Senior Payroll Specialist

Fixed-Term Contract | Remote, Australia

Ocado Group is a UK-based company and one of the world's largest dedicated online grocery retailers. Through our innovative Ocado Smart Platform ("OSP"), we provide advanced robotics and automation technology to grocery partners globally. In Australia, our technology powers highly automated Customer Fulfilment Centres supporting our local partner, Coles.

About the Role:

We’re looking for an experienced Senior Payroll Specialist to join our Australian People team on a fixed-term contract, commencing as soon as possible through to July 2027.

Ocado is currently undertaking a global payroll transformation, transitioning towards a shared services model. During this period, you’ll provide continuity and senior payroll expertise for our Australian business, ensuring payroll continues to be delivered accurately, on time and in line with Australian requirements.

As our senior local payroll subject matter expert, you’ll own Australian payroll delivery and navigate complex matters including Enterprise Agreements, Modern Awards, annualised salaries, employee entitlements and time and attendance.

This isn’t a purely transactional payroll role. You’ll also help identify risks, strengthen controls, manage external providers and support the transition of Australian payroll into our future shared services model, including knowledge transfer to future delivery teams.

This role can be based remotely anywhere in Australia. Ideally, you’ll be Melbourne-based or able to attend our Truganina site for a small amount of training and knowledge transfer during the first month or so, generally no more than a couple of consecutive days at a time. Following this initial period, the role can be completely remote.

The day to day for a Senior Payroll Specialist may involve:

• Delivering accurate and timely Australian payroll, including reviewing calculations, outputs and reconciliations.
• Managing complex payroll transactions, discrepancies, over/underpayments and employee queries.
• Providing expert advice on Australian payroll legislation, Enterprise Agreements, Modern Awards and employee entitlements.
• Supporting compliance reconciliations, including annualised salaries, and implementing payroll changes and back payments.
• Overseeing time and attendance inputs and resolving exceptions with operational teams.
• Managing external payroll and system providers, validating outputs and driving issues through to resolution.
• Maintaining payroll controls, audit evidence, governance reporting and identifying payroll risks or control gaps.
• Supporting the transition to our future shared services model through testing, validation, documentation, training and knowledge transfer.

About You:

We’re looking for an experienced payroll professional who knows Australian payroll inside and out, enjoys solving complex problems and is comfortable working autonomously.

You’ll ideally have:

• Senior-level end-to-end Australian payroll experience.
• Strong knowledge of Australian payroll legislation and statutory obligations.
• Experience interpreting Enterprise Agreements and/or Modern Awards and applying employee entitlements.
• Strong experience with payroll reconciliations, complex discrepancies, governance and controls.
• Experience managing external payroll providers and confidently challenging outputs where required.
• Strong Excel and/or Google Sheets skills, including reconciliations and remuneration modelling.
• Experience supporting payroll implementation, transformation or service delivery change.
• Strong analytical, stakeholder management and communication skills with excellent attention to detail.

Experience with annualised salary arrangements, time and attendance systems, Workday or another enterprise HRIS, or transitioning payroll into a shared services environment would be highly regarded.

What's In It for You:

• A genuinely flexible role that can be completely remote following the initial training and handover period (the training can be negotiated to be remote also).
• The opportunity to be the senior Australian payroll SME during an important period of global transformation.
• The chance to make a real impact, helping ensure Australian payroll requirements are understood and embedded into our future operating model.
• Exposure to local and global teams across Payroll, People, Finance and transformation.
• Subsidised private healthcare.
• Access to salary sacrifice schemes.
• A range of amazing benefits, including Free Shares and Life Assurance.
• Access to Discounts+.
• Access to our Employee Assistance Programme.

If you’re an experienced Australian payroll specialist who enjoys solving complex problems, taking ownership and making sure things are done properly, we’d love to hear from you.

Research shows that some candidates, particularly women and people from underrepresented backgrounds, may be less likely to apply for a role unless they feel they meet every requirement. If this opportunity excites you and you feel you could be a great fit, but you don’t tick every box above, we’d still really encourage you to apply. We’d love to hear from you.

Ocado is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, veteran’s status, or any other classification as required by applicable law.

Applicants must have unrestricted working rights in Australia, as we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role.