Payroll Governance Specialist

Peoplecorp HR Recruitment Specialists; Ryde; On-site; AUD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Peoplecorp HR Recruitment Specialists is assisting a large education sector organisation in NSW that runs a complex, high-volume payroll environment. The role embeds a new payroll governance framework and ensures accurate, compliant payroll processes.

Reporting to the Payroll Manager, you will have visibility across Finance, IT, HR and audit, with no direct reports. This specialist position focuses on controls, risk management and continuous improvement to optimise payroll outcomes.

Qualifications

• Tertiary qualifications in business, accounting, HR or related field, or equivalent senior payroll experience.
• Hands-on experience in complex, high-volume payroll and awards.
• Experience managing payroll governance, controls and audits.
• Strong knowledge of employer obligations: awards, superannuation, PAYG, payroll tax, STP and workers compensation.
• Experience with wage remediation and complex payroll calculations.
• Strong analytical skills and data-driven improvement.
• Experience with enterprise HR/payroll systems (Dayforce or Workday highly regarded).
• Excellent attention to detail and stakeholder management.

Responsibilities

• Ensuring payroll controls are carried out in line with the governance framework, and regularly reviewing controls, processes and practices to find risks and improvements.
• Ensuring payroll complies with enterprise agreements, modern awards, employment legislation, taxation obligations and internal policy.
• Ensuring payroll and related systems are configured correctly and access is managed appropriately.
• Leading internal and external audit activity, including supplying information, reviewing draft recommendations and making sure actions are completed on time.
• Supporting or managing wage remediation activities, including data analysis, root cause analysis, reconciliation calculations, stakeholder communication and process improvement.
• Preparing payroll governance reporting for senior stakeholders and governance committees.
• Partnering with Finance, IT and HR on controls that affect pay.

Skills

Payroll governance

Audit & assurance

Stakeholder management

Data analytics

Automation & AI in payroll

Education

Bachelor's degree in business, accounting, HR or related field

Tools

Dayforce

Workday

Job description

Our client is a large, well-established organisation in the education sector. It has a diverse workforce and a complex, high-volume payroll environment. Its shared services function supports thousands of employees and focuses on service quality, continuous improvement and strong governance.

With a new payroll governance framework now in place, the organisation is looking for a specialist to embed it and make it work in practice.

THE ROLE

Reporting to the Payroll Manager, you will make sure payroll processes and controls are accurate, compliant and well governed. This is a specialist role with no direct reports and strong visibility across Finance, IT, HR and audit stakeholders.

Key responsibilities include:

• Ensuring payroll controls are carried out in line with the governance framework, and regularly reviewing controls, processes and practices to find risks and improvements.
• Ensuring payroll complies with enterprise agreements, modern awards, employment legislation, taxation obligations and internal policy.
• Ensuring payroll and related systems are configured correctly and access is managed appropriately.
• Leading internal and external audit activity, including supplying information, reviewing draft recommendations and making sure actions are completed on time.
• Supporting or managing wage remediation activities, including data analysis, root cause analysis, reconciliation calculations, stakeholder communication and process improvement.
• Preparing payroll governance reporting for senior stakeholders and governance committees.
• Partnering with Finance, IT and HR on controls that affect pay.

THE CRITERIA

To be successful in this role, you will bring:

• Tertiary qualifications in business, accounting, HR or a related field, or equivalent experience in a senior payroll specialist role.
• Hands-on experience in complex, high-volume payroll, applying a range of modern awards and enterprise agreements.
• Proven experience managing and improving payroll governance, controls, risk and assurance frameworks, including managing compliance reviews and audits.
• Strong knowledge of employer obligations, including awards, enterprise agreements, superannuation, PAYG, payroll tax, Single Touch Payroll and workers compensation.
• Experience supporting wage remediation and complex payroll calculations.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to use data to drive improvement.
• Experience with enterprise HR and payroll systems. Experience with Dayforce or Workday is highly regarded.
• Excellent attention to detail, plus strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.
• Experience using AI or automation to improve payroll controls is desirable.

At Peoplecorp, we are dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion in every recruitment process. We believe that a rich variety of perspectives drives innovation and success. We actively seek candidates from all backgrounds and encourage individuals of all races, genders, abilities, and experiences to apply.