Australian leaders rely on guesswork over pay data

More than half of Australian business leaders admit they regularly fall back on guesswork rather than data when making pay and promotion decisions, according to new research by HR technology company HiBob.

The company's 2026 "Flying Blind" study found 57% of leaders rely on educated guesses when pay data is too hard to access, despite 83% saying they value data-driven decision-making. The study found 62% of leaders spend three or more hours assembling data across systems before making a single people decision, and only 5% reported facing no obstacles to data-driven decisions.

The most commonly cited barriers were conflict between people and financial goals (34%), time constraints (31%) and inconsistent processes across teams (29%).

Additionally, 87% of leaders said switching between tools or spreadsheets slows them down at least half the time, and 59% said role permissions or privacy rules limit their access to data they need, per the study. Nearly eight in 10 leaders (78%) agreed they would make more cost-effective people decisions with unified HR and finance data, HiBob reported.

Compliance deadline raises the stakes

The findings arrive as Australian employers face a hard superannuation compliance deadline. Under the government's PayDay Super reform, employers must pay superannuation guarantee contributions at the same time as wages, rather than quarterly, starting 1 July. Contributions must reach an employee's nominated fund within seven business days, according to the Fair Work Ombudsman. Late payment can breach the Fair Work Act, an applicable award or an enterprise agreement.

Employers must also calculate contributions using a new "qualifying earnings" measure, broader than the ordinary time earnings basis previously used, according to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Failure to meet the seven-day window triggers a superannuation guarantee charge, assessed directly by the ATO rather than self-reported by employers, the agency said. The ATO has published a Practical Compliance Guideline, known as PCG 2026/1, setting out a risk-based enforcement approach for the reform's first year, though it gives no discretion where a definitive shortfall is identified.

Superannuation is also an entitlement under the National Employment Standards, meaning late payment can carry workplace-law consequences beyond tax penalties, according to law firm Gilchrist Connell. Employers using the ATO's Small Business Superannuation Clearing House, which closed entirely on 30 June 2026, were required to transition to an alternative SuperStream-compliant payment channel ahead of the new rules.

Second survey points to same pattern

A survey of 500 Australian businesses by payroll platform Employment Hero earlier in the year found 84% of business owners are frustrated with their current superannuation processes, and 69% are already concerned about staying on top of evolving super requirements. An earlier wave of the same research found 58% of business owners had never heard of the PayDay Super reforms, despite the deadline being only months away at the time.

Rob Dunn, general manager of payments, superannuation and benefits at Employment Hero, said the businesses handling the transition well are not counting on leniency from regulators. " They’re using the final month between now and 1 July to test payroll workflows, validate employee fund details and identify any operational bottlenecks before the new rules come into force," Dunn said.

Anna Volkova, head of people and culture at HiBob APJ, said the pattern reflects strained systems rather than a lack of intent among leaders. "The data isn't telling us that Australian leaders don't care about making good people decisions. It's telling us the systems they're working with are failing them," Volkova said.

Volkova added that the compliance shift raises the stakes for employers still operating with disconnected HR and finance systems. "Leaders cannot afford to keep guessing," she said.