UK Payroll Director

HAYS - UK Payroll Director - Permanent position in any Northwest or London office location - Hybrid

Your new company
HAYS are excited to bring you this senior position for a top accounting firm,

As the National Payroll Director, you will provide strategic leadership and operational oversight of the firm’s Payroll Services function across the UK. This includes responsibility for multiple regional payroll teams, as well as the governance and performance of both onshore and offshore delivery centres. The role ensures excellence in service delivery, compliance with UK legislation, and supports continued growth in a fast-paced, high-volume environment within a top 10 accounting firm.
This position requires a commercially minded leader with deep technical payroll expertise, strong people leadership skills, and a proven ability to drive transformation, standardisation and operational efficiency across complex, multisite teams.

Your new role
Strategic Leadership & Governance

• Develop and deliver the national payroll strategy for the UK, aligned with the firm’s wider outsourcing and advisory objectives.
• Set consistent standards, controls, and best-practice frameworks across all payroll locations and service lines.
• Ensure operational resilience, incorporating business continuity planning and appropriate risk management.
• Lead large-scale transformation programmes, including technology modernisation, automation, and process optimisation.

Operational Management

• Oversee day-to-day operations for high-volume and complex payroll portfolios across multiple sectors.
• Manage performance across onshore and offshore teams, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and adherence to SLAs.
• Ensure compliance with all statutory and legislative requirements for the UK, including HMRC, pensions, and industry-specific requirements.
• Drive continuous improvement and standardisation across workflows, tools, and delivery centres.

Client Leadership & Commercial Growth

• Act as senior escalation point for key national clients, including resolving high-risk issues.
• Implement new clients and upgrade payroll systems
• Support business development activity, including pitches, proposals, and pricing strategies.
• Identify opportunities to expand the payroll offering, cross-sell wider services, and enhance client value.
• Provide technical insight and thought leadership to internal and external stakeholders.

People Leadership

• Lead, inspire, and mentor a diverse workforce of payroll managers, team leaders, and specialists across multiple sites.
• Ensure effective workforce planning, succession planning, and capability development across the function.
• Foster a collaborative, high-performance culture focused on quality, compliance, and exceptional service.
• Oversee performance management, skills development, and continuous professional learning.

What you'll need to succeed
Essential

• Proven experience in a senior payroll leadership role within a large accounting firm, BPO, or complex multisite organisation.
• Deep technical understanding of UK payroll legislation, compliance, and best practice.
• Experience managing large teams across multiple locations, including offshore delivery.
• Demonstrable track record of delivering operational transformation and process improvement.
• Strong commercial acumen and experience in supporting revenue growth and client development.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence senior leaders and new/existing clients
• Highly numerate, analytical, and confident working with KPIs, SLAs, and operational metrics.

What you need to do now
If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV to Queenie.Ng@hays.com, or call us now.
If this job isn't quite right for you, but you are looking for a new position, please contact us for a confidential discussion about your career.
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