{"id":1407072,"url":"https://alion.io/job/smiths-group-payroll-specialist","title":"Payroll Specialist","company":{"id":5486,"name":"Smiths Group","domain":"smiths.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/smiths-group-plc","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"SmartRecruiters","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":75,"open_postings":91,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":1,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":27,"computed_at":"2026-10-25T05:49:26Z"}},"role":"Finance","role_family":"Finance","seniority":null,"employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Hemel Hempstead, United Kingdom"],"countries":["GB"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":45000,"max_usd":105000,"period":"year","method":"role_country_seniority_unknown","sample_n":540},"experience_years_min":null,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Microsoft Excel","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-09-28T12:37:20Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-09-28","last_verified_at":"2026-10-25T20:13:22Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":27,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":27},"description":"Every minute of every day, Smiths Detection’s threat detection and security screening technology helps to protect people and infrastructure, making the world a safer place.\nSmiths Detection is a global leader in the development, manufacture and management of security and detection solutions designed to make the world a safer place. Our technology provides threat detection and screening solutions for customers in our key markets: aviation, ports and borders, defence, and urban security.\nOur expertise spans 21 global offices, seven manufacturing sites and five R&D centres, with a global network of 3,500 dedicated colleagues contributing towards over 40 years at the frontline of advances in safety and security.\nThis results in careers built on variety and the opportunity to work on a range of state-of-the-art solutions, where you can develop your knowledge and experience every day.\n Smith’s Detection is seeking an experienced Payroll Specialist to take ownership of a critical payroll function supporting approximately 500 employees across the UK\nThis is not a traditional payroll processing role. We are looking for a payroll expert who can lead from the front, ensuring payroll compliance, driving continuous improvement, strengthening governance, and acting as the organisation's subject matter expert for all payroll-related matters.\nAs Smiths Detection continues to evolve as a standalone business, this role offers a unique opportunity to shape payroll processes, influence future system developments, and play a key role in bringing payroll expertise in-house.\nThe Opportunity\nReporting to the HR Manager, you will take ownership of payroll operations across multiple UK legal entities while providing oversight.\nWorking closely with HR, Finance, Reward, external payroll providers and key stakeholders, you will ensure payroll is delivered accurately, compliantly, and efficiently while improving existing processes and controls.\nWe are looking for someone who enjoys solving problems, taking ownership, challenging the status quo and implementing improvements rather than simply processing payroll transactions.\nKey Responsibilities\nManage the end-to-end payroll process across UK operations.\nAct as the payroll compliance and governance expert.\nManage relationships with outsourced payroll providers and third-party partners.\nReview payroll outputs and reconciliations, ensuring accuracy and compliance.\nProvide guidance on payroll legislation, taxation, statutory payments and best practice.\nHandle complex payroll queries and investigations.\nSupport payroll accounting, reconciliations, reporting and audit activities.\nAdminister payroll-related benefits and salary sacrifice schemes.\nDrive payroll process improvements, automation and system enhancements.\nSupport future payroll projects, integrations, system implementations and business transformation initiatives.\nPartner with HR, Finance and external stakeholders to deliver an exceptional payroll service.\nWhat We're Looking For\nEssential\nSignificant experience managing end-to-end UK payroll within a complex organisation.\nStrong working knowledge of UK payroll legislation, HMRC requirements and statutory payments.\nExperience managing outsourced payroll providers.\nExperience with pensions, benefits and salary sacrifice schemes.\nStrong understanding of payroll controls, governance and compliance.\nAdvanced Excel skills.\nExcellent analytical and problem-solving capabilities.\nAbility to work independently and take ownership of a business-critical function.\nExceptional attention to detail and confidentiality.\nHighly Desirable\nExposure to multiple legal entities.\nExperience with payroll integrations, interfaces and data governance.\nPayroll transformation, migration or system implementation experience.\nExperience supporting engineering, field-service, manufacturing or similarly complex workforce environments.\nExposure to Irish payroll.\nSAP / ADP Payroll system\nThe Person\nTakes initiative and ownership.\nThinks beyond payroll processing.\nHas the confidence to challenge and improve existing processes.\nEnjoys working with autonomy.\nCan build credibility with stakeholders across HR, Finance and the wider business.\nBrings a continuous improvement mindset and a passion for delivering payroll excellence.\nWhy Join Smiths Detection?\nThis is an opportunity to join a globally recognised technology organisation at an exciting stage of evolution. You'll have the autonomy to shape payroll operations, influence future ways of working, and play a key role in delivering a vital business service that supports employees across the UK and Ireland.\nIf you're an experienced payroll professional looking for a role with genuine ownership, visibility and impact, we'd love to hear from you.\n Join us and we’ll help build your career, with excellent training and opportunities for career growth across the business, both locally and globally. You’ll experience an inclusive environment, with strong leadership and a focus on safety and wellbeing. You’ll also have the flexibility to choose from a wide range of benefits to suit your lifestyle, offering you and your family support from a health and wellbeing, financial and lifestyle perspective.\nJoin us and work for a world-leader, with the benefits and training to reward your dedication and skills. Be part of a team where we are making the world a safer place.\nWe believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a company flourish. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment regardless of color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, economic status, disability, age, or any other legally protected characteristics. We are proud to be an inclusive company with values grounded in equality and ethics, where we celebrate, support, and embrace diversity.\nAt no time during the hiring process will Smiths Detection, nor any of our recruitment partners ever request payment to enable participation - including, but not limited to, interviews or testing. Avoid fraudulent requests by applying jobs directly through our career’s website.","description_format":"text","description_chars":6143,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":null,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United Kingdom","iso":"GB","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Mechanical Components & Fasteners","Passive Components & Connectors","Homeland Security"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-09-28T18:18:33Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":35,"band":"fade","label":"Fading","p_open":1,"p_active":0.462,"p_room":0.75,"age_days":26,"expected_fill_days":27,"reasons":["conf:1","stale_co","velocity","win:late","comp:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-10-25T05:49:26Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/smiths-group-payroll-specialist","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/smiths-group-payroll-specialist.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-25T21:32:42Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":30470,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-26T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":5486},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=5486"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fsmiths-group-payroll-specialist"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fsmiths-group-payroll-specialist"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fsmiths-group-payroll-specialist"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/smiths-group-payroll-specialist\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fsmiths-group-payroll-specialist"}]}