GCR - Payroll Assistant Manager

Our National Tax practice is made up of teams of professionals providing specific tax technical services to African and global clients. The Payroll Operate team operates in a technical environment with deep process and service delivery experience that distinguishes EY in the marketplace.

The opportunity

Our market-leading approach combines extensive local payroll service experience with a standard global payroll compliance and implementation methodology. With engagements involving a few countries or many, you will have the opportunity to provide clients an integrated, consistent, quality service that unlocks the potential of the payroll function across the entire process.

Your key responsibilities:

• Provide timely and high-quality payroll support, project management, governance and service 
management services and work products that exceed client expectations, including regular contact with 
EY global payroll teams to verify that payroll services are delivered on time and accurately.
• Support on the review and resolution of client requests and queries on portfolio, including technical 
queries.
• Liase with the offshore and Africa teams as relevant to deliver on client payrolls.
• Be responsible for accurate and timely service delivery of payroll for our clients.
• Respond to payroll and governance payroll queries from clients and internal global stakeholders.
• Develop the client payroll calendar detailing all payroll delivery activities and dates; support the 
collection of client data and work with global EY teams to confirm receipt and set up OGM.
• Manage the creation and updates of payroll processes/procedure documentation for all clients and audit 
annually.
• Work with teams to correct as relevant, including working with and training offshore teams on payroll 
processes.
• Support in all activities within Payroll Operate that include sales and service opportunities under the 
direction of a senior manager or manager in the group.

As an Assistant Manager in Payroll Operate you will help supervise the design, implementation and operation of global multi-country payroll operate services for our small clients. Capabilities include:

• Implementation of centrally managed global outsourcing model, leveraging the global payroll tools to 
provide clients with greater control, visibility and compliance for their global payroll;
• Governance of payroll operations with ability to lead the global country teams utilizing one global 
methodology to track the end-to-end process, and provide governance throughout our client life cycle to 
mitigate risk, increase corporate transparency, increase compliance, ensure leveraging of key data 
insights and provide clients with additional product offerings;
• Working, directing and resolving questions, identifying service opportunities with internal EY serving 
Africa and global teams;
• Build on technical competence by keeping up to date on global trends, developments and regulations 
and applying them to moderately complex situations and undertaking non-routine, complex project-type 
work as requested by clients;
• Exhibit competency in technology by maintaining complex sets of data, reviewing data analytics and 
analyzing trends, including the collection of data per agreed-upon payroll calendars and other 
requirements;
• Ensure the payroll processes and procedures documentation is relevant, up to date and used at all 
times;
• Manage payroll projects as assigned (including new client transitions) which will require ownership, 
project management, recommendations, solutions, root cause analysis, SLAs and metrics, decisions 
and resolution including the escalation of client and internal country issues;
• Identifying potential opportunities to expand client services (within payroll and in other SLs) based on 
current offerings and client feedback;
• Should be a subject matter expert in understanding the payroll rules and legislations in a multi-country 
environment and being up to date with current payroll knowledge and legislation.
• Good understanding of the Technology enablers within EY to support on innovation and continuous 
improvement within the practice;
• Responsible for ISAE3402, billings and payments, BRET and third party contractor management, 
pipeline management, debtors responsibility;
• Initiation and completion of the ASQs and QRM process with support from senior manager group as 
relevant.

Skills and attributes for success:

• Strong payroll processing background;
• Experience with South African/African payroll processing;
• Managing a wide variety of team members per client engagement;
• Be involved in identifying team structure for complex projects/engagements;
• Act as coach for team members as requested;
• Strong analytical skills, interpersonal, and written/verbal communication skills; problem-solving ability 
and attention to detail;
• Project management skills;
• Up to date with current payroll knowledge and legislation; and
• Excellent communication, presentation and client service skills.

To qualify for the role, you should have:

• Bachelor’s degree/equivalent diploma preferably with an emphasis in accounting, business or finance 
(This is preferable, not a mandatory requirement)
• 3+ years of relevant payroll and/or tax experience or equivalent experience in business or industry 
preferable.
• Strong numbers acumen, including analytical abilities and knowledge of Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
• Excellent organizational and verbal/written communication skills with a proactive approach to problem 
solving and attention to detail.
• Client-facing exposure in a payroll role.
• Project management experience with global or multi-national payrollss