Senior Specialist-Payroll

Job Title: Senior Specialist-Payroll

Career Level: D3

Introduction to role:

Are you ready to turn complex payroll operations into a strategic advantage for a global enterprise where every accurate, on-time payment helps our people focus on delivering life-changing medicines? Do you thrive on building resilient, compliant processes that scale and stand up to scrutiny?

As a Senior Specialist-Payroll, you will manage high-volume payroll operations end-to-end, providing precision, pace, and confidence across a diverse workforce. Your expertise will keep our business moving—ensuring employees are paid correctly and on time, statutory obligations are met, and leaders have the insights they need to make fast, informed decisions.

Join a team on a growth journey, where we constantly reimagine how we work and apply digital tools to drive efficiency. From day one, you’ll take ownership of monthly cycles, guide vendors and partners, and strengthen controls. This will improve operational quality, increase enterprise value, and lead to better outcomes for patients.

Accountabilities:

• Payroll Planning and Orchestration: Design monthly calendars, align inputs, and monitor end-to-end execution to deliver seamless payroll runs for large populations.
• Accurate and Timely Processing: Manage workflows and approvals to ensure every payroll transaction is processed correctly and on schedule, minimizing rework and pay-related escalations.
• Reporting and Reconciliation: Independently review payroll reports, perform reconciliations, and validate results to maintain data integrity and financial control.
• Compliance and Risk Management: Interpret and apply taxation and social insurance requirements; ensure statutory payments and filings are completed within deadlines; uphold internal policies and audit standards.
• International Assignments: Coordinate payroll inputs for international assignees with global teams or external vendors, ensuring cross-border compliance and consistency.
• Bonus and Year-End Activities: Plan and execute bonus payments and year-end adjustments; partner with vendors on final tax computations; support statutory, internal, and risk audits.
• Vendor and Stakeholder Management: Build strong, trust-based relationships; run monthly review meetings; oversee SLAs; and drive issue resolution with urgency and clarity.
• Employee Experience and Query Resolution: Serve as second-tier support for complex or non-routine queries, interpreting policies to provide clear, timely guidance that builds confidence and confidentiality.
• Continuous Improvement: Identify process gaps, propose and implement enhancements, and leverage data to reduce cycle time, improve accuracy, and simplify controls.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with HR, Finance, and Technology teams to ensure seamless operations, enable better decision-making, and support special projects that modernize payroll.

Essential Skills/Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree in any field.

- Minimum 5 - 8 years HR generalist and payroll experience.

• Excellent understanding of insurance and taxation schemes.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to influence leaders with gravitas to act as a trusted advisor.
• Ability to work collaboratively with large teams.
• Experience of working in a multi-national organisation.
• Experience in Australia, New Zealand payroll will be added advantage.

Desirable Skills/Experience:

• Hands-on experience with payroll platforms and integrations such as Workday, SAP, ADP, or similar systems.
• Proven vendor management experience, including SLA governance and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Strong command of payroll controls, reconciliations, and audit readiness, including SOX or equivalent frameworks.
• Advanced Excel skills and comfort with analytics or reporting tools to create insight-rich payroll and compliance reports.
• Experience managing payroll operations across multiple jurisdictions beyond ANZ.
• Exposure to process improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean, Six Sigma) and automation or digitization of payroll workflows.
• Background in handling complex cases such as international mobility, retroactivity, and off-cycle corrections.

Why AstraZeneca:

Here you can see the direct impact of your craft—your precision and judgment keep a global workforce moving, which in turn enables the discovery, development, and delivery of medicines to people who need them most. You will join a collaborative, fast-moving community that brings HR, finance, and digital specialists into the same room to solve complex problems quickly. With strong backing for innovation, data-driven decision-making, and continuous learning, you will have the trust and accountability to take smart risks, shape better ways of working, and build a career with real breadth and depth. We value kindness alongside ambition, and we celebrate outcomes that elevate both our enterprise and our patients.

Call to Action:

If you’re prepared to transform payroll excellence into enterprise impact, step forward and help power what’s possible!

Date Posted

Closing Date

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity.  We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills.  We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.  We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics.  We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.