UK Payroll Manager

DISCOVER YOUR POTENTIAL. BUILD YOUR CAREER. JOIN US AT AAB.

AAB is a leading professional services firm operating across the UK, Ireland, and the USA. We specialise in the mid-market, supporting individuals, family businesses, and organisations with a full suite of services including audit, tax, corporate finance, payroll, people consultancy, and wealth management. With 1,000+ team members, we deliver expert support to clients all over the world.

EVERYONE HAS THE AABILITY TO SUCCEED- WE’LL HELP YOU GET THERE.

Our people are at the heart of everything we do. We succeed together as one team, building strong client relationships through passion, empathy, and straightforward advice. That’s what makes AAB different. We invest in brilliant talent across every area of the business, offering tailored training, professional qualifications, and continuous support to help you grow.

Your growth matters to us. We’ll give you the tools, encouragement, and opportunities to lead, learn, and make an impact. Guided by our six core values, we foster a culture where collaboration, trust, and enthusiasm thrive.

AABSOLUTELY DEDICATED TO HELPING YOU ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS

At AAB, your career is what you make it. We are here to help you turn ambition into action, whether that’s becoming a technical expert, a future leader, or someone who simply makes a difference every day. If you're ready to be part of a team that’s united by purpose and driven by values, we’d love to hear from you.

ESG COMMITMENT

We take our responsibility seriously. From reducing our environmental impact, to supporting education through training and talent programmes, to giving back to our local communities with our charitable initiative ABBIE- ESG is part of who we are.

ROLE PURPOSE

Key duties & responsibilities:

Main Tasks Of The Role
- Manage and oversee the delivery of payroll services across a portfolio of SME clients, ensuring service standards, deadlines and client expectations are consistently achieved.
- Lead, coach and develop Client Success Specialists, creating a high performing and client focused team culture.
- Act as a key point of contact for clients, building trusted relationships and ensuring a positive client experience.
- Oversee the effective coordination of payroll activities between clients, the CSS team and QX, ensuring payrolls are processed accurately and on time.
- Manage team workload, resource allocation and service priorities to ensure operational efficiency and service continuity.
- Monitor performance against key service indicators including payroll accuracy, SLA achievement, client satisfaction and operational efficiency.
- Act as an escalation point for complex client queries, service concerns and operational challenges, ensuring timely and effective resolution.
- Support the professional development of team members through coaching, feedback, mentoring and performance management.
- Drive a culture of accountability, collaboration and continuous improvement across the team.
- Maintain regular communication with clients through service review meetings and ongoing relationship management activities.
- Identify opportunities to enhance client service, improve operational processes and increase service consistency.
- Support client retention initiatives and identify opportunities for additional services, referring opportunities across the wider business.
- Work collaboratively with internal departments to ensure a joined up approach to client service delivery.
- Assist with marketing initiatives, networking activities and business development opportunities where appropriate.
- Identify risks within service delivery and implement appropriate controls, improvements and corrective actions.
- Demonstrate strong commercial awareness in relation to service delivery, resource utilisation and client profitability.
Technical Tasks
- Oversee the day-to-day management of payroll delivery activities across the SME client portfolio.
- Maintain strong oversight of payroll processing completed by QX, ensuring quality standards and service levels are achieved.
- Monitor payroll outputs, client communications and exception reporting, ensuring issues are identified and resolved promptly.
- Support Client Success Specialists in managing complex payroll matters, technical queries and service escalations.
- Maintain an up to date understanding of payroll legislation and industry developments, ensuring changes are effectively implemented across the team.
- Manage service delivery planning to ensure workload is distributed effectively and payroll deadlines are consistently met.
- Drive process improvement initiatives within the team, promoting operational efficiency, standardisation and best practice.
- Analyse performance metrics and service data to identify trends, risks and areas for improvement.
- Liaise with HR Consulting, Implementation, Technology and other internal teams to support client needs and service delivery requirements.
- Support client review meetings, presenting service performance, discussing operational matters and agreeing improvement actions.
- Ensure operational procedures, controls and client process documentation remain accurate and compliant.
- Support the onboarding team in achieving smooth transitions from implementation into business-as-usual payroll delivery.
- Manage responses to client queries and technical matters, ensuring guidance provided is accurate, practical and aligned with client needs.
- Contribute to service development initiatives, technology enhancements and continuous improvement projects.

Experience & qualifications

Required
- Higher Grade/A Level or equivalent
- Relevant professional qualifications
Preferred
- University degree 2:1 minimum classification
Preferred Experience
- Previous experience managing payroll service delivery within a client focused environment.
- Experience leading teams and developing high performing individuals.
- Experience managing payroll client portfolios and stakeholder relationships.
- Experience working with outsourced or offshore delivery models.
- Experience handling complex payroll queries and client escalations.
- Experience driving operational improvement and service excellence initiatives.
- Experience supporting business development and client retention activities.
- Experience managing performance against operational and commercial objectives.
Required Knowledge and Skills
- Excellent leadership and people management skills.
- Strong stakeholder and client relationship management abilities.
- Excellent organisational and workload management skills.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Knowledge of payroll legislation, payroll operations and industry best practice.
- Knowledge of Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and payroll software solutions.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Experience interpreting service performance data and driving improvement initiatives.
- Strong commercial awareness and understanding of client service management.
- Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced client service environment.
Required Attributes
- Strong team player with the ability to build effective relationships at all levels.
- Client focused with a commitment to service excellence.
- Self-motivated and able to work under pressure.
- Strong leadership presence with the ability to influence and motivate others.
- High levels of accountability and ownership.
- Positive and proactive approach to solving problems.
- Adaptable and responsive to changing client and business requirements.
- Committed to continuous improvement and operational excellence.
- Commercially minded with a focus on delivering value to both clients and the business.

WHAT AAB OFFER

We want you to feel supported inside and outside of work. That’s why we offer a benefits package designed for your wellbeing, lifestyle, and career.

Time Off & Family Support
- Annual leave (plus public holidays), with the option to buy or carry over leave
- Enhanced parental leave (maternity, paternity, adoption)
- Paid volunteering day to support causes that matter to you
Health & Wellbeing
- Private Medical Insurance (PMI) for you and the option to cover family members
- Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for 24/7 mental health and wellbeing support
- Death in Service benefit
Financial Security
- Competitive pension scheme
- Life assurance policies to support you and your family
Flexible & Agile Working
- Hybrid working model
- Agile working culture that supports flexible hours and smarter working
- Modern office spaces designed for collaboration, focus, and wellbeing

Disclaimer
Unsolicited CVs sent to AAB by Recruitment Agencies will not be accepted for this position. AAB operates a direct sourcing model and where agency assistance is required, the Talent Acquisition team will engage directly with our recruitment partners.