Senior Director, Global Payroll
The Senior Director, Global Payroll leads the strategy and execution of global payroll operations. This role is critical in enabling business continuity, mitigating regulatory risk, and establishing strong governance and operational consistency while driving continuous improvement.
The position oversees the global payroll organisation, including systems, processes, and vendor partnerships, to deliver scalable, efficient, and consistent operations across a complex, multi-country environment. It drives continuous improvement through system optimisation, standardisation, and integration with a focus on strengthening governance and operational consistency.
This role partners cross-functionally with People Capabilities, Finance, Legal, and Tax to manage risk, support business changes, and deliver a seamless creator and sci-player experience. It develops a high-performing global payroll team, fostering accountability, collaboration, and continuous learning while building future-ready capabilities across the function.
- Direct global payroll operations, ensuring accurate and timely processing across all regions.
- Define and implement payroll policies, controls, and procedures to ensure compliance with all applicable regulations.
- Manage payroll systems, data integrity, and external partners to support operational effectiveness and scalability.
- Identify and execute process improvements to enhance efficiency, standardisation, and service delivery.
- Lead, develop, and evaluate a global payroll team to ensure strong performance and capability development.
- Collaborate with internal stakeholders to support business initiatives, workforce changes, and risk management.
- Provide oversight and support for payroll readiness during organisational changes, including acquisitions and restructures.
- Ensure alignment of payroll operations, practices, and team behaviours with Light & Wonder’s vision, mission, and values.
- Any other duties assigned.
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Accounting, Finance, or a related field, or equivalent experience (required).
- 12+ years of progressive payroll experience, including managing global payroll operations across multiple countries and regions (required).
- 5+ years of leadership experience overseeing global payroll teams, including experience leading distributed or multi-region teams (required).
- Experience across both in-house and outsourced payroll models (preferred).
- Experience leading payroll system implementations or enhancements (e.g., ADP, Workday, or similar platforms) (preferred).
- Ability to lead and operate effectively in a complex, global environment, balancing strategic priorities with operational execution (required).
- Strong knowledge of global payroll processes and the ability to apply sound judgment in navigating complex compliance and regulatory requirements (required).
- Ability to establish structure, drive consistency, and maintain control in a dynamic and evolving business environment (required).
- Demonstrated ability to analyze complex issues, identify root causes, and implement practical, sustainable solutions (required).
- Strong communication and influencing skills, with the ability to effectively engage and align diverse stakeholders across functions and levels (required).
- Ability to build, lead, and develop high-performing teams, fostering accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement (required).
- Strong organisational and prioritisation skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver results in a fast-paced environment (required).
- Ability to anticipate risks and proactively develop mitigation strategies to ensure continuity and operational stability (required).
- This position requires 25% - 30% travel (required).
- The Light & Wonder requires a minimum of four days per week in the office (required).
Light & Wonder, Inc. is a leading cross-platform gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. Formerly known as Scientific Games, it rebranded in 2022 after divesting its lottery and sports-betting businesses to focus on gaming. The company operates across three segments - Gaming (slot machines, table games and casino systems under brands such as Bally, WMS and Shuffle Master), SciPlay (social casino games) and iGaming (online casino content). Listed in both the US and Australia, it supplies content and systems to casinos and online operators worldwide.