Perplexity: both observations

I would start with Frazer Jones and ask specifically for its UK interim payroll leadership team. It combines a specialist payroll practice with executive search and interim recruitment, making it a closer match to six-month Global Payroll Director cover than a general temporary-payroll staffing desk.

[frazerjones](https://frazerjones.com/payroll/)

Who to contact

| Provider | Why it fits your requirement | Best route |

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

| Frazer Jones | Its payroll practice offers both executive search and interim recruitment. London-based director Linda Giacomantonio focuses on UK interim payroll appointments; her published remit includes UK and global payroll, management, transformation, governance and audit. frazerjones +2 | Ask for Linda Giacomantonio and specify a director-level leadership mandate. Her published contact details are lindagiacomantonio@frazerjones.com and 07584 049504. [linkedin](https://linkedin.com/in/linda-giacomantonio-6298535a) |

| Korn Ferry | Its interim executive service explicitly covers interim directors and functional experts, including external leaders brought in while a permanent hire is found. This is a strong alternative for an executive-level search, although the cited service page does not establish a dedicated UK global-payroll specialism. [Trusted domain kornferry](https://kornferry.com/capabilities/talent-acquisition/interim-executives-professionals) | Ask its Interim Executives & Professionals team for evidence of recent UK-based global payroll leadership assignments before commissioning the search. |

Frazer Jones would be my first call for payroll-specific expertise; Korn Ferry would be the comparison option for the broader interim-executive approach. Neither source establishes that a suitable candidate is available immediately, so availability and relevant placement experience need to be confirmed.

Make the brief explicitly about leadership, not processing

I would send this brief:

We need a UK-based Interim Global Payroll Director for six months to bridge a permanent leadership search. This is an accountable functional leadership appointment, not temporary payroll processing support.

The interim will lead the existing payroll team and providers, own global payroll delivery, governance, controls and escalations, manage senior HR and Finance stakeholders, and provide a structured handover to the permanent head.

Please put forward candidates who have already led a comparable multi-country payroll function at Director or Global Head level. Confirm their country coverage, workforce scale, team leadership, relevant systems and outsourced-provider experience, availability, and proposed engagement terms.

Add your countries, employee numbers, reporting line, team size, systems, UK attendance requirements and any live transformation or compliance issues. Those details will help distinguish a genuine global functional leader from a senior practitioner whose experience is primarily hands-on processing.

What to ask before appointing a recruiter

• Relevant track record: “Which comparable interim Global Payroll Director or Head of Global Payroll mandates have you filled?”

• Candidate accountability: “Did those candidates own the function, team and controls—or support a project or payroll cycle?”

• Six-month suitability: “Can the candidate commit to the full assignment and a defined handover?”

• Commercial clarity: “What are the candidate rate, agency charges, engagement structure and extension or early-termination terms?”

Your requirement is best described as “six-month interim executive cover for the global payroll function while the permanent search runs”—not simply “temporary payroll support.” That matches the leadership-gap purpose of interim executive recruitment.

[Trusted domain kornferry](https://kornferry.com/capabilities/talent-acquisition/interim-executives-professionals)

Yes—use a specialist interim payroll executive-search firm , not a general temporary-staffing agency. For a six-month Global Payroll Director cover role, the best-fit providers are those that explicitly place senior/fractional payroll leaders and can source candidates who own governance, vendors, compliance, and stakeholder management rather than process payroll. frazerjones +1

Best-fit providers

| Provider | Why suitable | Best use |

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

| Frazer Jones | Offers dedicated interim and fractional payroll recruitment, with global payroll talent networks and executive search capability; places roles up to global payroll manager and consultant level. [frazerjones](https://www.frazerjones.com/get-in-touch/book-a-consultation/payroll/) | Strong first call for a senior interim Global Payroll Director with a six-month mandate. |

| The Portfolio Group / Portfolio Payroll | Recruits across the payroll function through Payroll Director level and explicitly supports interim specialists while a permanent hire is sought. [theportfoliogroup](https://www.theportfoliogroup.com/payroll/) | Good for a targeted interim search and market-rate benchmarking. |

| The Leppington Group (TLG Talent) | Focuses on senior payroll leadership—Head of Payroll, Global Payroll Manager, and Payroll Operations Director—and offers interim/contract coverage through a curated network. [theleppingtongroup](https://www.theleppingtongroup.com/payroll-talent) | Useful if you want a discreet, relationship-led search for a true leader rather than a broad candidate pool. |

| JGA Recruitment | Specialises in permanent, temporary, and contract payroll recruitment in the UK and internationally, including defining requirements and managing the process to offer. [jgarecruitment](https://jgarecruitment.com/blog/how-long-does-payroll-recruitment-take-a-realistic-uk-hiring-timeline/) | Good option for a fast, specialist contingent search. |

| Oakleaf Partnership | Has an interim business covering HR, reward, and payroll, including interim head/director-level roles. [oakleafpartnership](https://www.oakleafpartnership.com/business-areas/interim) | Worth including if the mandate overlaps with HR transformation, reward, or wider people-function leadership. |

How to brief them

Make clear that you need an interim Global Payroll Director / Head of Global Payroll , engaged for approximately six months, with accountability for:

• Global payroll operating model, controls, compliance, and reporting.

• Third-party payroll vendors, multi-country providers, and in-house/shared-service teams.

• Executive and Finance/HR stakeholder management.

• Continuity during the permanent recruitment process, plus a clean handover.

• Optionally: payroll transformation, system migration, or post-acquisition integration.

Avoid describing it as “temporary payroll support”: that language tends to attract processing, administration, and compliance-cover candidates. The distinction matters because providers such as activpayroll explicitly position interim support around operational processing and administration, which is not the leadership cover you need.

[activpayroll](https://www.activpayroll.com/global-payroll/interim-uk-payroll-support)

Practical approach

1. Approach two or three specialist firms in parallel —for example Frazer Jones, Portfolio Payroll, and TLG Talent—and ask each for candidate profiles within 3–5 working days. frazerjones +2

2. Specify day rate and engagement model : typically an interim contractor via umbrella/PAYE or a fixed-term contract; current market examples for senior global payroll interim roles include roughly £350–£400 per day for a Global Payroll Manager and £500–£550 per day for an EMEA Payroll Project Manager, so a Director-level mandate may sit at or above that range depending on scope. jooble +1

3. Require proof of leadership scope , not just payroll knowledge: number of countries, employee population, vendors managed, team size, audit/compliance ownership, and examples of stabilising a payroll function during transition.

4. Build a handover clause into the six-month term , so the interim director can onboard the permanent Head of Global Payroll and transfer vendor, control, and stakeholder knowledge.

For the fastest credible route, start with Frazer Jones for interim/fractional payroll leadership and Portfolio Payroll for breadth; add TLG Talent if you prefer a confidential, network-based senior search. frazerjones +2