Issue 1: Lifelines

Payroll has been slowly changing over the past decade, but 2020 felt like a tipping point. During the pandemic, payroll teams played a crucial role to make sure people got the money and support they needed to keep going in a global crisis. But payroll has been preparing for this sea change for a while. New AI and data analysis tools are freeing up payroll teams to move beyond compliance and efficiency to start playing a more strategic role in their company’s direction.

We want to help you understand — and lead — this transformation in your own workplace. The ReThink Quarterly is sharing big-picture discussions with payroll, finance and HR professionals alongside real stories of people and their paychecks.

For this first edition of the ReThink Quarterly, we’ve started with a global theme — Lifelines. In a globally connected world, people rely on their paychecks not only to support themselves but to support their loved ones and maintain connections to their home countries.

In 2019, a record 281 million people lived in a country other than their own, sending home $717 billion in remittances. These remittances demonstrate the power of the paycheck — every dollar is a kind of venture capital, funding innumerable businesses and households. Even small amounts of money can make a big difference, but the cost of sending money home varies greatly depending on where you live.

How money moves around the world

More than $717 billion in remittances moved globally in 2019 — but the cost of sending money varies widely depending on the destination.

How 6 people in Kolkata earn their rupees

We took to the streets of Kolkata, India, to ask people about their first and future paychecks.

The story of global remittances in 6 charts

The money that people working far from home send back to their families — remittances — makes a big difference, especially in times of crisis.

The ‘modern-day heroes’ funding Filipino families

More than 120,000 Filipinos work in Hong Kong, primarily as household help. The money they earn abroad is essential for their families’ futures. Their biggest investment? Education.

Pipelines of dollars in Venezuela

Remittances in U.S. dollars are the bedrock of the fragile Venezuelan economy. But those dollars that millions of people depend on to survive aren’t always easy to come by.

The back way from the Gambia to Germany

With agriculture on the decline and tourism hit hard by the pandemic, remittances sent from the Gambian diaspora are more important than ever. One man risked his life to make it to Germany via the Mediterranean.

Luxembourg’s luxuries fund lifelines to India

With its high salaries, Luxembourg draws many workers from around the world. A growing number of Indian citizens work there to support their families back home.

How countries around the world are tackling the pandemic slump

Targeting recipients for direct cash payouts is the key to global economic recovery, a Yale economist says.

How to fix 7 payroll problems exacerbated by the pandemic

No organization was completely prepared for a global pandemic, but companies with digitized, unified payroll departments were able to adjust more rapidly.

Igniting a better payroll process at Signify

In its spinoff from Royal Philips, this ‘130-year-old startup’ had a chance to reinvent how it does payroll.

Resilience, serenity, flexibility: Rethinking the world of work

Nearly a year after the world as we know it changed, speakers at ADP ReThink Now discussed what businesses have learned from the pandemic and what changes we’ll take with us into the future.

The power of the paycheck

Exploring stories of remittances led to some surprising discoveries about my own family history.

Steal our charts: Issue 1

Please feel free to use these visualizations and charts we’ve created in your reports, presentations and social media.