Payroll & Operations Manager

Who are we?

From humble beginnings to extraordinary futures, Diageo is centred on crafting incredible stories of ambitious possibilities. From our iconic global brands such as Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Tanqueray and Don Julio, to our local homegrown heroes Bundaberg Rum, Ello and Mr Black, we are a team of pioneers, looking to lead the future of our industry and brands from today. At Diageo, you will be a chosen custodian of our brand portfolio, entrusted with building brands for consumers to celebrate with in the moments that matter. Alongside you will be a group of ambitious, passionate and innovative people, who will help you to achieve extraordinary heights. Together, you will help us create a future worth celebrating.

What will your role be?

As Payroll & Operations Manager, you will be accountable for the end-to-end payroll governance and delivery for Diageo Australia, ensuring every employee is paid accurately, compliantly and on time. Our People & Culture (P&C) team brings brilliant people together to help our business thrive. We champion inclusion, collaboration and diverse perspectives, creating an environment where everyone can be their best and do their best work.

This is a critical, high-impact role that sits at the heart of our people operations. You will orchestrate payroll inputs across Workday, time in attendance systems and our external payroll provider, ensuring all employee lifecycle changes that impact pay are executed correctly and consistently. Beyond delivery, you’ll play a key role in transforming and simplifying payroll operations—reducing manual effort, strengthening data flows, improving vendor performance and driving automation and standardised approvals, supported by our global Payroll Centre of Expertise.

What does this role look like for you?

• Own end-to-end payroll delivery for Diageo Australia, ensuring on-time, in-full and accurate pay outcomes across monthly payroll cycles, including overtime, allowances, bonuses and sales incentives.
• Ensure strong payroll governance, compliance and controls, meeting all Australian legislative, Award and Enterprise Agreement requirements, including superannuation and statutory obligations.
• Coordinate payroll-impacting inputs and lifecycle changes, ensuring accuracy and timeliness across Workday, TIA Systems and upstream shared service processes, including expatriate and shadow payroll considerations.
• Lead outsourced payroll vendor performance, driving issue resolution, service excellence and continuous improvement through strong stakeholder relationships.
• Drive simplification and automation, reducing manual inputs, improving information flows and supporting a “single source of truth” payroll model
• Provide trusted reporting and insights, supporting the business, regional and global teams with headcount, employment cost, tax and people metrics, as well as external reporting obligations

What will you bring to the table?

• Demonstrated experience owning end-to-end payroll delivery within Australia
• Strong working knowledge of Australian payroll legislation, Awards and Enterprise Agreements.
• Proven experience managing an outsourced payroll provider and driving service improvement.
• Experience working across HR/payroll systems (Workday desirable) and managing complex upstream dependencies.
• A diligent, accountable mindset with the ability to prioritise, meet deadlines and deliver accuracy at pace.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills in a matrix environment.
• A proactive continuous improvement mindset, with experience driving simplification, automation or payroll transformation.

Why Join Us?

Experience competitive perks, flexible work options, and become part of a diverse team that celebrates global success. At Diageo, we craft products that are central to celebrations worldwide. Our vibrant culture reflects this spirit as we work flexibly around life commitments while continuously striving for growth!

Commitment to Inclusion & Diversity:

Diageo champions diversity as a catalyst for innovation. We actively promote employment opportunities for people with disabilities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, LGBTI communities, and other diverse groups. We ensure inclusivity through reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process.