Payroll Specialist

University of Canterbury; Christchurch; On-site; NZD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading educational institution in Christchurch seeks a Payroll Specialist to manage end-to-end payroll processes, ensuring compliance with New Zealand legislation. The successful candidate will have extensive experience in payroll management and excellent communication skills. Join a supportive team and contribute to a collaborative workplace culture.

Benefits

Generous annual leave provisions

Professional development opportunities

Qualifications

• Extensive experience managing complex payrolls within medium to large organisations.
• Strong knowledge of New Zealand employment legislation and compliance.
• Proficiency with payroll systems, ideally PeopleSoft/Oracle.

Responsibilities

• Manage the end-to-end preparation, calculation, and processing of payroll.
• Deliver timely expert advice to stakeholders.
• Engage with internal stakeholders and improve payroll operations.

Skills

Managing complex payrolls

Knowledge of New Zealand employment legislation

Payroll system proficiency

Analytical skills

Excellent communication skills

Attention to detail

Tools

PeopleSoft/Oracle

Microsoft Office (Excel)

Job description

• Full-time (37.5 hours per week)
• Fixed Term position until end of March 2027
• Generous annual leave provisions and professional development opportunities

Āu Mahi | What You Will Do As a Mātanga Utu Kaimahi | Payroll Specialist, you will play a key role in ensuring the accuracy, efficiency and integrity of UC's payroll services. You'll manage the end-to-end preparation, calculation and processing of fortnightly payroll, while delivering timely, expert advice to People and Culture Business Partners, Managers, and staff across the University.

You'll proactively identify and action process improvements, support system upgrades and testing, and maintain compliance with legislation, audit standards, and UC's Collective and Individual Employment Agreements. Collaboration and customer service are at the heart of this role — you'll engage regularly with internal stakeholders, providing professional, solution-focused support and contributing to the continuous improvement of payroll operations and systems.

Mōu | Who You Are You are an experienced payroll professional who thrives in a busy and dynamic environment. You bring both technical expertise, a deep understanding of payroll and employment legislation, and a customer-focused approach. The role demands accuracy in every process and professionalism in every interaction. With your attention to detail, problem-solving skills, and commitment to excellence meaning you can be relied on to deliver quality outcomes under pressure.

To be successful in this role, you will demonstrate:

• Extensive experience managing complex payrolls within medium to large organisations.
• Strong knowledge of New Zealand employment legislation, payroll compliance, and Collective/Individual Employment Agreements.
• Proficiency with payroll systems, ideally PeopleSoft/Oracle, and high competency with Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel.
• Experience in testing and implementing payroll solutions, system enhancements, and process improvements.
• Excellent communication skills — able to explain technical information clearly and build effective working relationships with diverse stakeholders.
• Exceptional accuracy and attention to detail, with proven ability to manage deadlines and prioritise effectively in a fast-paced environment.
• A commitment to UC's values of collaborative, inclusive workplace culture and an appreciation for te reo Māori and bicultural engagement.

If you have strong analytical skills and a proactive approach to improving systems and processes and above all, you value collaboration, integrity, and continuous learning — please apply today!

Mahi Ngātahi | Who You Will Work With People and Culture are a fun, family focused and supportive team of skilled and capable individuals who provide information, advice and support for employees and managers at UC. Payroll forms a critical part of the wider People and Culture team.

Ngā Painga o UC | Why UC Ngā Uara | Our Values of manaakitanga, whanaungatanga and tiakitanga guide our decisions and behaviour and provide a roadmap for how we do things at UC, affirming our commitment to pastoral care and support for our ākonga and staff. They challenge and inspire us to be the best we can, and make UC a great place to work and study. For more info on Ngā Uara | Our Values visit us here.

We are committed to accessible higher education, service to the community and the encouragement of talent without barriers of distance, wealth, class, gender or ethnicity. The University explicitly aims to produce graduates and support staff who are engaged with their communities, empowered to act for good and determined to make a difference in the world.

The closing date for this position is: Sunday, 19 October 2025 (midnight, NZ time) Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and interviews may take place before the close date.

Pēhea te tono mai | How You Apply Applications for this position must be submitted via our careers website and should include a cover letter and resume.

Please note, we do not accept applications by email, however we are happy to answer your queries in relation to the application process, please forward these to [e-mail]

You must have Aotearoa New Zealand or Australian citizenship/permanent residency or hold a valid NZ work visa to be considered for this role.

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