Payroll & Benefits Manager

Our mission

We're making Africa the first cashless continent.

In 2017, over half the population in Sub-Saharan Africa had no bank account. That's for good reason-the fees are too high, the closest branch can be miles away, and nobody takes cards. Without access to financial institutions, people are forced to keep their savings under the mattress. Small business owners rely on lenders who charge extortionate rates. Parents spend hours waiting in line to pay school fees in cash.

We're solving this by building financial services that just work: no account fees, instantly available, and accepted everywhere. In places where electricity, water and roads don't always work, you can still send money with Wave. In 2017, we launched a mobile app in Senegal for cash deposit, withdrawal, and peer-to-peer and business payments. Now, we have millions of users across 9 countries and are growing fast.

Our goal is to make Africa the first cashless continent and that's where you come in...

How you'll help us achieve it

We're looking for a resourceful, analytical, and detail-oriented Payroll & Benefits Manager to oversee payroll operations and employees Benefits for Wave in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). You'll be responsible for ensuring that employees are paid accurately and on time, that payroll processes remain compliant with local regulations, and payroll data is reliable, secure, and properly documented properly. You will also oversee employee benefits programs, including the health insurance scheme, ensuring they effectively meet the needs of employees and their families as our business continues to grow.

In this role, you'll;

Payroll

• Oversee monthly payroll processing for all Wave DRC employees, ensuring accurate calculations, timely payments, and appropriate approvals.
• Apply relevant DRC labor, tax, and social security regulations to payroll processing, including statutory deductions, employer contributions, and required declarations.
• Verify employee information, compensation changes, benefits, allowances, deductions, and other payroll inputs in coordination with HR and Finance.
• Ensure the accurate calculation and processing of income tax withholdings, social security contributions, and other applicable deductions.
• Collect, verify, and securely maintain employees' payroll details to ensure reliable and timely salary payments.
• Work closely with teams to reconcile payroll data, resolve discrepancies, manage employee changes, and ensure consistency between payroll records and accounting records.
• Ensure accurate payroll journal entries, reconciliations, and general ledger records in collaboration with the Finance team.
• Coordinate regular payroll audits, investigate discrepancies, and implement corrective actions to maintain accuracy and strengthen internal controls.
• Prepare clear and reliable payroll reports, reconciliations, and analyses to support financial reporting, budgeting, and decision-making.
• Ensure payroll records and supporting documents are complete, accurate, confidential, and readily available for audits or regulatory reviews.
• Identify opportunities to streamline payroll processes, reduce errors, improve reporting, and strengthen operational efficiency as Wave scales.
• Manage the relation with payroll provider, including input files, validation of outputs and service-level follow-up.
• Prepare monthly and annual declarations and keep track of regulatory changes affecting payroll.
• Act as the point of contact during social controls and audits, with complete supporting documentation.

Benefits

• Administer employee benefits in DRC, including health scheme: enrolment of employees and dependents, exits, and coordination with the scheme administrator and/or broker.
  • Monitor scheme performance (claims, utilisation, budget versus actuals) and share insights ahead of renewals.
• Be the first point of contact for employee benefits package questions, and escalate issues.
• Support the local rollout of group policies and benefits programmes.

Key details

• Location: You'll work from our office in Kinshasa and may travel to field locations.
• Contract Type: Permanent.
• Our salaries are competitive and calculated using a transparent formula. 
• We offer generous health insurance for yourself and your dependents.
• We support working parents - we offer generous parental leave policies (26 weeks for mothers and 4 weeks for fathers) and subsidized childcare when you return to work.
• We help you live your fullest life now- we subsidize gym memberships and fitness classes.
• Airtime reimbursement.
• Free food and a beautiful office space

Requirements

• Strong proficiency in French and a good command of English.
• A degree or equivalent qualification in Finance, Accounting, Human Resources, or a related field.
• 3-5 years of relevant experience in payroll management or payroll administration, ideally within an international company.
• Good knowledge of DRC payroll regulations, including labor law, taxation, and social security requirements.
• Experience administering employee benefits
• Strong computer skills, particularly with spreadsheets and payroll or accounting systems.
• Experience managing payroll reconciliations, statutory deductions, and payroll reporting.
• Strong understanding of confidentiality, data protection, and internal controls when handling sensitive employee and financial information.
• Excellent analytical skills and the ability to investigate discrepancies and resolve payroll issues accurately.

You might be a good fit if you

• Are exceptionally detail-oriented and committed to accuracy and excellence in everything you do.
• Take ownership of your work and ensure payroll is completed accurately and on time, every time.
• Demonstrate tenacity and a willingness to go the extra mile to get things done.
• Adapt quickly to changing priorities and can manage complexity without compromising quality.
• Take an analytical, data-driven approach to identifying and solving problems.
• Are highly organized and able to manage multiple deadlines in a time-sensitive environment.
• Handle confidential information with discretion, integrity, and sound judgment.
• Communicate effectively with employees, internal stakeholders, and external partners.
• Proactively identify process gaps and take the initiative to implement practical improvements.
• Enjoy working collaboratively across teams while independently managing your responsibilities.

Our team

• We have a rapidly growing in-country team in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Uganda, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Cameroon plus remote team members spread across the world.
• We're deeply passionate about our mission of bringing radically affordable financial services to the people who need them most.
• We foster autonomy for our employees. You'll own your projects at every stage, from understanding the problem to monitoring your solution in production.
• We raised the largest Series A in Africa in 2021. Our world-class investors, include Founders Fund, Sequoia Heritage, Stripe, Ribbit Capital, Y Combinator, and Partech Africa.
• We are on  Y Combinator's top companies by revenue.

How to apply

Fill out the form below, and upload a resume in English and a cover letter describing your interest in Wave and the role.

We review applications frequently and recommend that you apply to the role that most closely aligns with your skills, experience and career goals.

Wave is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.