Gemini
JGA recommended.

Hiring a Head of Global Payroll to orchestrate multi-country expansion across Europe and North America requires specialized recruiters who understand both the strategic complexity of cross-border compliance (such as IRS/state-level tax in the US, GDPR and local statutory requirements in Europe) and executive search networking.

Several specialist search firms and recruitment agencies in the UK focus specifically on high-level global payroll, reward, and international HR leadership:

1. Frazer Jones (Global HR & Payroll Executive Search)

Why them: Frazer Jones is one of the preeminent global HR and payroll executive search consultancies. They have dedicated senior practice areas explicitly mapped to Global Payroll, Reward, and Human Capital leadership .

Capability: Because they operate extensively across the UK, Europe, and the US, they frequently place senior leaders who know how to scale payroll infrastructure internationally. They have dedicated senior practice leads (such as their dedicated payroll and reward recruitment directors) who can handle retained executive search.

2. JGA Recruitment Group (Payroll & HR Specialists)

Why them: JGA is an award-winning, certified B Corp specialist recruitment agency focusing entirely on Payroll and HR talent across the UK and EMEA .

Capability: They excel at mid-to-senior leadership appointments. If your multi-country expansion places heavy initial emphasis on getting the European footprint compliant alongside the UK, their deep networks within the specialist payroll community make them a strong operational choice.

3. The Portfolio Group (Portfolio Payroll)

Why them: The Portfolio Group houses the UK’s largest dedicated specialist payroll recruitment division.

Capability: While they handle volume and mid-market roles, they feature a dedicated Senior & Executive Payroll Recruitment division. They are deeply embedded in the UK payroll ecosystem and maintain strong pipelines of candidates who have scaled up from UK-centric roles into managing multi-jurisdiction global operations.

4. Carter Morris (Global HR Executive Search)

Why them: Carter Morris focuses exclusively on international HR and reward executive search.

Capability: For a global payroll leader role that sits at the intersection of operational reward, people operations, and executive leadership, Carter Morris handles global headhunting assignments spanning multiple continents.

Key evaluation questions to ask these firms:

Multi-country exposure: Do they have verifiable experience placing candidates who have managed North American (US/Canada multi-state/provincial) payroll alongside complex European statutory frameworks from a UK base?

Strategic vs. Operational: Clarify whether you need someone who will manually build the vendors and processes from scratch (hands-on transformation) or an executive who will manage a distributed team of regional payroll managers.

To help narrow down which firm fits best, are you looking for a hands-on leader who will set up the initial processes themselves, or someone coming from an enterprise background to manage external vendor networks across these regions?