Payroll Planner
Business operations skill, available on Zeplik
Payroll Planner is a ready-to-run business operations skill on Zeplik. Cash forecast to payday, ranked invoices, drafted reminders. Ask in plain language and Zeplik applies the skill's method for you inside the conversation, on whichever AI model you prefer. It returns a structured document you can keep and reuse: Document artifact -- structured written deliverable with headed sections and a TL;DR (see artifact-templates/document.md).
The Payroll Planner skill loads automatically when your request matches it, or you can invoke it directly by typing /plan-payroll in any chat. It works with attachments, connectors, and any model that supports the task, so you get the same expert method every time without setting anything up.
What the Payroll Planner skill can do
- Forecast cash on hand through your next payroll date
- Deliver a covered, gap, or at-risk verdict with confidence bands
- Rank overdue invoices by recoverable amount and likelihood to pay
- Draft customer-specific collection reminders for your review and approval
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Pick a prompt to open it in the Zeplik app. If you are not signed in yet, your prompt is waiting for you the moment you do.
How the Payroll Planner skill works
/plan-payroll
Run the payroll-confidence pipeline: forecast cash through your payroll date, then rank overdue invoices and draft collection reminders that close any gap. You approve at each handoff -- nothing is treated as final without your confirmation.
Usage
/plan-payroll $ARGUMENTS
Optional arguments: a forecast horizon in days (30, 60, or 90; default 30) and the payroll date (defaults to the next upcoming payroll you tell me about).
What I Need From You
Paste or upload exports from your accounting system:
- Accounts receivable aging (open invoices with amounts and due dates)
- Accounts payable / upcoming bills
- Current bank balance and recent cash history if available
- Fixed costs: rent, payroll amount and dates, recurring vendor charges
- For Step 2: customer payment history if you have it (who pays on time, who runs late)
Step 1 -- Cash Forecast to Payroll Date
- Build expected cash inflows from AR (using due dates and, where history exists, each customer's typical payment lag) and outflows from AP plus fixed costs over the requested horizon.
- Layer in payroll explicitly as a dated outflow.
- Produce a day-by-day (or week-by-week) forecast with a confidence band: best case (everyone pays on time), median (typical payment behavior), worst case (late payers slip further).
- Flag named risks in plain language, e.g. "payroll on May 15 lands $4,200 below your fixed-cost floor at the median forecast."
- Deliver the verdict: covered, gap (with the amount), or at risk (covered at median but not at worst case).
If payroll is comfortably covered, I will say so and ask whether you still want to chase overdue invoices or stop here.
Step 2 -- Overdue Collection Plan (on your go-ahead)
After you confirm ("okay, see what we can collect"):
- Rank overdue invoices by amount x days late x customer payment history -- biggest recoverable cash first, adjusted for how likely each customer is to respond.
- For each ranked invoice, draft a reminder matched to the relationship: gentle nudge for reliable customers who slipped once, firm and specific for repeat late payers (invoice number, amount, original due date, requested payment date).
- Show the projected cash impact if the top N invoices get paid within the horizon, and whether that closes the payroll gap from Step 1.
- You review, edit, and send the reminders yourself through your email or invoicing tool. I never assume a reminder was sent; tell me which ones went out and I will update the forecast.
Approval Gates
- No reminder text is final until you approve it; drafts only.
- The forecast is a planning tool, not an authoritative statement -- confirm the numbers against your books before acting on a tight margin.
- If a required input is missing (no AR aging, no bank balance), I will stop and ask for it rather than guess.
Output
Ends with a one-paragraph recap: forecast verdict (covered / gap / at risk), the ranked collection list with drafted reminders, and the projected cash position if the reminders convert -- plus a suggested check-in date before payroll runs.
How to use the Payroll Planner skill
Sign in to Zeplik
Create a free Zeplik account or sign in. New accounts start with free credits, so you can try the Payroll Planner skill right away.
Describe your business operations task
Ask in plain language, or type /plan-payroll to invoke the skill directly. Zeplik recognizes the Payroll Planner skill and applies its method.
Review and refine the result
Zeplik returns a structured document you can edit, download, and reuse. Ask follow-ups to refine it.
Source and credit
- Author
- Anthropic
- License
- Apache-2.0
Adapted from the open-source anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins project and tuned to run natively on Zeplik. View source on GitHub.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the Payroll Planner skill?
- Payroll Planner is a ready-to-run business operations skill on Zeplik. Cash forecast to payday, ranked invoices, drafted reminders. Ask in plain language and Zeplik applies the skill's method for you inside the conversation, on whichever AI model you prefer. It returns a structured document you can keep and reuse: Document artifact -- structured written deliverable with headed sections and a TL;DR (see artifact-templates/document.md).
- How do I use Payroll Planner on Zeplik?
- Sign in to Zeplik and ask in plain language, or type /plan-payroll in any chat to invoke it directly. The skill applies its method and returns a result you can refine in the same conversation.
- Which AI model does the Payroll Planner skill use?
- Any model you choose. Zeplik works across every model in one chat, so the Payroll Planner skill runs on your preferred model for the task.
- Where does the Payroll Planner skill come from?
- The Payroll Planner skill is adapted from the open-source anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins project (Apache-2.0) and tuned to run natively on Zeplik. The original source is linked on this page.
- How much does the Payroll Planner skill cost?
- Using the skill is free to start. You only spend Zeplik credits when the assistant runs, and new accounts begin with free credits.
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More on Zeplik
Try Payroll Planner on Zeplik
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