ChatGPT
JGA recommended.

You need an interim Global Payroll Director on a six-month assignment , not an interim payroll manager or a team of temporary processors. I’d target specialist interim executive recruiters and global HR/payroll transformation consultancies that can supply someone who has owned payroll across multiple countries, managed governance and controls, and led teams through a leadership transition.

The key is to brief for director-level accountability and operational leadership from day one , while your permanent recruitment runs in parallel.

Who I would approach first

These are the most relevant UK recruiters I found for your brief, prioritising evidence of senior payroll recruitment rather than generic temporary staffing.

1. Oakleaf Partnership

Specialist payroll recruitment

Oakleaf has a dedicated payroll recruitment practice covering interim and permanent roles, including Global Payroll Directors and Global Heads of Payroll. That makes it a particularly relevant first call for a six-month leadership appointment. Oakleaf

• Website: [oakleafpartnership.com ](https://oakleafpartnership.com/business-areas/payroll/payroll-capabilities?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

• Ask for: the consultant responsible for senior and interim global payroll appointments.

2. Altum Consulting

Altum has advertised an Interim Global Director of Payroll role in London. The brief included global governance, compliance, vendor management, executive stakeholder engagement and transformation — closely aligned with the seniority you need. LinkedIn

• Contact route: [Altum Consulting ](https://altumconsulting.co.uk/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

• Ask for: the recruiter handling its interim Global Payroll Director search.

• Note: the advertisement is evidence of relevant specialism, not confirmation that a candidate is currently available.

3. JGA Recruitment Group

A payroll and HR recruitment specialist with temporary and bespoke recruitment services. Worth approaching for access to experienced payroll leaders and a targeted search beyond advertised vacancies. google.com

• Phone: +44 1727 800377

• Website: [jgarecruitment.com ](https://jgarecruitment.com/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

• Ask for: interim director-level payroll candidates with international remit, rather than interim payroll managers.

4. Portfolio Payroll

A payroll-focused recruiter covering interim, contract, permanent and senior-level hiring. An additional channel for reaching established payroll leaders who may be available for a fixed-term assignment. google.com.br

• Phone: +44 20 7247 9455

• Website: [portfoliopayroll.com ](https://portfoliopayroll.com/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

• Ask for: a confidential search for an interim Global Payroll Director or Global Head of Payroll.

5. Russam

A senior interim-management and executive-search firm. I would use Russam as a complementary route if the appointment requires board-level influence, restructuring, transformation or substantial organisational change alongside payroll leadership. Its specific global-payroll candidate depth would need to be established. google.com

• Phone: +44 20 7099 2222

• Website: [russam.co.uk ](https://russam.co.uk/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

How to ensure you get a director, not a processor

Give the recruiters a brief that explicitly requires:

• Global ownership: direct accountability for payroll across multiple countries and regions.

• Leadership: experience managing senior payroll teams and outsourced providers, with authority to make decisions and escalate material risks.

• Governance: responsibility for payroll controls, audit, compliance, reconciliations and executive reporting.

• Strategic delivery: experience improving the operating model, systems, service levels and vendor performance.

• Interim readiness: availability to start promptly and take full leadership responsibility for six months while the permanent search continues.

Ask each recruiter to provide two or three relevant candidate profiles, evidence of previous director-level assignments, earliest start date, day rate and IR35 position. Confirm that candidates will accept an assignment ending when the permanent head is appointed, subject to agreed contractual terms.

Suggested outreach

Email

Subject

Interim Global Payroll Director – six-month leadership assignment

Hi,

We are looking to appoint an Interim Global Payroll Director for an initial six-month assignment while we recruit our permanent head of function.

This is a senior leadership appointment, not a temporary payroll processing or payroll manager role. We need someone who can take immediate ownership of the global payroll function, lead the team and external providers, maintain robust governance and controls, manage senior stakeholders, and drive operational effectiveness throughout the transition.

Please let me know whether you have access to experienced interim Global Payroll Directors or Global Heads of Payroll who could take on this assignment.

It would be helpful to receive relevant candidate profiles, availability, indicative day rates and IR35 arrangements, along with details of comparable interim leadership placements.

Kind regards,

My recommendation: start with Oakleaf Partnership and Altum Consulting, then engage JGA and Portfolio Payroll in parallel if you want a broader candidate pool.

One question that would help narrow the search: how many countries does your global payroll cover, and roughly how many employees are on the payroll? That will help distinguish someone who can run a genuinely global function from someone whose experience is mainly UK or EMEA payroll.