The 31^st annual American Payroll Association  Congress opened May 7 in Grapevine, Texas, with  2,500 payroll professionals attending, including 494 first-time participants, said Dan Maddux, the association’s executive director.

Robyn Maslouski, CPP, director of human resources services at Cardinal Health Inc. in Dublin, Ohio, was named Payroll Woman of the Year.

Peter Isberg, vice president of government affairs at Automatic Data Processing Inc. in Roseland, N.J., was named Payroll Man of the Year.

Deborah Viers Traylor, CPP, was introduced as the new APA president. At the opening general session, Viers spoke of ever-increasing global payment issues, big data, security risks, cloud computing, and the appropriate use of social media. Payroll departments need to measure the benefits of technological media and functions in data administration while keeping information systems secure, said Viers, who brings experience in payroll systems and human resources to the role.

Brian O’Laughlin, APA government affairs manager, said that payroll departments were confronted by a number of challenges in the past year, including changes to the tax-withholding process.

Brent Gow, CPP, the APA’s immediate past president, said an exam to acquire a global payroll certification is under development by the APA. Gow, who is director for global payroll consulting and compliance at Starbucks Coffee Co., also serves as chairman of Bloomberg BNA’s Payroll Library advisory board.