On Friday I did something very different. I keynoted at Australia’s #1 Payroll conference at the Hilton in Sydney.
The event was full of payroll professionals, HR people and accountants from across the country. I had heaps of great conversations after my talk.
Since over 90% of my expenses at SSW are payroll, I was looking for some hot tips
😂 😂
Doing a keynote is more responsibility and more preparation than a normal session and the conference organizers were really helpful and diligent.
My session, “Supercharge Yourself with AI: Practical AI You Can Use Right Now for Payroll and More” explored how AI is transforming common workflows for payroll teams by boosting productivity, reducing admin, and improving accuracy.
I loved preparing for this talk and it was all practical - SSW has already implemented AI solutions for payroll companies in both Australia and France, helping teams automate repetitive tasks, and get the right answers for complicated questions that can never be wrong.
While speaking I asked a few questions and this is what I learnt:
* 90% of the room had used Copilot
* 10% Claude Cowork (that will change quickly)
* 50% Beryl - the AI assistant for Payroll that SSW built for APA (Australian Payroll Association). It was a fun project and quite a bit of work, so that was rewarding to see that. (See Beryl in a photo)
I did have a conference attendee come up to me and sternly say
“Adam I wont use it until you change the name!”
I asked why and she said
“My sister in-law is named Beryl”
🚀 AI in payroll is no longer ‘coming soon’ - it’s here and delivering real results. Sing out if you need help.