Cloud Computing for Payroll Industry - Essay Example

ID # Cloud Computing for Payroll Industry The innovations in the area of information technology have provided the business organizations with a variety of wonderful opportunities. The latest tools and techniques offered by the information technologies enabled organizations to automate their business processes and as a result improve their business performance. Though, the ideas of remote working, storage, processing and communication are not new. In every decade we have seen lots of efforts and developments carried out in these areas, however, at the present we actually see this idea as a real implementation. In this scenario, cloud computing is an emerging trend in the computing industry. This paper presents a brief overview of cloud computing technology with respect to its usage for payroll industry. The basic objective of this research is to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing with respect to payroll industry. Cloud Computing Cloud computing refers to the use of a cloud image to indicate the internet or a number of huge networked arrangements. Though, people are not concerned a great deal with what is in the cloud or what goes on there apart from that they actually rely on consistently transmitting data to as well as receiving information and data from it. Additionally, the cloud computing is at the present linked with a high level idea of the cloud. Instead of using routers, pipes and servers for transferring data and information, people use cloud services (Rouse; Hartig). In addition, the technology and architecture behind cloud computing lead to a group of unified storage systems, servers and control nodes that can facilitate distributed computing. Additionally, every cloud computing based arrangement normally has a client computer and front end and a back end that consists of software systems and servers, and a number of categories of control node and data storage. In this scenario, the network that puts together all the things is the most significant side that could be linked with cloud computing design. As well, the components of a cloud computing arrangement can be connected with each other by means of web/internet, and the client normally accesses them by means of internet (Hartig; Strickland; Laukkonen). Cloud Computing in the Context of Payroll Industry PC revolution has provided many “off the shelf” solutions to business organizations. Payroll and HR software tools are the solution that is created for the HR professionals to meet the needs of the organizations. However, in the past decade with the technology of cloud based software, many solutions provided to organizations have become more innovative by delivering numerous options (Foskett; Defelice). Traditionally, the software for payroll is installed on the server of the company depending on the IT infrastructure. The charges for the software package are paid at the time of the installation. The day to day maintenance of the software is administered by internal It resources of the company. But, this software requires updates. The reason is due to the changes in the legislation or the tax change that can take place by government laws. To upgrade the software, the organization has to purchase the latest version of the software by vendors or by following the maintenance agreement which states that the company has to ask the vendor to upgrade the software. According to the maintenance agreement the cost of the upgrade is 20 to 30% of the original cost. This solution is mostly adopted by those companies who want an in-house solution for the payroll, which is precise and at the same time it saves those long hours, which are spent in manually handling the payroll system (Foskett; Defelice). However, a second option is available in the form of cloud computing. The use of cloud computing allows the organizations to have the data stored and processed by the provider with the facility of back office support. It functions through software that is installed on the main frame of the IT infrastructure of the corporate office. The date to the server is transmitted at regular intervals. This solution is used by many companies as it allows a variety of additional services along with the software like simple processing or managing the data based on different criteria. But, one drawback in this facility is that immediate access to the data is not possible. However, this can also be managed with the help of a third solution known as a fully operational cloud-based solution (Foskett; Defelice). With the help of cloud computing, the payroll solution is managed on the Internet. It refers to software that is licensed to the customer through a subscription. This software can also be used with segregated policies for the customer specific levels of payroll management and managed services (Foskett; Defelice). Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud Computing Cloud computing payroll solution plays a very crucial role in providing advanced solutions to a company concerning the HR responsibilities. First of all the access can be easily managed from any computer as it is a web based service. The only requirement is the internet service. The provider supply the updates and the maintenance for the software are carried by the provider. The company doesn’t have to host it locally, which means that there is no requirement for support from the IT infrastructure of the company. Another advantage by using a cloud solution is that it provides the inbuilt cost modeling. The subscription model creates a predictable table for the expenses of the company which is based on the expenses calculated per employee. This is very beneficial for the company as the headcount rises in a company it means that the overall cost will also rise. On the other hand, if the headcount decreases, it will show that the cost of the company has also decreased. There are many other technological advances of the cloud computing technology that helps any company in streamlining their HR processes unlike the traditional software that helps in managing the payroll. Cloud computing has taken the payroll service to the next level. The finance department along with the human resource department can work together with the help of the corporate system and database. The cloud computing makes the work interesting as the staff members can communicate with each other with the help of Facebook. As people rely on the Internet for the completion of their different tasks and activities, the access to the internet is a compulsory feature that is implemented in the offices. It is due to the internet service that electronic Pay slips have become a popular demand along with online request for annual leave as the trend of paperless environment is on the rise (Foskett; Defelice; Foxall). In the coming years, we will see that cloud computing will be the first choice for companies and its application will be more widespread. As the main facility of cloud computing is to store the date on a remote server, rather than the company’s server, it can be easily accessed by employees who are not present at the office premises (Foskett; Defelice; Foxall). There are still many issues and problems those are hindering in the successful implementations of cloud computing in payroll sector. In this scenario, one of the main issues that we face is about “data security”. A large number of business corporations face various security threats such as theft of data and information. This concern is vital because precious data and information of a payroll firm is stored at a 3rd party organization that is cause of main concern. In addition, many corporations are in problem due to the heavy cost of migration of large systems from one end to another. In this scenario, there are many issues which can take place while shifting to cloud computing based arrangement (Ladeinde; Crusader). Conclusion The innovations in the area of information technology have offered wonderful opportunities to the payroll sector. Cloud computing has crossed the boundaries of a number of innovative technology ideas, though it does cover its own denotation if contextually utilized properly. Cloud computing refers to the use of a cloud image to indicate the internet or a number of huge networked arrangements. This paper has presented a detailed overview of cloud computing in the context of payroll industry. This paper has discussed the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing with respect to payroll sector. It can be concluded that in the future cloud computing will further raise and this idea will become very popular among a large number of payroll firms. Works Cited Crusader, Lord. Problems Faced by Cloud Computing. 2013. http://dl.packetstormsecurity.net/papers/general/ProblemsFacedbyCloudComputing.pdf. 22 November 2014. Defelice, Alexandra. Cloud Computing: What Accountants Need to Know . October 2010. http://www.journalofaccountancy.com/Issues/2010/Oct/20102519.htm. 23 November 2014. Foskett, David. Cloud software for payroll May 2011. 19 April 2011. http://www.payandbenefitsmagazine.co.uk/pab/article/cloud-software-for-payroll-12316541. 22 November 2014. Foxall, Dave. Understanding the Potential and Pitfalls of Cloud Payroll. 2014. http://www.payrolllab.com/cloud-payroll-pitfalls-potential.php. 22 November 2014. Griffith, Eric. 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