Senior Payroll Manager

Exciting Career Opportunity: Senior Payroll Manager – Lead, Innovate, and Drive Impact.

Are you ready to step into a pivotal leadership role where your expertise in payroll can shape the future of a growing, people-focused organisation?

Appreciating Payroll Recruitment is looking for a Senior Payroll Manager who’s passionate about accuracy, compliance, and delivering exceptional service, to join an expanding service provider based in Melbourne's Inner East.

In this dynamic role, you’ll be at the heart of their operations, ensuring all payroll processes run seamlessly, on time, and with precision. You’ll work closely with the Head of People, Culture & Safety, the Senior Employee Relations Advisor, and the broader People & Culture team to drive continuous improvement across payroll systems, policies, and workflows.

You'll be the strategic lead for all things payroll, developing and maintaining frameworks that support compliance with legal and tax requirements, while also delivering an outstanding employee experience. This is your opportunity to coach and develop a high-performing team, lead change, and help shape a best-in-class payroll function within a values-driven organisation.

Key duties:

1. Payroll Function

• Manage by overseeing the delivery of effective and efficient payroll operations, ensuring the appropriate payment, disbursement, checking, and reconciliation procedures are in place and undertaken promptly.
• Ensure and appropriately manage and review the preparation, balancing, and reconciliation of PAYE tax.
• Collaborate with the finance team to reconcile FBT, superannuation, and payment summaries.
• Work with the P&C team to identify process improvements and consolidate benefits.
• Supervise and coordinate payroll workload to meet operational requirements.
• Maintain a customer service focus, responding to pay queries promptly and ensuring high-quality service.
• Oversee and review the preparation of weekly, monthly, quarterly, and year-end reports.
• Support the preparation of management reports based on payroll data.
• Monitor staff appointments, transfers, variations, promotions, and terminations.
• Review and improve payroll policies and procedures, including benchmarking exercises.
• Ensure payroll records comply with statutory requirements.
• Support internal and external payroll audits.
• Manage payroll issues promptly and effectively.
• Implement exception reporting and audit schedules to proactively identify errors.
• Resolve payroll discrepancies and maintain account balances.
• Stay updated on payroll and tax legislation changes.
• Work with the line manager to implement risk management and business continuity strategies.

• Maintain payroll systems aligned with IT, Finance, and P&C protocols.
• Manage system upgrades, development, and workflows to support strategic objectives.

• Lead, coach, and motivate the payroll team.
• Promote best practices and effective process governance.
• Provide support, guidance, and performance feedback to team members.
• Conduct regular supervision and performance reviews.
• Foster a positive and respectful work environment.
• Lead with professionalism and in accordance with company values.

• Ensure compliance with all legal, funding, and statutory obligations.
• Identify and manage risks appropriately.
• Report serious risks and collaborate on mitigation strategies.

About you: You are an experienced Payroll Manager ready to focus on strategy, process improvement, and compliance. You possess:

• At least 5 years of experience managing payroll for 1000+ employees.
• Deep knowledge of payroll practices, legislation, and procedures.
• Understanding of Modern Awards, industry legislation, Payroll tax, and WorkCover across jurisdictions.
• Experience working with ATO, Centrelink, and Superannuation clearinghouses.
• Strong financial acumen and payroll processing expertise.
• Team management experience.
• Experience in Health or Aged Care environments is advantageous.
• Excellent organizational, time management, and communication skills.
• Advanced Excel and reporting skills.
• NDIS Workers Screening Check.

On offer is a salary of $150,000 + Super, onsite parking, and accessible transport links. Enjoy weekly team lunches, birthday celebrations, and a positive, welcoming culture. The company operates 4 days in the office and 1 day WFH.

If interested, please submit your resume to Marcus Stubbs at Appreciating Payroll Recruitment. I specialise in senior payroll recruitment across Australia.

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