Payroll Team Leader

South Yarra, Melbourne VIC

Full-Time | Permanent

Lead payroll for one of Australia's fastest-growing organisations.
Connect, Learn & Grow with Aspire Aspire Early Education & Kindergarten is a proudly Australian-owned organisation with 34 centres across Victoria and Western Australia — and over 15 new centres opening each year. With more than 1,200 employees and a strong growth pipeline, Aspire is committed to delivering exceptional care and education while fostering a values-driven, inclusive culture.

About The Opportunity
We are seeking an experienced
Payroll Team Leader
to lead a team of four (2 Senior and 2 Payroll Officers) and manage end-to-end payroll across our expanding group.

Working closely with the
Head of Finance
and
Head of People & Talent
, you'll oversee payroll operations, compliance, and reporting — while driving process improvements and ensuring alignment across Finance and HR. This role is critical to ensuring payroll accuracy, reporting transparency, and compliance in a complex, fast-scaling environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of 4 payroll professionals to deliver timely, accurate, and compliant payroll.
• Oversee payroll processing for multiple entities and ~1,200 staff across Australia.
• Drive continuous improvement in payroll processes, systems, and reporting.
• Manage compliance with all legislative, taxation, superannuation, and Fair Work requirements.
• Partner with Finance and HR to ensure consistency in reporting, policy application, and employee communication.
• Provide detailed reporting and analysis to support strategic decision-making.
• Oversee payroll system management (currently Employment Hero), ensuring optimisation and best-practice use.
• Assist with month-end reporting, balance sheet reconciliations, and variance analysis.
• Ensure payroll policies, procedures, and documentation are current, consistent, and embedded across the organisation.

About You

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, HR, or related field.
• At least 2 years' experience in a Payroll Team Leader or similar leadership role.
• Strong knowledge of Australian payroll legislation, the Fair Work Act, superannuation, and ATO requirements.
• Experience managing payroll teams in a multi-site, high-volume environment.
• Proficiency across payroll systems — Employment Hero experience highly regarded.
• Strong understanding of enterprise agreements, awards, and industrial relations frameworks.
• Proven ability to lead teams, mentor staff, and foster collaboration across functions.
• Excellent communication, reporting, and stakeholder management skills.
• Hands-on, solutions-focused, and able to thrive in a fast-growing organisation.

Why Aspire?

• Career Growth – Rapidly growing organisation with national opportunities.
• Great Benefits – Competitive pay, paid birthday leave, childcare discounts up to 50%.
• Supportive Culture – Collaborative leadership, professional development, and networking opportunities.
• Wellbeing – Access to a 24/7 Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

At Aspire Early Education and Kindergarten, we're committed to providing a safe and inclusive environment that promotes child safety, well-being, participation, empowerment, cultural safety, and awareness for all children, including those with disabilities and from culturally diverse backgrounds, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and communities. Aspire Early Education and Kindergarten has a zero tolerance of child abuse and a duty of care to prevent and minimise child abuse risks in both the physical and online environments.
Aspire Early Education and Kindergarten values diversity in the workplace and is an equal opportunity employer. Diverse cultures, backgrounds and experiences strengthen our teams and help us grow. We are committed to providing a workplace where every person is valued, respected, and supported to progress.
We are also deeply committed to Reconciliation and creating an environment where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People feel a strong sense of belonging and connection.
Ready to lead payroll in a high-growth environment?
Apply now to join Aspire's journey.