Payroll Manager in City of London

We are looking for a Payroll Manager to take full ownership of payroll operations across our London properties at The Hoxton. This role is pivotal in ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant payroll for both our hourly and salaried teams, while also driving process improvement, partnering with leaders and our teams to elevate the payroll experience for our teams. This role would report directly into the Director of Finance with a dotted line to the Head of People & Culture.

What’s in it for you…

• 25 days holidays (plus bank holidays), pension, and life insurance.
• A health cash plan to claim money back and get access to lots of ways to support your physical & mental wellbeing.
• Confidential hotline for any support you require about anything and a network of mental health first aiders.
• Retail & hospitality perks through our partners.
• Enjoy a free night at The Hoxton and a meal for two when you first start with us.
• We’ll feed you during your shift.
• Excellent discounts across the Ennismore family for you and your nearest and dearest.
• Free night at The Hoxton every year and something extra when you hit the big milestones!
• Lots of opportunity to progress and switch it up as part of a global family of brands.
• Training to get you settled into your role, learning academies to broaden your skillset and development that helps you think, make and thrive at work.
• Extra time off to volunteer with one of our partner charities.
• Regular team get togethers, from our team drinks to our bi-annual parties.
• Enhanced family leave for when you’re expanding your family.
• An annual diversity and inclusion calendar of events creating opportunities for you to learn, celebrate and make a positive impact.

What you’ll do...

• Payroll Leadership & Delivery: Take full ownership and accountability for the monthly payroll cycle across the three properties, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and alignment with payroll bureau (Fourth) deadlines. Oversee the end-to-end payroll process, including reconciliations, gross-to-net checks, approval workflows, and submission of final payroll figures. Ensure full compliance with statutory requirements including PAYE, Pensions, P11D, P32, holiday pay, NI, and HMRC regulations. Act as the internal expert on payroll legislation, advising People Partners, General Managers, Finance teams, and HOD’s.
• Pensions & Reporting: Manage and administer company pension schemes, ensuring compliance with auto-enrolment, re-enrolment, opt‑ins/outs, and accurate reporting/submissions to pension providers. Lead on annual P11D preparation, submission and compliance, working closely with Finance and external auditors.
• Systems, Controls & Governance: Ensure proper control frameworks are maintained including audit trails, approvals, and record‑keeping across all payroll files and systems. Manage the accuracy of data input and flow across Fourth, ensuring rotas, absences, and employee changes are accurately reflected. Partner with Fourth to troubleshoot system issues, optimise workflows, and drive continuous improvements in payroll technology.
• Stakeholder Management & Team Support: Build strong relationships with People, Finance, and Operations teams, providing guidance, training, and support on payroll processes, compliance requirements, and system best practice. Lead monthly payslip clinics and provide expert‑level responses to escalated payroll or benefits queries. Produce payroll reports, analytics, and insights for leadership, identifying risks, trends, and opportunities for efficiency.
• Process Improvement & Projects: Champion continuous improvement to enhance payroll accuracy, efficiency, and employee experience across all properties. Lead payroll‑related projects including system upgrades, new benefit implementations, data governance initiatives, and audit preparation. Support external audit requests, PSA submissions, and compliance‑related activities.

Qualifications:

• A confident, experienced Payroll Manager with proven experience managing complex, multi‑site payroll, ideally within hotels or hospitality.
• Strong working knowledge of UK payroll legislation, P11D requirements, and pension administration including auto‑enrolment.
• Proficiency in Fourth Hospitality systems and strong Excel skills.
• Exceptional attention to detail with the ability to manage multiple deadlines and stakeholders at once.
• A great communicator who can translate payroll and financial information in a clear and engaging way for non‑finance colleagues.
• Someone who thrives in a fast‑paced, people‑first environment, leaves ego at the door, and enjoys collaboration across teams.
• A proactive problem solver with the confidence to challenge, influence, and continuously drive improvements.