We are recruiting a Payroll Specialist to join the regional corporate team of a leading international luxury group, supporting payroll operations across the Middle East and Africa.
This is a regional role covering multiple countries, legal entities and employee populations.
The payroll environment is largely automated and supported by established systems and external payroll providers, so the position is less about manually processing payroll and much more focused on accuracy, controls, validation and resolving exceptions.
The Payroll Specialist will manage payroll inputs and outputs, investigate discrepancies, coordinate with local HR teams and external providers, oversee statutory requirements and ensure the integrity of payroll data across the region.
The role requires someone who understands payroll beyond simply running the monthly cycle. You need to know what the numbers should look like, recognise when something is wrong and be able to trace an issue back through the system, data or process.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Regional Payroll Management
- Coordinate the monthly payroll cycle across multiple Middle East and African markets.
- Ensure payrolls are completed accurately and within agreed monthly deadlines.
- Review payroll inputs, changes and outputs before final approval.
- Validate employee data including new joiners, leavers, salary changes, allowances, bonuses, deductions and other variable payments.
- Review payroll reports and identify discrepancies or unusual movements.
- Investigate payroll errors and work with the relevant teams or providers to resolve them.
- Maintain payroll calendars and ensure deadlines are followed across all markets.
- Coordinate off-cycle payments, final settlements and payroll adjustments where required.
- Ensure payroll data is complete and accurate before information is released for payment.
Payroll Controls & Validation
As much of the payroll process is automated, a major part of the position is focused on control, validation and exception management.
- Review automated payroll calculations and system-generated outputs.
- Perform monthly payroll reconciliations and variance checks.
- Compare current and previous payroll periods and investigate significant changes.
- Identify system, data or process issues affecting payroll accuracy.
- Ensure appropriate payroll controls and approval processes are followed.
- Maintain clear documentation and audit trails for payroll changes and adjustments.
- Support internal and external payroll audits.
- Ensure payroll information is handled in line with confidentiality and data protection requirements.
MEA Payroll & Compliance
- Support payroll across a diverse group of Middle East and African countries.
- Maintain an understanding of local payroll requirements within the markets under responsibility.
- Coordinate statutory deductions, social security, pension and other mandatory payroll requirements where applicable.
- Ensure payroll providers are working in accordance with local requirements and agreed service levels.
- Monitor changes that may affect payroll processes and work with HR, Finance and external partners to implement them.
- Support end-of-service calculations and other country-specific employee payments.
- Work closely with local teams where different employment, payroll or statutory practices apply.
Payroll Providers & Systems
- Act as a key point of contact for external payroll providers across the region.
- Review provider outputs and challenge discrepancies before payroll is finalised.
- Monitor service levels, accuracy and delivery against agreed timelines.
- Escalate recurring issues and work with providers to improve processes.
- Maintain accurate employee information across payroll and HR systems.
- Support system updates, testing and payroll process improvements.
- Identify opportunities to further automate or simplify payroll administration.
- Participate in payroll-related projects and system implementations where required.
HR & Finance Coordination
- Coordinate with HR teams on employee changes affecting payroll.
- Work with Finance on payroll funding, reconciliations and reporting.
- Provide payroll information for month-end and year-end requirements.
- Support reconciliation between payroll records, HR systems and Finance.
- Respond to payroll-related queries from employees and internal stakeholders.
- Explain payroll calculations and resolve more complex employee queries.
- Maintain strong working relationships with HR teams across different countries and business units.
Reporting & Analysis
- Produce regular payroll reports for HR and Finance.
- Analyse payroll movements and highlight material variances.
- Provide headcount, salary and payroll cost information when required.
- Support budgeting, forecasting and other people-cost reporting.
- Maintain accurate historical payroll records.
- Provide payroll data for audits, internal reviews and management reporting.
CANDIDATE PROFILE
We are looking for an experienced payroll professional who has worked within a structured, multi-entity organisation and is comfortable managing payroll across more than one country.
The role would particularly suit someone who has worked in an environment where payroll is highly automated or outsourced and understands the importance of controls, validation and exception management.
You should be comfortable reviewing large payroll reports, identifying something that does not look right and understanding how to investigate and resolve it.
EXPERIENCE & SKILLS
- Previous payroll experience within a regional or multi-country environment.
- Good understanding of the complete payroll cycle.
- Experience supporting payroll across the Middle East, Africa or a combination of international markets.
- Experience working with automated payroll systems and/or outsourced payroll providers.
- Strong payroll reconciliation and validation experience.
- Good understanding of payroll controls and data accuracy.
- Experience dealing with joiners, leavers, salary changes, bonuses, allowances and other employee lifecycle changes.
- Understanding of statutory deductions and country-specific payroll requirements.
- Strong Excel skills and confidence working with large volumes of data.
- Experience with HRIS, payroll or ERP systems.
- Strong numerical and analytical ability.
- Excellent attention to detail.
- Able to identify and resolve discrepancies rather than simply process information.
- Comfortable working to strict monthly deadlines.
- Able to manage several countries and payroll calendars simultaneously.
- Strong communication skills and confidence working with HR, Finance and external payroll providers.
- High level of discretion when handling confidential employee and salary information.
