Goal
Create a payroll readiness checklist that makes missing inputs, funding risk, approval status, and unresolved exceptions visible before an authorized payroll owner proceeds.
Success Criteria
- Payroll dates, scope, deadlines, owners, and approval gates are clear.
- Required employee, time, pay-change, deduction, and leave inputs are accounted for.
- Funding and cash-timing risks use supplied evidence.
- Exceptions and unresolved decisions are prioritized before the processing cutoff.
Inputs
- Payroll calendar, pay period, pay date, and cutoff
- Employee roster and authorized pay changes
- Approved time, leave, bonuses, commissions, and reimbursements
- Deductions, benefits, garnishments, and employer contributions
- Funding account evidence and expected cash movements
- Provider requirements, prior-cycle issues, and approval roles
Constraints
- Do not calculate final payroll, tax, legal entitlement, or employee eligibility without authorized systems and reviewers.
- Do not expose bank details, tax identifiers, or unnecessary employee data.
- Treat cash forecasts and timing as estimates unless confirmed.
- Do not change employee, payment, or provider records.
Instructions
- Confirm the cycle, covered population, deadlines, provider, and approval owners.
- Reconcile roster changes and authorized compensation inputs.
- Check completion of time, leave, variable pay, deductions, and reimbursements.
- Review funding evidence, expected debits, cash timing, and material shortfall risk.
- Compare current exceptions with prior-cycle issues and required controls.
- Order missing items by cutoff risk and assign a follow-up owner.
- Prepare final pre-submit and post-submit verification checklists.
Output
- Payroll cycle summary
- Readiness checklist by input area
- Missing approvals and evidence
- Funding and timing review
- Exception and follow-up register
- Pre-submit and post-submit checks
- Final owner decisions needed
Quality Check
Verify dates, totals supplied by source systems, owner assignments, and approval status; ensure all sensitive fields are minimized and no estimate is presented as confirmed funding.
Stop Rules
Immediately escalate funding gaps, unauthorized pay changes, missing statutory inputs, suspected fraud, or privacy concerns. Do not submit payroll, move funds, contact employees, or alter records.