Payroll and Benefits Administrator in Ipswich

Location: Ipswich (Hybrid)

Reporting Line: Head of HR Operations

The Role

To support the delivery of accurate, compliant, and timely payroll and benefits administration across multiple countries. The role ensures adherence to local payroll regulations and global governance standards, working with in-country providers, internal stakeholders, and third-party vendors to deliver a seamless employee experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Payroll Administration
  • Support end-to-end payroll processing across multiple jurisdictions (UK, EMEA, APAC, Americas as applicable)
  • Coordinate with in-country payroll providers/vendors to ensure timely and accurate payroll delivery
  • Collate, validate, and submit payroll inputs including:
    • Starters, leavers, and employee lifecycle changes
    • Compensation changes, allowances, bonuses, and commissions
    • Absence and statutory payments in line with local legislation
  • Review and validate payroll outputs, reconciliations, and reports across regions
  • Ensure compliance with local tax, social security, and employment regulations
  • Support global payroll calendar management and governance processes
  • Assist with year-end activities (e.g. local filings, tax returns, employee reporting)
• Benefits Administration
  • Administer and coordinate employee benefits programmes across multiple countries, including:
    • Pension and retirement schemes
    • Private medical and insurance benefits
    • Life assurance and income protection
    • Regional or country-specific benefits
  • Partner with brokers and vendors, and to manage enrolments, renewals, and changes
  • Track eligibility, participation and costs across global benefits programmes
  • Ensure compliance with local legislation and global benefits strategy
  • Support the communication and rollout of new benefits to employees, ensuring clarity, accuracy and a positive employee experience
• Vendor & Stakeholder Management
  • Act as a key contact for global payroll providers and benefits vendors
  • Build strong relationships with Finance, HR Business Partners, and local market teams
  • Support issue resolution and escalation management across regions
  • Participate in vendor performance reviews and continuous improvement initiatives
• Compliance & Reporting
  • Ensure adherence to global controls, SOX (if applicable), GDPR, and local regulatory requirements
  • Maintain accurate payroll and benefits records across systems
  • Support internal and external audits across multiple jurisdictions
  • Produce global and regional payroll & benefits reporting, including headcount, costs, and variances
• Employee Support
  • Provide first-line support for global payroll and benefits queries
  • Respond to employee queries across regions in a timely and professional manner
  • Support employees in understanding payslips, deductions, and benefits offerings
• Systems, Projects & Process Improvement
  • Maintain data integrity across HRIS and payroll platforms (e.g. Workday)
  • Support system implementations, upgrades, and global payroll/benefits projects
  • Identify and drive standardisation, automation, and process improvement initiatives
  • Contribute to global payroll and benefits policies, procedures, and documentation
  • Support the communication and rollout of new benefits to employees, ensuring clarity, accuracy and a positive employee experience

About You

• Experience in payroll administration across multiple countries or regions
• Understanding of global payroll concepts and local compliance requirements
• Experience administering employee benefits across more than one geography
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• High attention to detail and accuracy
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills
• Experience working with global payroll vendors (e.g. CloudPay)
• Knowledge of UK payroll (HMRC) plus exposure to additional jurisdictions
• Experience with global HRIS platforms (e.g. Workday)
• CIPP qualification or equivalent (or working towards)

About Willis Re

We combine specialist broking with analytics, modeling and research to help insurers optimize risk transfer, strengthen balance sheets and achieve sustainable growth. Our approach is relationship-driven, transparent and outcome-focused. At the heart of Willis Re is a focus on delivering the most cutting-edge analytical solutions to enable more informed, better decision-making for risk selection, portfolio optimization, and capital management. Willis Re is committed to embracing a diverse, inclusive, and flexible work environment. We provide equal opportunity to all qualified individuals regardless of race, colour, religion, age, gender, gender expression, national origin, veteran status, disability, orientation, or any other legally protected categories.