- Permanent Full Time Opportunity
- Play a key role in strengthening payroll compliance, improving governance and helping shape the future of payroll operations at the City of Melbourne
- Classification 5 ($101,498 - $114,234) + 12% Superannuation
About the role
The City of Melbourne is continuing to invest in the uplift of its Payroll function, with a strong focus on enhancing compliance, strengthening governance, improving data integrity and delivering a more contemporary payroll service for our people.
As our you'll play a pivotal role in helping us elevate how payroll operates across the organisation. This is a unique opportunity to combine payroll expertise, data analysis and continuous improvement capability in a role that directly contributes to organisational accountability and employee experience.
Working closely with Payroll, Payroll Compliance and Data Analyst, HR, Finance, Systems and other key stakeholders, you'll provide specialist analysis, compliance oversight and governance support. You'll help identify and resolve payroll risks, improve processes and controls, and ensure compliance with legislative and organisational requirements.
A key focus of the role in its early stages will be reviewing current state payroll processes and practices, identifying opportunities to strengthen controls, improve consistency and validate the effectiveness of existing processes as part of the broader uplift of the payroll function.
A little more about the role
In this role you will:
- Conduct payroll compliance reviews, audits and investigations to identify risks, discrepancies and improvement opportunities
- Analyse payroll data and perform reconciliations across payroll, finance and related systems
- Support payroll governance activities, ensuring appropriate controls, documentation and audit readiness
- Contribute to payroll remediation activities and compliance reporting where required
- Partner with Payroll, HR, Finance and Systems teams to improve processes, controls and data integrity
- Support payroll system enhancements, testing and continuous improvement initiatives
- Develop and maintain payroll procedures, compliance documentation and reporting frameworks
- Provide operational payroll support during peak periods and planned absences within the team
What you'll help us achieve
This role is central to the next phase of maturity within the Payroll function.
You'll help us better understand how payroll processes currently operate, validate existing controls and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, compliance and employee outcomes. Your work will contribute to a more proactive, data informed and governance focused payroll service that supports the needs of the organisation today and into the future.
About you
You're an experienced payroll professional who enjoys solving complex problems and using data to drive improvements.
You combine strong attention to detail with a practical understanding of payroll operations and compliance requirements. You are naturally curious, enjoy investigating issues and have the confidence to engage with stakeholders across a broad range of functions.
Most importantly, you're motivated by improving how things work and take pride in delivering accurate, compliant and well governed payroll outcomes.
What your experience might look like
- Experience in payroll compliance, payroll analysis, payroll governance or senior payroll operations roles
- Demonstrated experience performing payroll audits, reconciliations or compliance reviews
- Strong analytical capability with advanced Excel skills and the ability to work with complex datasets
- Experience identifying payroll risks and supporting remediation or process improvement activities
- Knowledge of payroll legislation, taxation and compliance requirements
- Experience working with payroll and workforce management systems such as Aurion, Chris21, Kronos or SuccessFactors will be highly regarded
- Proven ability to build effective working relationships across Payroll, HR, Finance and other stakeholder groups
- Experience supporting payroll system enhancements, testing or continuous improvement initiatives
Benefits of working with us
- Attractive remuneration & benefits: Excellent pay package with a range of exciting benefits. Flexible working, study assistance & other great corporate discounts.
- Excellent leave entitlements: Enjoy up to 20 weeks of fully paid parental leave for primary carers, in addition to the government-funded parental leave, with no waiting period to access. Part-time equivalents are also available for added flexibility.
- Career progression: Career development support and opportunities to learn new skills within a creative and exciting environment.
- Work life balance and hybrid working: We support flexible hours, alternative work arrangements (like ADOs), and hybrid work-from-home options.
How to apply
We'd love to hear how you can make an impact in this role! As part of your application, you will be required to:
- Attach your updated resume
- Include a cover letter (max one page) outlining your relevant experience and why you're a great fit for this role.
Submit your application no later than 11:45pm on 16 August, 2026.
A few important things to note - don’t miss out!
- Applications must be submitted online. Unfortunately, we can’t accept applications via email, so please be sure to apply through the official job link provided.
- Apply early! This role may close sooner than the listed closing date if we find the right candidate — so don’t wait to get your application in.
- We are a child safe organisation. The City of Melbourne has a zero tolerance for child abuse. All employees undergo thorough safety screening, including a Police Check and, for most roles, a Working with Children Check.
Inclusion matters
We strongly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people from all cultural and linguistic backgrounds, people with disabilities, LGBTIQA+ individuals, and people of all ages and faith backgrounds.
We provide reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process to support all applicants. If you require any adjustments, please let us know via the application prompts or inform our Careers team if you’re contacted for an interview.
