Senior HR & Payroll Functional Analyst

For one of Capita’s key strategic clients, Capita is delivering a major programme to insource, operate and continuously improve HR & Payroll services over a multi year period.
This includes operating services alongside a newly implemented ERP platform and evolving service delivery through automation, data insight and AI enabled capabilities.
The Senior Payroll Functional Analyst plays a critical hands on role in ensuring payroll services are operationally sound, legally compliant and deliver accurate pay outcomes, while also supporting the design, transition and continuous improvement of the HR & Payroll operating model.
This role is not a purely design or advisory position. It requires deep, practical experience of processing payroll, expert knowledge of UK payroll legislation, and the ability to apply that knowledge within complex, high volume environments undergoing significant system and service change.
The role works closely with HR, Payroll, Finance and programme teams, supporting service design, large scale payroll transitions, extensive parallel running, and early life operational stability.
Security Clearance (Level 2) will be required and must be maintained throughout the role.

Job title:

Senior HR & Payroll Functional Analyst

Job Description:

What you’ll be doing

You will operate as a senior payroll subject‑matter expert within a large HR & Payroll shared service environment, with direct accountability for payroll integrity during change.

Payroll Processing & Legislative Expertise

• Processing and overseeing end‑to‑end payroll activity in a high‑volume environment, including starters, leavers, contractual changes, allowances, overtime, absences, deductions, retros and corrections.

• Applying expert knowledge of UK payroll legislation (PAYE, NI, statutory payments, pensions, salary sacrifice, tax treatment of expenses and benefits, overpayment recovery) to ensure payroll outputs are fully compliant.

• Acting as a technical escalation point for complex payroll cases, legislative interpretation issues and high‑risk pay scenarios, owning issues through to resolution.

• Supporting payroll cut‑off activity, pre‑payroll validation, post‑payroll reconciliation and variance analysis, ensuring discrepancies are identified and resolved before payment.

Payroll Transition, Parallel Running & Data Integrity

• Supporting and safeguarding payroll during large‑scale transitions to new platforms, including hands‑on involvement in multiple payroll parallel runs.

• Validating and reconciling complex pay calculations across legacy systems, investigating variances and ensuring alignment of results.

• Identifying, analysing and resolving data integrity issues impacting payroll calculations, statutory deductions and net pay outcomes.

• Ensuring payroll accuracy, compliance and employee confidence are maintained throughout cutover, go‑live and early‑life support.

Service Design & Operating Model Support

• Contributing to the creation and evolution of the HR & Payroll Service Blueprint and High‑Level Operating Model, ensuring payroll processing realities and legislative requirements are fully embedded.

• Supporting workshops with HR, Payroll, client and third‑party SMEs to ensure service designs are operationally viable, compliant and scalable.

• Ensuring service designs align to ERP (e.g. Oracle Fusion) capabilities, minimising unnecessary bespoke configuration and protecting payroll control frameworks.

Documentation, Testing & Transition

• Creating and maintaining payroll‑focused SOPs, process maps, workflows and control documentation that accurately reflect live payroll operations.

• Developing and executing payroll test scenarios and scripts, supporting system testing, payroll parallel runs and service validation.

• Supporting detailed service transition planning, including multiple dress rehearsals ahead of go‑live, ensuring payroll risks are anticipated and mitigated.

• Supporting hypercare activity post‑transition, owning payroll‑related issues and stabilising services in early operational life.

Continuous Improvement & Team Support

• Leading deep‑dive analysis into payroll errors, failure demand and control weaknesses, implementing practical, sustainable improvements.

• Acting as a hands‑on senior operator, providing guidance, coaching and quality assurance for Analysts and junior colleagues.

• Upholding high standards of accuracy, compliance and professionalism across all payroll‑related outputs.

What we’re looking for

Essential

• Strong hands‑on experience processing payroll end‑to‑end in a large, high‑volume HR & Payroll shared service or outsourced environment.

• Expert knowledge of UK payroll legislation, with the confidence to interpret and apply rules correctly in complex scenarios.

