Director, CoE Global Payroll

About the role

A unique opportunity in a brand new role, you will join the organisation at the beginning of its global payroll journey. You will start with an in depth review of the payroll landscape, with a view to creating and driving a business case that – based on your expertise – will lead to the implementation of an optimal local, regional or global solution. You will lead this implementation, working with regional HR leaders and local payroll specialists to deploy the solution. You will also develop and lead the end-state BAU payroll delivery model and CoE, in collaboration with senior HR and business leaders. Throughout all phases of the implementation project and the end-state, you will apply payroll best practice both strategically and operationally.

Key responsibilities include

• Asses and Understand current Payroll Landscape
  • Catalogue and inventory existing payroll landscape in each country; including vendor/s, payroll model, resources, and integrations
  • Identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats within existing payroll operations
  • Work with stakeholders to understand current approach logic and local restrictions
  • Support in delivering quick wins where viable
• Develop Payroll Strategy and Business Case
  • Design a comprehensive global payroll strategy that aligns with business goals and regulatory requirements
  • Conduct feasibility study for diverse payroll solutions (local, regional, global or other)
  • Create robust business case for proposed best-fit payroll solution, including cost benefit analysis, risk assessment, and implementation roadmap
• Payroll Solution Implementation
  • Lead the selection process for a best-fit payroll solution, ensuring it meets the diverse needs of all countries/regions
  • Plan and manage the end-to-end implementation of the new payroll solution across all phases and waves
  • Collaborate with HR, Digital, Finance, external support, and other stakeholders to ensure an aligned and successful implementation, and integration with other systems
  • Support in creating and delivering a Change Management plan to all affected personas
• Transition to BAU
  • Establish end-state Payroll CoE in alignment with HR TOM, with clear governance, interaction models, and forward looking agenda
  • Develop and document standardized payroll processes and procedures to ensure consistency and compliance across all countries/regions
  • Establish and maintain controls to ensure accurate and timely payroll processing
  • Monitor payroll operations continuously to identify and resolve issues proactively
  • Ensure compliance with all relevant laws, regulations, and reporting requirements
  • Some travel may be required, especially during the implementation phase of a Payroll solution

About you

• Bachelor/Master’s degree in Human Resources, Finance or similar
• Project Management qualification/s would be a significant advantage
• Very good command of English
• Minimum of 10 years in global payroll management
• Proven track record of leading multiple large-scale payroll implementations
• Strong understanding of international payroll regulations, tax laws, and compliance requirements in a diverse white and blue environment
• Exceptional project management skills gained within a payroll implementation context
• Understanding of and experience with multiple and diverse payroll solutions and approaches
• Experience of implementing payroll solutions in a diverse workforce demographic including both office and production workers is strongly preferred
• Experience with SAP SuccessFactors is a plus
• Exceptional ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders to agree and achieve common objectives
• Strong change management capabilities
• Understanding of business and HR strategies and problem-solving, and implications for the global end-to-end process
• Understands payroll enablement options, with a particular focus on digitalization and automation
• Accelerating improvements through discipline and collaboration
• Tracking process changes and anticipating their impacts
• Taking ownership of improvement targets, overseeing delivery of continuous improvement and analytical skills
• Comfortable with some level of risk
• Understanding of business priorities and drivers of efficiency