Fixed Term Payroll Team Leader – Lead Pay Operations

Marketplace; Hamilton; Remote; NZD 90,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Waikato is seeking a Payroll Team Leader to guide a 12‑strong payroll team in delivering accurate and timely pay for a large workforce. This fixed-term role (to July 2027) is office-based in Hamilton, with responsibility for payroll controls, pay runs, and continuous improvement initiatives.

The successful candidate will lead day-to-day payroll operations, coach team members, and partner with HR, Finance and external agencies to ensure compliant and efficient

Qualifications

• Experience in payroll administration for a large workforce.
• Strong knowledge of New Zealand payroll legislation incl Holidays Act and KiwiSaver.
• Proven ability to lead, mentor and develop a payroll team.
• Advanced Excel and payroll systems experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate payroll operations for accurate, timely pay runs.
• Manage payroll controls, reporting, auditing, and exception handling.
• Coach and develop payroll team members to meet goals.
• Drive continuous improvement to enhance efficiency and reduce risk.
• Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders and external agencies.

Skills

Payroll experience

NZ payroll legislation

Leadership

Excel

Payroll systems

Stakeholder management

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Payroll software

Job description

Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Waikato is seeking a Payroll Team Leader to guide a 12‑strong payroll team in delivering accurate and timely pay for a large workforce. This fixed-term role (to July 2027) is office-based in Hamilton, with responsibility for payroll controls, pay runs, and continuous improvement initiatives.

The successful candidate will lead day-to-day payroll operations, coach team members, and partner with HR, Finance and external agencies to ensure compliant and efficient