-one workforce management. image: https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hubfs/Payroll%20Solutions%20Trends.png --- [![CPS Logo_rgb-2](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hubfs/CPS%20Logo_rgb-2.svg "CPS Logo_rgb-2")](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com) - Solutions - - [Payroll Payroll tax filing, automated and integrated processing, paperless reporting and more.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/payroll-outsourcing) - [Talent Management Personalized recruiting, onboarding, performance management, training and offboarding.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/talent-management) - [HR Solutions HR support, handbook development, training, safety and compliance — all the daily tasks of people management.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hr-outsourcing) - - [Benefits Comprehensive and affordable medical, dental, retirement, workman’s comp and pre-tax savings plans.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/employee-benefits) - [Time & Attendance Integrated time and attendance tracking, PTO request and accrual management, scheduling and reporting.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/time-and-attendance) - [Employee Engagement Custom experiences designed to attract, engage, and retain talent to get the best from your staff.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/employee-engagement) - - See How It Works - ![Executive Dashboard](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hs-fs/hubfs/2021%20Website%20Update%20Images/Images/Nav-Demo-Thumbnail.png?width=250&name=Nav-Demo-Thumbnail.png) - [![Request a Demo](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/1885176/b949a8d0-722d-43f0-bed8-a62983a06b31.png)](https://resources.completepayrollsolutions.com/demo-request) - Who We Serve - - [Startups Start strong with personal service that will grow with you as you scale your business.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/payroll-and-hr-startups) - [Small & Medium Businesses Grow and evolve with strategic guidance and all-in-one solutions for payroll, HR and benefits.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/small-medium-business-payroll-benefits) - [Large & Enterprise Businesses Discover custom systems and integrations with industry-leading technology to help reduce administrative burden and increase your bottom line.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/payroll-and-hr-outsourcing-large-business) - - [Industries Get an experienced partner with the insider info you need to stay compliant and ahead of the curve.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/who-we-serve) - [Our Partners Close relationships with top-tier companies within their industries.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/partnerships) - Resources - - [Blog Smart articles and lots of answers to your most asked questions.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog) - [Learning Center In-depth resources designed to make your payroll, HR, and benefits experience easier.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/resources) - [Employee, Federal & State Forms Up-to-date documents and links at your fingertips.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/employee-federal-state-forms) - - [Tax Guide & Calendar](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hubfs/2023TaxCalendar_FINAL_20230103.pdf) - [![Tax Guide & Calendar](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hs-fs/hubfs/2023%20Tax%20Calendar%20Image.png?width=200&name=2023%20Tax%20Calendar%20Image.png)](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hubfs/2023TaxCalendar_FINAL_20230103.pdf) - Who We Are - - [Contact Speak with an industry expert or connect with your CPS Consultant.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/contact-us) - [About Us CPS is your *people partner*. 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In today’s tight labor market, doing payroll right is more important than ever to[keeping up morale](https://smallbusiness.chron.com/importance-payroll-23271.html). Fortunately, national payroll software companies are always adding features to improve payroll accuracy, timeliness, and engagement. What are the trends in payroll solutions you might want to consider to optimize your processes? [Download our free Complete Guide to Payroll Solutions and determine if outsourcing is right for you.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/how-to-determine-if-payroll-outsourcing-is-right-for-you) To help you understand the newest offerings you may want to consider, here we’ll discuss: - Flexible pay options - All-in-one workforce management solutions - Cryptocurrency - Mobile and remote apps - Artificial intelligence After reading this, you’ll be able to decide if it’s time to embrace one of these trends to improve your payroll – and employee satisfaction. For more guidance about understanding the scope of payroll services—and how they align with your organization’s needs, consider downloading our [complete guide to payroll solutions.](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/how-to-determine-if-payroll-outsourcing-is-right-for-you) ## Top 5 Payroll Solutions Trends If you’re thinking about updating your legacy payroll tools with modern approaches, here are five trends to consider. ### Flexible Pay Options Whether employees are on site or remote, faster, more convenient access to their wages is essential. While paperless methods like direct deposit and paycards have become increasingly common to meet employees’ needs, there are two emerging methods that are taking paperless pay to a new level. 1. **Digital Wallets**: If your workforce is made up of employees who prefer to use their smartphone over cash, they may be interested in having their paychecks deposited directly into a digital wallet like a Venmo account or Apple Pay. With this approach, there are no or low fees for you. And for employees? They can use their digital wallets to make purchases, pay bills, or send money to friends and family. Just keep in mind that providing a pay stub, in states where it’s required, may be challenging unless you partner with a payroll provider that supports this feature. 2. **Instant Pay Apps**: These phone-based apps, like[ZayZoon](https://www.zayzoon.com/), allow employees to access earned wages before their regular payday. This method satisfies the desires of a majority of US workers,[83% of whom believe they should have access to their earned wages at the end of each workday](https://www.forbes.com/sites/edwardsegal/2021/09/13/most-workers-want-to-be-paid-automatically-every-day-according-to-new-poll/?sh=6df0d930293f) or shift. However, you’ll want to check if you will be charged fees for implementation and usage – and what employees will be charged for each advance. In addition, some states such as California may have wage and hour laws governing the use of a third party in the wage payment structure.  ### All-In-One Workforce Management Solutions Standalone payroll systems are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Instead, one of the biggest payroll solutions trends is the move to comprehensive[HRIS workforce management systems](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog/hris-considerations) that can be used throughout the entire employee life cycle. With this approach, you’ll have a single employee record that feeds payroll, HR, time and attendance, and benefits. For example, your time tracking and scheduling will synchronize with your payroll module automatically. This single database of record makes managing your team simpler, accurate, and more efficient. Specifically, you’ll realize benefits like: - Avoiding duplicate data entry – and the risk of errors - Accessing all essential information from a single dashboard - Being able to share data across systems - Gaining more actionable reporting Plus, employees can log into a single portal for self-service tasks like updating their personal information, accessing their paystubs and W-2s, recording punch data, viewing and creating schedules, and requesting time off for increased engagement. ### Cryptocurrency as a Pay Option With high-profile individuals like[politicians](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-03/miami-mayor-seeks-wider-crypto-use-after-taking-pay-in-bitcoin#:~:text=The%20Miami%20mayor%20also%20holds,fintech%20company%20Strike%2C%20he%20said.) and professional athletes accepting their pay in Bitcoin, it’s not surprising that cryptocurrency is making a move to the mainstream – especially among young workers. In fact,[36% of millennials and 51 % of Gen Z say they’re willing to get half their salary in cryptocurrency](https://www.cryptopolitan.com/crypto-frenzy-millennial-salary-in-crypto/). Depending on your employee’s interest, you can either pay them wages in US dollars then convert the funds to the digital asset of their choice, or you could pay in the cryptocurrency itself. If you pay in cryptocurrency, just remember you need to withhold and report payroll taxes, which will require you to determine the fair market value. In addition, depending on your state’s rules, you may need to have employees agree in writing to receive part or all of their wages in a form other than US dollars. Be sure to check local laws and, even if permissible, make any program optional and have employees consent in writing. Consent is also key because cryptocurrencies have been volatile, with[steep drops in value in mere hours](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-07/should-you-get-paid-in-bitcoin-why-a-crypto-salary-may-be-a-dangerous-trend), and employees may have potential capital gains taxes so you’ll want them to acknowledge the risks.    ### Payroll Solutions with Mobile and Remote Accessibility With the rise of remote workers during – and beyond – the pandemic, employees are working from anywhere. But old systems may not be capable of meeting the needs of off-site staff effectively and efficiently. That’s where mobile and web-based access come in. Depending on what software you choose or your payroll provider’s offerings, you may be able to allow employees to take several actions from their phone or computer, including: - Clock in and out with online time and attendance - Access their pay and tax information - Check PTO balances - Get instant payments In addition to the added convenience for employees, these capabilities also benefit owners and/or administrators by enabling them to review, edit, and run payroll from anywhere. ### Artificial Intelligence Capabilities Companies are increasingly employing AI for everything from HR tasks to payroll. For example, some uses of[AI](https://news.bloombergtax.com/payroll/artificial-intelligence-can-drive-payroll-process-expert-says) in workforce management include: - Automating workflows by tracking and computing employees’ hours and pay rates and sending the information to payroll for processing - Using algorithms to calculate the average earnings, deductions, and taxes by employee compared to the payroll being run to identify significant variations - Using pay rule engines to manage data sets and automatically apply laws and regulations for compliance - Helping with pay and salary considerations - Identifying reasons behind payroll mistakes to minimize future ones - Cleaning and analyzing data for more intuitive reports without much manual intervention - Providing predictive tools tied to online pay and attendance tracking to see if you’re going to exceed your payroll budget - Offering chatbots to help employees with non-urgent requests as well as review punch details, time off requests, schedule, and perform multiple HR-based functions - Aiding in t applicant screening as part of the recruitment and hiring process - Automating scheduling functionality - Alerting management to an employee’s likelihood of leaving The key is to find the issues your payroll team faces and which AI capabilities could provide solutions to eliminate human error, decrease the burden on your staff, and boost employee efficiency.  ## How to Capitalize on Trends for a Better Payroll Experience As the payroll industry continues to evolve, it’s important to keep pace. And knowing the latest features offered by different payroll solutions is the first step to helping you improve the payroll experience for you–– and especially your employees. That’s because employee retention is essential in today’s labor market, and just two payroll errors can cause[49% of employees to start job hunting](https://www.hrdive.com/news/just-two-payroll-errors-can-cause-49-of-employees-to-start-job-hunting/444377/). To recognize these and other dynamics of a candidate’s market, l[earn more about today's hiring environment](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog/hiring-trends). - Share Post: - - in ![Tag Icon](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/hubfs/tags.png) [Payroll](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog/topic/payroll) , [Payroll Trends](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog/topic/payroll-trends) [❮ Complete Payroll Services: 6 Common...](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog/complete-payroll-services-misconceptions) [Top Features to Look for in a Payro... ❯](https://www.completepayrollsolutions.com/blog/payroll-portal-features) Subscribe Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. 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