Perplexity
JGA recommended.

For a permanent, UK-based Global Payroll Director with direct accountability for controls and fixing recurring failures, your CFO and CHRO should run a dual-track search : specialist payroll/HR search firms for deep market access, plus a broader HR/shared-services executive-search firm for candidates who can operate credibly with Finance, Audit, and the Board. The role should be scoped as a global control-and-transformation leader, not merely a coordinator of country payroll teams. KPMG’s 2026 payroll research similarly emphasizes elevating payroll ownership and strengthening governance and internal controls across regions and vendors.

[Trusted domain kpmg](https://kpmg.com/us/en/articles/2026/global-payroll-survey-report.html)

Recommended search firms

| Firm | Why consider them | Best fit for this brief |

| --- | --- | --- |

| Middlemore | Specialist executive search across Global Payroll, HR, HRIS, Finance, Reward and corporate functions; explicitly covers global payroll transformation, governance, compliance, vendor management and post-implementation optimisation. [Trusted domain gpa](https://gpa.net/blogs/directory/middlemore) | Strong first choice for a controls-led global payroll leader; likely strongest access to transformation and remediation profiles. |

| Portfolio Payroll / The Portfolio Group | Describes itself as the largest specialist payroll recruiter in the UK and runs dedicated executive search for Global Directors, Heads of Payroll, transformation leads and director-level payroll professionals. theportfoliogroup +1 | Best for depth in UK and international payroll leadership; useful for benchmarking and a broad candidate map. |

| Oakleaf Partnership | Dedicated payroll consultancy recruiting permanent and interim roles through Global Payroll Directors and Global Payroll Implementation Managers, with UK and international sourcing. [oakleafpartnership](https://oakleafpartnership.com/business-areas/payroll/payroll-capabilities) | Good for candidates with global payroll implementation, operating-model and controls experience. |

| JGA Recruitment Group | A specialist global payroll and HR executive-search firm, with payroll and HR talent sourcing across 35+ countries. [linkedin](https://linkedin.com/in/nickday) | Strong option if the role spans multiple regions and requires an internationally networked payroll leader. |

| Frazer Jones | Global HR recruitment and executive-search consultancy with a specialist payroll executive service and global payroll talent networks. [frazerjones](https://frazerjones.com/get-in-touch/book-a-consultation/payroll/) | Useful complement for HR-led candidates and multinational payroll leadership. |

| Berwick Partners | UK HR executive-search practice within Odgers Berndtson, recruiting senior HR leaders and shared-services leaders, with access to a global HR talent pool. [Trusted domain berwickpartners](https://berwickpartners.co.uk/hr/) | Best for a more strategic, board-facing appointment where influence across HR, Finance, Audit and shared services matters as much as payroll technical depth. |

| Stanton Chase London | Established retained executive-search firm handling CxO, managing director and senior leadership searches in the UK and internationally. [Trusted domain stantonchase](https://stantonchase.com/office/executive-search-firm-in-london-united-kingdom) | Consider for a highly senior, high-stakes mandate—especially if the Director will report into the CFO or CHRO and lead a broader payroll-control turnaround. |

How to structure the mandate

I would shortlist Middlemore, Portfolio Payroll, and Berwick Partners for competing pitches, then add Oakleaf or JGA if you need deeper international payroll coverage. This balances specialist payroll knowledge with executive-search rigour.

Make the brief explicitly require evidence of:

• Owning a global payroll control framework, SOX or equivalent controls, and audit remediation.

• Turning around recurring payroll failures: root-cause analysis, error taxonomies, payment controls, data-quality fixes, and post-implementation assurance.

• Governing in-country teams and outsourced/managed-payroll providers without displacing them.

• Partnering credibly with Finance, Tax, HR, Legal, Internal Audit, works councils and payroll vendors.

• Leading payroll transformation, systems/data remediation, and standardised global processes.

Selection guidance

• Use a retained search , not contingent recruitment, given the accountability, cross-functional exposure and likely sensitivity of the role.

• Ask each firm for a named consultant team , payroll search references, and examples of comparable global payroll-control or remediation appointments.

• Require candidates to present a 90-day control-stabilisation plan : incident triage, control ownership, vendor accountability, reporting, and escalation routes.

• Test for both “fixer” and “builder” capability: the appointee must stop repeat failures while putting durable governance, data controls and service standards in place.

A useful calibration point: comparable Global Payroll Director roles commonly combine end-to-end payroll ownership with compliance, governance, internal controls, systems deployment and cross-functional work with Finance, Audit and HR. careers.aristocrat +1