Perplexity
JGA recommended.

For a permanent, Manchester-hybrid Head of Payroll owning a UK/Europe payroll-provider transition, approach a small shortlist of specialist payroll recruiters first, then add one executive-search firm for wider senior reach. The strongest fit is likely Portfolio Payroll locally, with JGA , Frazer Jones , and Middlemore providing deeper transformation, EMEA, and supplier-governance coverage.

gpa +4

Recommended firms

| Firm | Why approach them | Best use for this hire |

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

| Portfolio Payroll | Specialist payroll recruiter with a Manchester office; recruits Heads of Payroll, Payroll Directors, transformation leads and global payroll managers, including executive-level appointments. theportfoliogroup +2 | Primary local search partner; strong access to North West senior payroll talent and hybrid Manchester roles. |

| JGA Recruitment Group | Specialist payroll and HR recruitment/search firm that recruits global payroll directors and global payroll transformation managers; its network spans UK and global payroll/HR-tech talent. jgarecruitment +1 | Candidate benchmarking and access to leaders with payroll outsourcing, HRIS/HCM and multi-country transformation experience. |

| Frazer Jones | Global HR recruitment and executive-search consultancy with a dedicated payroll executive practice covering UK, EMEA and global remits. frazerjones +1 | Strong option for a senior leader comfortable with European payroll complexity and stakeholder governance. |

| Middlemore | Specialist executive search/recruitment firm focused on global payroll, HR, HRIS and finance; explicitly covers payroll transformation, vendor management, governance, compliance and post-implementation optimisation. [Trusted domain gpa](https://gpa.net/blogs/directory/middlemore) | Best match for the supplier-transition and provider-governance elements of the mandate. |

| Page Executive | Its UK People and Pay Governance practice covers payroll transformation, reward, benefits, global mobility and employment tax, with international reach. [Trusted domain pageexecutive](https://pageexecutive.com/recruitment-expertise/consultant/location/uk) | Use if you want a broader executive-search process and candidates from finance, reward, or shared-services leadership backgrounds. |

| McKinnon Talent | Manchester-based payroll recruitment specialist whose director recruits Head of Payroll, EMEA Payroll Manager, Group Payroll Manager and implementation-consultant profiles. [linkedin](https://linkedin.com/in/adam-mccartney-9a58b6139) | Useful secondary Manchester specialist, particularly for payroll-operations and EMEA payroll talent. |

Suggested approach

• Run Portfolio Payroll and JGA as the core specialist search. Ask each for a mapped longlist of payroll leaders who have led outsourced-payroll transitions, managed bureaux/ADP/SD Worx/Alight-type suppliers, and operated across UK and European jurisdictions.

• Add Middlemore for a targeted transformation brief. Their explicit coverage of vendor management, governance, data migration and post-implementation optimisation aligns closely with your change-of-provider programme. [Trusted domain gpa](https://gpa.net/blogs/directory/middlemore)

• Use Frazer Jones or Page Executive as a senior-market check. This helps test whether the best candidate may come from a wider HR operations, shared services, reward, or global payroll background rather than a traditional UK payroll career path. pageexecutive +1

• Keep McKinnon Talent as a Manchester market supplement , rather than leading the search, to avoid duplicated fees while increasing local coverage. [linkedin](https://linkedin.com/in/adam-mccartney-9a58b6139)

Brief to give recruiters

Position the role as a payroll transformation and supplier-governance leadership appointment , not simply a payroll-operations head. Require evidence of:

• Leading a payroll-provider selection, migration, implementation, or exit transition.

• Governing third-party payroll providers across multiple UK/European countries, including SLAs, controls, escalations, compliance and service performance.

• Experience with UK payroll plus at least several EMEA jurisdictions, or a credible record of building the governance model to manage local providers.

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

• Hybrid leadership from Manchester, with periodic European travel.

Practical shortlist

For an efficient process, approach Portfolio Payroll, JGA, Middlemore, and Frazer Jones initially. If the role is at the upper end—say a global or European payroll leadership remit with significant transformation accountability—add Page Executive for a more research-led executive-search process. gpa +5