Payroll Delivery Manager

Williams Stanley and Co; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

Williams Stanley is seeking an experienced Payroll Delivery Manager to lead the Payroll Bureau and work closely with the Head of Payroll. This hybrid role will be London or Manchester based, driving delivery quality, process improvement, and exceptional client service.

You will lead a team of Payroll Officers and Administrators, coach staff, and shape how a modern payroll bureau operates, balancing technical excellence with strong leadership and client focus.

Qualifications

• Significant payroll bureau experience with people leadership.
• Strong understanding of UK payroll legislation and compliance.
• Ability to handle complex payroll scenarios and client escalations.

Responsibilities

• Lead timely and accurate delivery of bureau payrolls.
• Maintain robust pre- and post-payroll validation controls.
• Plan workloads with clear schedules and visibility.
• Ensure documentation and audit trails are complete and compliant.
• Coach and develop a high-performing payroll team.
• Set expectations on organisation, client communication and standards.
• Identify opportunities to simplify and improve payroll processes.

Skills

Payroll leadership

UK payroll legislation

Client escalation management

Team coaching

Operational planning

Education

CIPP qualification (or working towards it)

Job description

Reports to: Head of Payroll Direct Reports: Payroll Officers / Administrators Location: Hybrid (London or Manchester) Salary: £42,000 - £45,000 per annum Application Deadline: Sunday 16 August Initial Screening Calls: Week commencing 17 August

About Williams Stanley

Williams Stanley is one of the UK's leading hospitality advisory firms, supporting hundreds of businesses across payroll, accounting, tax, company secretarial, finance advisory services.

Our payroll bureau supports hospitality businesses ranging from independent operators through to national multi-site groups, processing thousands of payslips every month.

The Role

The Payroll Delivery Manager is responsible for the operational leadership, quality assurance and continuous development of the Payroll Bureau. This is both a delivery and managerial role requiring structured planning, visible ownership and accountability for payroll standards.

You'll lead the day-to-day operation while helping shape the future of the function. One moment you may be supporting a complex HMRC query, the next coaching a Junior Payroll Officer, redesigning a process, analysing operational performance or visiting a client. You'll work closely with the Head of Payroll to ensure the team delivers an exceptional client experience whilst continually improving how we operate.

Williams Stanley is not looking for someone to simply manage a payroll team. We're looking for someone who wants to help shape what a modern payroll bureau should look like.

Over the last year we've transformed our Payroll function and built the foundations for long-term success. The next phase is different. It's about developing people, refining processes, improving client experience and creating a payroll function that can be recognised as one of the UK's leading payroll bureau teams.

This is an opportunity for an experienced Payroll Manager who enjoys balancing technical excellence with leadership. Someone who is comfortable getting into the detail when required but equally capable of stepping back, identifying opportunities and leading meaningful change.

We're looking for someone who enjoys coaching people just as much as solving complex payroll problems. Someone who naturally builds capability, raises standards and leaves every process, client and colleague better than they found them.

Key Responsibilities

Payroll Delivery & Operational Control

• Lead the timely and accurate delivery of all assigned bureau payrolls.
• Ensure robust pre-payroll and post-payroll validation controls are consistently applied.
• Maintain clear payroll schedules, workload planning and operational visibility.
• Ensure payroll documentation, client records and audit trails remain accurate and compliant.
• Monitor workload allocation and time recording to protect delivery capacity.
• Ensure compliance with HMRC legislation, pensions, statutory payments, attachment orders, National Minimum Wage and tronc arrangements.
• Identify operational risks early and implement effective solutions before issues escalate.
• Support the resolution of complex payroll calculations and technical queries.

Leadership & Team Development

• Lead, coach and develop a high-performing team of Payroll Officers and Payroll Administrators.
• Create a culture of accountability, ownership, collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Conduct regular 1:1s, coaching sessions and performance conversations.
• Deliver structured training, mentoring and knowledge sharing across the team.
• Carry out quality assurance reviews and provide constructive feedback.
• Set clear expectations around organisation, client communication, productivity and professional standards.
• Identify capability gaps and create development plans for individuals.
• Lead by example during peak delivery periods whilst maintaining a calm and positive environment.

Client Relationship Management

• Act as the primary escalation point for complex payroll queries.
• Build trusted relationships with clients through professionalism, responsiveness and technical expertise.
• Support client meetings, payroll reviews and implementation projects where appropriate.
• Communicate complex payroll matters in a clear, confident and commercially appropriate manner.
• Protect the Williams Stanley reputation through exceptional written and verbal communication.
• Ensure clients receive an outstanding service experience throughout the payroll lifecycle.

Continuous Improvement

• Identify opportunities to simplify, automate and improve payroll processes.
• Contribute to Standard Operating Procedures, documentation and operational governance.
• Support onboarding, payroll transitions and implementation projects.
• Help shape future technology, product and operational initiatives.
• Use operational data and insight to improve productivity, quality and client experience.
• Champion a culture where improvements are continually identified, tested and embedded.

Commercial & Operational Awareness

• Understand payroll capacity, utilisation and operational performance.
• Ensure time recording accurately reflects workload and supports commercial decision-making.
• Support resource planning and operational forecasting alongside the Head of Payroll.
• Recognise the wider commercial impact of payroll quality, client retention and operational efficiency.
• Balance service excellence with commercial awareness and sustainable delivery.

What We're Looking For

We're less interested in someone who's simply processed payroll for years. We're looking for someone who enjoys leading people, solving problems and improving organisations.

You'll Ideally Bring

• Significant payroll bureau experience and experience leading or supervising payroll teams.
• Strong technical knowledge of UK payroll legislation.
• Confidence handling complex payroll scenarios and client escalations.
• Excellent organisational and planning skills.
• A collaborative and approachable leadership style.
• CIPP qualification (or working towards it) is desirable but not essential.

Most importantly, you'll know when to dive into the detail and when to zoom out to see the bigger picture.

Hybrid Working

This role is hybrid, with an expectation of approximately 4-8 days per calendar month in either London or Manchester. Our expectation is purposeful presence and those office days should create value.

• Coaching and developing the team.
• Face-to-face 1:1 meetings.
• Client meetings and relationship building.
• Collaborative planning sessions.
• Team training and workshops.
• Process improvement initiatives.
• Cross-functional collaboration.

Applicants must be UK-based and able to travel to either our London or Manchester offices when required.

Recruitment Process

Applications close Sunday 16 August.

We are ideally looking for someone who is available to join us in the near future, although notice periods will be considered for exceptional candidates. Initial screening conversations will take place during the week commencing 17 August, with formal interviews scheduled shortly afterwards.