Global Payroll Excellence SME

What You Can Expect

The Global Payroll Excellence SME delivers the Risk and Control framework, as well as Technology Environment sections, of the ZB Global Payroll Excellence model. This position ensures payroll compliance and audit preparedness (including SOX, SOC, and local regulations) and maintains payroll reliability by managing access, monitoring system integrations, assisting with technical troubleshooting and escalation, and seeking to prevent recurring issues within payroll and time systems. The SME collaborates with Payroll Operations, HR, Finance, IT, and external vendors to standardize practices and continually enhance payroll controls and reliability across different regions.

How You'll Create Impact

• Support the global payroll control framework, including control design standards, evidence requirements and remediation tracking (SOX, SOC and local compliance).
• Develop and maintain monitoring checks and operational dashboards to detect control breaks, compliance risks, integration issues and recurring payroll defects.
• Identify control, process and technology gaps and contribute to risk mitigation initiatives, including monitoring and assurance improvements.
• Administer and govern user access in payroll and time systems (roles, profiles, reports), including quarterly access reviews, evidence retention and remediation follow up.
• Govern payroll technology standards and documentation, including configuration guidance, change impact notes and standard ways of working.
• Test and validate payroll relevant system changes prior to deployment, including payroll and time systems and adjacent systems impacting payroll (e.g., SuccessFactors).
• Monitor payroll related interfaces and integration health and coordinate investigation and remediation with IT and vendors.
• Support payroll impacting incidents through ServiceNow, ensuring clear problem statements, evidence, ownership, next steps and closure criteria.
• Contribute to root cause analysis for repeat payroll impacting issues and drive recurrence prevention actions with IT, vendors and Payroll Ops.
• Develop and deliver learning materials and sessions on controls, audit readiness, access governance, incident hygiene and payroll system change impacts.

What Makes You Stand Out

• Risk and control mindset: able to think in controls, evidence, audit readiness and remediation.
• Technology reliability mindset: able to protect stability of access, configuration and integrations in a payroll context.
• Attention to Detail: ability to spot inefficiencies and inconsistencies in payroll workflows.
• Communication Skills: ability to explain complex payroll concepts to non-payroll stakeholders.
• Team Collaboration: experience working in a cross-functional, multicultural environment.
• Problem-Solving Skills: capable of identifying challenges and proposing effective solutions.

Your Background

• 7+ years of payroll experience, preferably in a multinational or shared service centre (SSC) environment.
• Experience with 5 S, Lean Six Sigma or other method of workplace improvement methodology 
• Experience with payroll process optimisation, compliance, or operational support.
• Understanding of SOX compliance requirements in payroll processes.
• Experience working with payroll and time software (analytics tools will be an advantage).
• Experience with incident management and cross functional issue resolution (ServiceNow or similar an advantage).

Travel Expectations

5%