KJM case study

Stabilising complex mining payroll driven by roster change in just six weeks

An Australian mining organisation with complex staffing requirements moved to reduce its reliance on external resourcing. The resulting change in work patterns for internal staff required significant roster and pay rule updates in UKG Ready, and KJM Consulting was engaged to deliver them within a compressed six-week timeline.

Plan Understand the impact before change is applied.
Deliver Configure complex changes under tight timelines.
Grow Build lasting confidence in payroll outcomes.

The challenge

Major roster and pay rule changes, a complex mining environment and very little time to get it right.

R

Roster-driven change

Moving work to internal resources meant substantial updates to roster structures and hourly pay rules.

P

Complex pay calculations

Changes reached across overtime, premiums, allowances, leave and exception handling.

6

Compressed timeline

Analysis, design, configuration and testing all had to fit within six weeks, leaving little room for rework.

✓

Operational confidence

The internal team needed to understand the downstream payroll impact and avoid disruption to operations.

Structured delivery model

Effort was focused on the activities most critical to payroll accuracy and a clean go-live.

✓
1

Analyse current state

Reviewed existing rosters and pay calculations to understand current behaviour.

✓
2

Define required changes

Documented the configuration needed to achieve the expected payroll and roster outcomes.

✓
3

Plan minimal disruption

Sequenced the changes with key stakeholders to reduce impact on day-to-day operations.

✓
4

Implement configuration

Designed and applied the new pay rules and rosters in UKG Ready.

✓
5

Validate outcomes

Built a structured testing framework to confirm results before go-live.

Where KJM focused

Practical UKG Ready knowledge and hands-on delivery were applied where they added the most value.

R
Roster alignment Mapped new roster structures to the updated operating model.
P
Pay rule redesign Reworked pay logic so rules reflected how people now work.
T
Testing evidence Compared results against expected payroll outcomes before deployment.
G
Go-live stability Reduced risk and supported a smooth transition into live operations.

The design decision that mattered

Success depended on more than configuration. It required a clear understanding of payroll impact, disciplined stakeholder alignment and testing that proved the new rules would behave as expected in a live mining environment.

Complex payroll change creates confidence when rule design, implementation and testing evidence all work together.

From complexity to control

How the change moved from risk to a stable, sustainable payroll setup.

Before Roster changes had significant flow-on impacts, and existing payroll logic needed extensive redesign.
Change action A structured approach combining analysis, stakeholder alignment, configuration and testing.
Improvement Long-standing pay rule issues were fixed along the way and exception handling became clearer.
After Cleaner payroll outcomes and stronger confidence across managers, employees and leadership.

Business outcomes

Delivered within a difficult timeframe, with lasting improvements in accuracy and effort.

8
Eight new rules delivered New pay rules and rosters went live within the six-week timeline.
✓
Minimal issues after go-live The transition happened with minimal disruption to ongoing operations.
↑
Improved timesheet accuracy Better results across worked time, allowances and exception scenarios.
↓
Reduced manual intervention Fewer manual payroll adjustments and internal support queries.

“We would not have been able to manage a change of this scope within this timeline without our team at KJM. Payroll is much quieter now.”

Payroll Officer, Australian mining organisation
Cleaner rules. More accurate pay. Greater operational confidence.

Facing a complex payroll or roster change?

Talk to us about how KJM can help you plan, deliver and stabilise it with confidence.