People Operations Lead, Western Europe & Italy (Hybrid)

Opella; Milano; Hybrid; EUR 62,000 - 83,000; Full time

Job summary

Opella, a self-care challenger, seeks a People Operations Lead for Western Europe & Italy. You will drive payroll operations, employee lifecycle administration and regional governance, delivering accurate and compliant services across multiple markets.

You will partner with external payroll providers, lead process improvement and standardization, and collaborate with local and global teams to transform people services while ensuring an exceptional employee experience.

Qualifications

• Proven experience managing multi-country payroll operations and employee lifecycle services in a complex international environment.
• Strong knowledge of payroll governance, labor compliance, employee administration and service delivery models.
• Experience partnering with outsourced payroll providers and managing external vendors against service and quality expectations.
• Demonstrated ability to lead process improvement, transformation and operational excellence initiatives.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively across local, regional and global teams.
• Analytical and solution-oriented mindset, with the ability to use data and service metrics to drive decisions and improvements.
• Fluent English communication skills; additional European languages are considered an advantage.

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee end-to-end payroll, time administration and benefits processes, ensuring accurate, timely and compliant delivery across countries in scope.
• Coordinate employee lifecycle services, including onboarding, contract administration, employee changes, mobility activities and offboarding processes.
• Act as the primary regional contact for payroll and HR service providers, managing performance, service quality and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Monitor operational performance through service metrics, governance reviews and employee feedback, identifying opportunities to enhance service delivery.
• Ensure compliance with labor legislation, payroll regulations, tax requirements and internal policies across all relevant markets.
• Partner with Legal, Finance, Compliance and Internal Control teams to manage operational risks and support audit activities.
• Lead process simplification, standardization and automation initiatives while supporting global transformation and Workday-related programs.

Skills

Payroll operations

Multi-country payroll

Stakeholder management

Process improvement

Data-driven decisions

English fluency

Job description

Opella, a self-care challenger, seeks a People Operations Lead for Western Europe & Italy. You will drive payroll operations, employee lifecycle administration and regional governance, delivering accurate and compliant services across multiple markets.

You will partner with external payroll providers, lead process improvement and standardization, and collaborate with local and global teams to transform people services while ensuring an exceptional employee experience.