Invercargill council completes first cloud payroll

Atturra has implemented TechnologyOne Human Resources and Payroll at Invercargill City Council, which has now completed its first live payroll on the cloud-based system.

The rollout covered about 550 employees, replacing separate legacy payroll and human resources systems with a single platform.

The project is part of Invercargill City Council's wider Our Council transformation programme, a multi-year effort to update core business systems after what it described as a long period of limited investment in enterprise technology. The programme is intended to reduce reliance on ageing systems and support digital services for staff and residents.

Payroll was one of the more sensitive parts of that work because it underpins day-to-day operations across the organisation. The council's workforce includes a mix of employment arrangements and payroll rules, and the system also needed to connect with other business applications.

As a result, the move required design work, configuration, data checks, testing, staff training and change management while normal payroll operations continued. Atturra began project initiation in early 2024 before moving through planning, design, testing and deployment.

The implementation followed a phased approach. Invercargill Airport, which sits within the council group, went live earlier, providing a smaller setting to test the arrangement before the wider council rollout.

According to the organisations, the delivery process also had to address issues around scope, systems integration and overall programme complexity. Stronger governance, additional testing and joint problem-solving were used to manage those issues, with payroll accuracy and continuity treated as the main conditions for go-live.

For local authorities, payroll projects can be especially difficult because they sit at the intersection of finance, people management and operational service delivery. Any errors can have immediate consequences for staff and can quickly become a wider organisational problem.

Invercargill City Council said the immediate test of the new platform was whether it could complete a live payroll accurately. Longer-term gains such as better reporting, simpler processes and stronger in-house knowledge will depend on how the platform is embedded and refined over time.

Michael Day commented on the milestone after the first production payroll was completed.

"Successfully implementing a new payroll platform is a significant technology milestone because every employee depends on it operating accurately and reliably," said Michael Day, Chief Executive Officer, Invercargill City Council. "Completing our first live payroll reflects the commitment of our Payroll, People and Culture, Information Services and Project teams, together with the support of Atturra as our implementation partner."

Broader shift

The council serves Invercargill and the wider city area, including Bluff, in New Zealand's South Island. Its modernisation work reflects a broader trend among public sector organisations replacing older standalone systems with integrated software delivered through the cloud.

Such projects have drawn increasing attention as councils and other public bodies face pressure to maintain core services while updating internal systems that can be difficult and costly to support. Human resources and payroll are often among the first functions reviewed because they affect every employee and rely heavily on data accuracy.

Atturra said the Invercargill project highlights the importance of governance and staged implementation when replacing critical systems. The Australia-listed company works across government and other sectors, providing technology services around implementation and support.

John Mazenier also pointed to the operational demands involved in changing payroll systems.

"This milestone shows what councils can achieve through strong governance, detailed testing and close collaboration when modernising critical business systems," said John Mazenier, General Manager NZ, Business Applications, Atturra.