• Proven experience with:

  • Payroll run activity and cut‑off management

  • Pre‑ and post‑payroll controls

  • Retrospective adjustments

  • Payroll error resolution and overpayment handling

• Experience supporting large‑scale payroll transitions to new platforms, including parallel running, complex calculation validation and data reconciliation.

• Experience working in environments where HR and Payroll are tightly integrated and pay‑impacting changes flow directly into payroll.

• Experience supporting major systems transitions or service transformations (e.g. legacy to Oracle).

• Background in public sector or highly regulated environments (e.g. Civil Service, NHS, large local authorities) or similarly complex organisations.

• Ability to confidently create and maintain:

  • Payroll‑focused SOPs

  • End‑to‑end payroll process maps and workflows

  • Payroll test scripts and validation scenarios

• Strong analytical capability, particularly in payroll variance analysis, root‑cause investigation and data integrity issues.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a deadline‑driven, payroll‑critical environment, especially around cut‑off and pay dates.

• Exceptional attention to detail, with a proven track record of delivering accurate payroll outcomes under pressure.

• Strong communication skills, with confidence working across HR, Payroll, Finance and programme teams.

• Proactive, solutions‑driven approach, with the ability to support and mentor junior colleagues.

Desirable

• Experience supporting or operating within Oracle Fusion Payroll or similar ERP platforms.

• Experience contributing to payroll service design within large transformation programmes.

• Experience working alongside system integrators or consulting partners during ERP implementations.

This role is not suitable for candidates who

• Do not have hands‑on payroll processing experience

• Are not confident applying payroll legislation in practice

• Have only worked in advisory, policy or purely design‑focused roles

About Capita

Capita is an outsourcer, helping clients across the public and private sectors run complex business processes more efficiently, creating better consumer experiences

What’s in it for you?

• Salary of up to £ 57 590,00 plus benefits

• Home-based position

• 23 days’ holiday (rising to 27) with the opportunity to buy extra leave

• The opportunity to take a paid day out of the office, volunteering for our charity partners or a cause of your choice

• Auto-enrolment to our company pension, life assurance, a cycle2work scheme, 15 weeks’ fully paid maternity, adoption and shared parental leave, paternity pay of two weeks…and plenty more

• Voluntary benefits designed to suit your lifestyle – from discounts on retail and socialising, to health & wellbeing, travel and technology

• Access to our Employee Network Groups, which represent every strand of diversity and allow colleagues to connect and learn from each other on an open, inclusive platform

Unlock Your Potential with Capita

At Capita, your career can take you wherever your ambition leads. You'll become part of a diverse network of talented, forward-thinking professionals working across a wide range of disciplines and sectors. We’re committed to your growth — offering exciting opportunities to expand your skills, explore new paths, and advance your career.

Join us and discover a career with purpose. #CareersWithPurpose

🤝 Customer first, always​🧑‍ Fearless innovation​✅ Achieve together​ Everyone is valued

What we hope you’ll do next:

Choose ‘Apply now’ to fill out our short application, so that we can find out more about you.

Equal Opportunities

At Capita, we’re committed to providing an inclusive, barrier-free recruitment process and working environment for everyone. We want everyone to have the best chance of succeeding as they move through their application and start their career with us. We are an equal opportunity and Disability Confident employer; we want to hear from you if you’d like to discuss any adjustments you might need during your recruitment process. Please email [email protected] or call 07784 237318 and we’ll get back to you to discuss. 

For more information about equal opportunities and the types of adjustments we can offer, please visit the Capita Careers website.

If you have a question that does not relate to adjustments during your recruitment process, please email our Talent Acquisition team - [email protected]

We’re truly committed to building a diverse and representative workforce and as part of our strategic plans we are aiming to accelerate gender and ethnic representation in leadership. As such we would particularly welcome applications from people who are female and/or are from Black, Asian and other ethnic minority backgrounds

Location:

Home-Based - GBR

,

United Kingdom

Time Type:

Full time

Contract Type:

Permanent