Job Description: UK Payroll Team Lead / Subject Matter Expert (SME)

Role/Designation: UK Payroll Team Lead / SME
Location: Bangalore, Karnataka
Experience: 5–7 Years
Band: BPO 3/4
Job Code: 438208 / 438209
Work Schedule: UK Business Hours
Work Mode: Not specified

Job Overview

We are seeking an experienced UK Payroll Team Lead / Subject Matter Expert (SME) to manage and support end-to-end UK payroll operations. The ideal candidate will possess strong technical knowledge of UK payroll legislation, statutory requirements, and payroll compliance, along with hands-on experience handling complex payroll activities.

The role involves overseeing payroll accuracy and timely delivery, resolving complex payroll queries, guiding team members, monitoring quality, and driving continuous process improvements. The candidate should be comfortable providing technical expertise and coordinating daily team activities in a shared services, managed services, or outsourced payroll environment.

Key Responsibilities

1. End-to-End UK Payroll Operations

• Manage and support the complete UK payroll processing cycle, ensuring accurate and timely payroll delivery.

• Ensure payroll calculations and transactions comply with UK legislation and company policies.

• Review payroll inputs, adjustments, exceptions, and complex transactions.

• Resolve payroll discrepancies and escalated cases within defined timelines.

2. UK Payroll Legislation & Compliance

• Provide technical expertise in PAYE, National Insurance (NI), Real Time Information (RTI), tax codes, and statutory payments.

• Ensure compliance with HMRC requirements and applicable UK payroll legislation.

• Manage and review HMRC submissions, including Full Payment Submission (FPS) and Employer Payment Summary (EPS).

• Support workplace pension administration and automatic enrolment requirements.

3. Payroll Reconciliation & Quality Control

• Perform payroll reconciliations, variance analysis, and general ledger (GL) reconciliations.

• Conduct payroll audits and ensure appropriate controls are followed.

• Review payroll calculations and identify errors or inconsistencies.

• Maintain high standards of payroll accuracy, compliance, and documentation.

4. Team Coordination & Technical Guidance

• Coordinate daily team activities and allocate workloads based on operational priorities.

• Provide technical guidance and subject matter expertise to payroll associates.

• Coach and mentor team members to improve payroll knowledge and performance.

• Monitor processing quality and support regular quality checks.

• Handle complex escalations and assist team members in resolving payroll issues.

5. Payroll Year-End Activities

• Support UK payroll year-end processes and statutory reporting requirements.

• Handle and review year-end documentation, including P60, P11D, and P11D(b).

• Ensure accurate completion of year-end payroll activities within statutory deadlines.

6. Process Improvement & Transformation

• Identify opportunities to improve payroll accuracy, efficiency, and turnaround time.

• Support payroll automation and transformation initiatives.

• Participate in system implementations, testing, and User Acceptance Testing (UAT), where required.

• Contribute to process documentation and standard operating procedure improvements.

Required Qualifications & Experience

• 5–7 years of relevant UK payroll processing experience.

• Strong hands-on knowledge of end-to-end UK payroll operations.

• In-depth understanding of PAYE, National Insurance, RTI, statutory payments, tax codes, and UK payroll legislation.

• Practical experience with HMRC submissions, including FPS and EPS.

• Good understanding of workplace pensions and automatic enrolment.

• Experience handling complex payroll cases, adjustments, exceptions, and escalations.

• Strong knowledge of payroll reconciliations, variance analysis, audits, and GL reconciliations.

• Previous experience coordinating team activities, conducting quality checks, and coaching payroll associates.

• Experience with Workday Payroll or similar enterprise payroll systems.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and payroll reporting.

• Strong analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills.

• Experience in a shared services, managed services, or outsourced payroll environment.

• Willingness to work UK business hours.

Preferred Qualifications

• CIPP certification or an equivalent UK payroll qualification.

• Experience managing high-volume or multi-entity UK payroll operations.

• Exposure to payroll transformation, automation, and system implementation projects.

• Experience participating in payroll testing and UAT activities.

Work Requirements

• Location: Bangalore, Karnataka.

• Shift: UK business hours.

• Candidates should be comfortable supporting UK payroll deadlines and operational requirements.

Important Hiring Information

• Ex-TCS employees are not eligible to apply.

• PAN and Date of Birth (DOB) are required for candidate profile creation and must be collected through the authorized recruitment process.

Candidate Screening Priority: Candidates must have 5–7 years of hands-on UK payroll experience, strong knowledge of UK statutory payroll legislation, and the ability to handle complex payroll activities while providing technical guidance to team members.