Payroll Team lead

JobSpace; Timaru; On-site; NZD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is seeking a Payroll Lead in Timaru to guide a small payroll team and ensure accurate, timely processing. You will work across HR to address payroll impacts and drive improvement initiatives in a supportive, regional health system setting.

The role requires knowledge of NZ payroll legislation, experience with payroll systems, and strong communication and leadership skills. This is a permanent, full-time position with standard business hours in Timaru.

Qualifications

• Experience with Collective agreements is advantageous in health.
• Extensive knowledge of NZ payroll legislation and payroll systems.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to engage and develop staff in new technology across varied IT levels.
• Proven ability to lead and drive collaboration with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead our local team of 3 Payroll Officers.
• Manage day-to-day payroll processing with timeliness and accuracy.
• Collaborate with HR to understand payroll impacts.
• Support continuous improvement and encourage team contributions.

Skills

NZ Payroll legislation

Payroll systems

Leadership

Communication skills

Stakeholder engagement

Tools

HRIS/Payroll systems

Job description

Jora New Zealand will close on 9th September 2026. Thank you for being with us, we are cheering you on as you continue your career journey.

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is firmly grounded in the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and is committed to building a health system that serves all New Zealanders.

About the Role

Health NZ is in a unique phase where we are developing and progressing opportunities at the district level.

• This is a permanent role, working 80 hours per fortnight (1 FTE), Monday to Friday, between the hours of 8.30AM to 5.00PM.
• Lead our local team of 3 Payroll Officers
• Manage the day to day payroll processing including the timeliness and accuracy
• Work with all other areas of HR to ensure that impacts on payroll are managed and understood
• Continuous improvement is seen as a regular part of what the team does and forums are in place to encourage contribution from the wider team on improvement initiatives

About the Location

Timaru is a special coastal port city in South Canterbury, famous for Caroline Bay's stunning beach, striking Edwardian bluestone architecture, and unique rolling hills formed by an ancient volcano. It blends a warm, family-friendly seaside vibe with rich heritage and easy access to the Southern Alps.

Timaru Hospital is a vital regional facility in South Canterbury known for combining a community-focused, provincial scale with comprehensive secondary-level care, a 24-hour district trauma service, local oncology and critical care units, and a unique supportive lifestyle environment for its medical staff. The hospital provides secondary services to the district population of approximately 50,000 people, has 130 beds.

About You

• Experience working with Collective agreements, advantageous if this is in health.
• Extensive knowledge of NZ Payroll related legislation, experience with payroll systems and experience
• Excellent written and oral communication skills,
• Demonstrated ability to engage with and develop employees' skills around the use of new technology, when working with wide ranging levels of IT competency,
• Proven ability to lead and drive collaboration with stakeholders.

The successful candidate must be eligible to work in New Zealand or hold a valid NZ visa at the time of applying.

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is dedicated to ensuring excellent healthcare for the people of New Zealand. We embrace a workforce that is diverse and inclusive so that we are better positioned to understand and service our community. We welcome applications from our diverse Māori, Pacific, disabled, and rainbow communities.