All answers / S04-B-perplexity-r1

S04-B | Perplexity | Observation 1

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Exact question

Who recruits senior payroll change leaders in the UK? We need someone to lead a multi-country payroll system implementation, not just run monthly payroll.

Complete saved answer

For a  multi-country payroll system implementation , use a small shortlist of specialist payroll/HCM transformation recruiters rather than a general finance recruiter. The strongest UK-first options are  Middlemore ,  Portfolio Payroll , and  Oakleaf Partnership , supplemented by HCM/ERP recruiters for Workday or SuccessFactors-specific talent.

Best-fit recruiters

| Recruiter | Why they fit | Best use |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Middlemore | Specialist executive search and recruitment across Global Payroll, HR, HRIS and Finance; explicitly covers global payroll transformation, payroll implementation, programme/project management, change, data migration, testing, governance and vendor management. [Trusted domain gpa](https://gpa.net/blogs/directory/middlemore) | First call for a permanent or interim Global Payroll Transformation Lead / Programme Director |
| Portfolio Payroll | UK payroll specialist since 1988; recruits through to Heads of Payroll and Payroll Directors, including international payroll and payroll systems implementation. Its executive search explicitly covers Payroll Transformation Leads and Global Payroll Managers. theportfoliogroup +1 | Strong for senior permanent and interim payroll leadership, especially if you want deep payroll-domain networks |
| Oakleaf Partnership | Payroll recruitment across financial and professional services, including operational, change/transformation and leadership hiring, permanent and interim. [linkedin](https://linkedin.com/in/alex-wade-75885213) | Good for interim transformation leadership and programme-style payroll change roles |
| Hays | Recruits payroll, transformation/systems and tech-enabled roles, including senior, interim, contract and executive-search appointments. [Trusted domain hays.co](https://hays.co.uk/recruitment/accountancy-finance) | Useful for scale, contract/interim coverage, and adjacent HRIS/finance transformation talent |
| Robert Walters Executive Search | UK executive search with confidential market mapping and outreach for leadership roles. [Trusted domain robertwalters.co](https://robertwalters.co.uk/our-services/executive-search.html) | Best if the role is board-visible, complex, or needs a retained search |
| Opus Resourcing | HCM recruitment specialist for Workday, SAP SuccessFactors and Oracle HCM, including payroll cloud implementation talent across UK/Europe. [opusresourcing](https://opusresourcing.com/our-sectors/hcm-recruitment/) | Use alongside a payroll specialist if the implementation is Workday, SuccessFactors ECP, or another HCM platform |

How to brief them

Ask for a  Global Payroll Transformation Lead ,  Payroll Programme Director , or  Payroll Change & Implementation Lead —not a “Payroll Manager.” A relevant benchmark is Mondi’s Global Payroll Transformation Lead, which requires leading multi-country rollouts, end-to-end implementation, testing, stabilisation, governance and standardisation across countries.

[linkedin](https://linkedin.com/jobs/view/global-payroll-transformation-lead-at-mondi-group-4385246720)

Require evidence of:

• Leading at least one end-to-end payroll system implementation across multiple countries, ideally with wave-based rollouts.

• Experience with your target platform: Workday, SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central Payroll, ADP/CloudPay, SD Worx, or local in-country providers.

• Data migration, parallel runs, testing, cutover, go-live and post-go-live stabilisation.

• Vendor and in-country provider governance, plus compliance and controls across jurisdictions.

• Stakeholder management across HR, Finance, Tax, Legal, IT and works councils/unions where relevant.

• Change management and operating-model design—not merely monthly payroll processing.

Recommended approach

1. Retain Middlemore or Portfolio Payroll for the core search; both have explicit senior payroll transformation coverage. gpa +1

2. Add an HCM/ERP specialist such as Opus if the role is platform-heavy. [opusresourcing](https://opusresourcing.com/our-sectors/hcm-recruitment/)

3. Use Oakleaf or Hays for interim capacity if you need someone to start quickly and hand over to a permanent leader later. hays.co +1

4. Insist on implementation case studies , with countries, platform, payroll model, timeline, risks and measurable outcomes.

If you want one practical starting point: brief  Middlemore  and  Portfolio Payroll  in parallel, with a tightly written scorecard emphasising multi-country implementation, platform experience, governance and change leadership. That should avoid attracting strong monthly-payroll operators who lack programme-delivery credibility.

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