Payroll Professional II - EMEA & APAC - 3 - 5 yrs

Company Description

At Nielsen, we are passionate about our work to power a better media future for all people by providing powerful insights that drive client decisions and deliver extraordinary results. Our talented, global workforce is dedicated to capturing audience engagement with content - wherever and whenever it’s consumed. Together, we are proudly rooted in our deep legacy as we stand at the forefront of the media revolution. When you join Nielsen, you will join a dynamic team committed to excellence, perseverance, and the ambition to make an impact together. We champion you, because when you succeed, we do too. We enable your best to power our future.

Job Description

The Global Payroll Specialist is responsible for managing all payroll across the region, ensuring smooth payroll operations and a consistent employee experience. We offer a great place to work by providing a positive and inclusive working environment where colleagues can perform better by being themselves.  

Purpose of the Role 

Looking after our associates is key and making sure they get paid and rewarded correctly is a big part of this. In this varied and broad role, you will be responsible for end-to-end semi-monthly and monthly payrolls and associated pension schemes across the EMEA and APAC regions. As part of a global team, you will manage assigned regional payrolls while providing seamless coverage for team members across these jurisdictions. 

You will manage the relationship with the outsourced payroll provider and validate and sign off the monthly payroll for all entities.  You will be responsible for Year End processes in each respective country, ensuring compliance with all local statutory requirements in partnership with our payroll vendor. Working closely with both the Nielsen Finance Team and the external Payroll and Pension providers.  You will be a subject matter expert for Payroll providing expertise to the wider HR Community on payroll related topics and initiatives and ensuring compliance with the legal and statutory requirements.

The role is hands-on and successful individuals will be customer-focused, personable yet professional, exhibit strong attention to detail and an ability to work in a high volume, high-pressure environment.  We are looking for someone who is passionate about delivering exceptional payroll customer service, has a real eye for detail and relishes the opportunity to embrace new challenges.

Key Responsibilities 

• Payroll Management

  • Payroll gatekeeper, responsible for all monthly payroll data, upload/update all permanent changes on the payroll system. for checking the monthly payroll and preparing validation reports in accordance with global payroll guidelines 

  • Where required work with external benefit providers to ensure benefits are processed correctly through payroll. Work closely with HR teams to provide any reporting requirements relating to payroll.

  • Prepare for annual internal and external audits for each entity, work closely with the Finance team to ensure all audit requirements are met. 

  • Ensure all Year End processes are completed in a timely manner, and in accordance with all local legal and statutory requirements

  • Day to day payroll, benefits and pension queries 

  • Preparing Adhoc reports and reconciliations for Finance, HR and Comp & Bens

Qualifications

Experience

• Multi-Country Payroll Delivery: Proven experience minimum of 3 years managing multi-country or multi-entity semi-monthly and monthly payrolls, including associated pension schemes across EMEA and APAC regions.

• Vendor & In-House Management: Hands-on experience working with global payroll vendors and/or processing in-house payrolls; direct experience with Neeyamo is highly desirable.

• Systems Proficiency: Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office and Google Workspace. Experience with HR Information Systems (HRIS) is desirable, ideally SAP / Employee Central.

• Cross-Functional Communication: Demonstrated ability to build strong professional relationships across internal departments and with external payroll providers, confidently interacting with employees at all levels.

Skills & Personal Attributes

• Time Management & Accuracy: Excellent organizational skills with the ability to prioritize workload effectively, manage tight deadlines, and perform accurately at speed with exemplary attention to detail.

• Problem Solving & Initiative: Proactive, resourceful problem solver with a hands-on "can-do" attitude and the ability to work independently under pressure.

• Confidentiality & Professionalism: High degree of discretion, tact, and sensitivity when handling confidential payroll and employee data.

Additional Information

Please be aware that job-seekers may be at risk of targeting by scammers seeking personal data or money. Nielsen recruiters will only contact you through official job boards, LinkedIn, or email with a nielsen.com domain. Be cautious of any outreach claiming to be from Nielsen via other messaging platforms or personal email addresses. Always verify that email communications come from an @nielsen.com address. If you're unsure about the authenticity of a job offer or communication, please contact Nielsen directly through our official website or verified social media channels.