How does SeniorCRE forecast payroll for the next two weeks before it is run?

The problem

Payroll is a surprise every period. The schedule looks one way, the actuals come in another, and overtime is discovered the week after it was earned.

How the platform runs it

Payroll forecasts daily from the schedule plus time-clock punches in real time. Overtime is projected per employee, per pay period, with hours remaining before each threshold. Holiday and shift-differential premiums apply automatically. The forecast feeds the cash forecast and the labor variance report.

On the shift

LCIFS generates the next-pay-period payroll forecast on Friday afternoon. The model uses the published schedule, projected fill rates, expected PTO based on requests, and benchmark agency utilization. The forecast is within ±2% of actual most pay periods. The CFO uses it for the rolling 13-week cash forecast without an additional Excel build. When projected payroll exceeds budget for the period, the COO sees it before approving the schedule, not after running it.

What the outcome looks like

Overtime that used to surprise the controller surfaces five days in advance, and payroll lands within 1% of forecast.

What goes wrong without it

Without forecasting, payroll is whatever the time clock says on Monday morning. The cash forecast that depends on it is built from prior-period averages. The first time anyone notices a $40K payroll overrun is when the ACH posts; by then the decisions that caused it — agency calls, overtime approvals — are eight days old.