What You'll Do:The Global Payroll Director is responsible for delivering a high-quality, compliant, andscalable payroll experience for Criteo employees across a complex integral footprint of over20 countries. This is a hands-on leadership role with end-to-end accountability for globalpayroll strategy, operations, governance, controls, vendor management, and continuousimprovement.This leader will oversee the accurate and timely execution of payroll across multipleregions while building sustainable processes, strengthening the internal controlenvironment, and driving operational excellence. The role also plays a critical part in thedesign, implementation, and optimization of payroll systems, service models, and cross-functional processes to support business growth, risk management, and employeeexperience.The Global Payroll Director partners closely with People, Total Rewards, People Operations,HRIS, Finance, Accounting, Tax, Treasury, Internal Audit, Legal, Procurement, and IT toensure payroll operations align with corporate objectives, compliance requirements, andbest practices. This role requires a strong operator and people leader who can balancestrategic direction with day-to-day execution, lead through change, and influencestakeholders across all levels of the organization.The Global Payroll Director reports to the Vice President, People Services & Solutions.What You Will DoLeadership and team management• Lead the global payroll function and ensure payroll is processed accurately, timely,and in compliance with country regulations, tax requirements, internal policies, andcontrol standards• Provide day-to-day leadership, coaching, and development to the payroll team,creating clear accountability, strong engagement, and high performance• Build team capability across global payroll operations, compliance, stakeholdermanagement, systems, and project execution• Establish clear roles, responsibilities, priorities, and performance expectationsacross the payroll organization• Promote a collaborative, transparent, and solutions-oriented team culture alignedwith Criteo values• Ensure the team is appropriately structured and resourced to support currentoperations and future business needsPayroll operations and compliance• Oversee end-to-end payroll operations across all countries in scope, includingregular payroll, off-cycle payroll, year-end activities, statutory reporting,reconciliations, and employee payments where applicable• Ensure payroll practices comply with local legislation, tax regulations, laborrequirements, data privacy obligations, SOX/internal control standards, andcompany policies• Maintain a robust internal control framework for payroll, including processdocumentation, key controls, review mechanisms, and issue remediation• Monitor operational performance, risks, service levels, and recurring issues, anddrive corrective and preventive actions• Partner with Accounting, Finance, and Treasury to ensure payroll funding,reconciliation, journal entries, accruals, and reporting are executed accurately• Support internal and external audits by ensuring complete, accurate,



and timelypayroll documentation and responsesStrategy and process improvement• Critically review and analyze current payroll processes, policies, and service modelsto identify opportunities for standardization, automation, scalability, and strongercontrols• Design and implement best practices across the global payroll landscape whilebalancing local requirements and business needs• Drive continuous improvement initiatives that improve payroll accuracy, cycleefficiency, employee experience, and operational resilience• Define and track key payroll metrics, service levels, and operational dashboards toprovide meaningful visibility to leadership• Develop and execute payroll strategies aligned with corporate objectives,organizational change, and growth priorities• Anticipate risks and evolving business requirements and translate them into payrolloperating model improvementsSystems, transformation, and projects• Lead payroll-related transformation initiatives, including payroll vendor transitions,implementation of new global payroll solutions, process redesign, and systemsoptimization• Partner with HRIS, IT, and external vendors on integration strategy, data flows,security, access management, and change management• Make recommendations for systems enhancements and process automation toimprove efficiency, accuracy, reporting, and user experience• Oversee payroll readiness for organizational changes such as acquisitions,restructures, entity changes, or new country expansion• Ensure strong project governance, milestone management, stakeholder alignment,and issue resolution across payroll-related initiativesCross-functional partnership and vendor management• Partner proactively with internal stakeholders including HR Operations, TotalRewards, Equity, HRIS, Accounting, Finance, Tax, Treasury, Legal, Procurement, andIT to manage cross-functional impacts and resolve issues effectively• Serve as the senior payroll subject matter expert to leadership, providing clearrecommendations, risk assessments, and decision support• Manage payroll vendors and service providers to ensure accountability,performance, service quality, and contractual compliance• Foster strong supplier relationships that enable collaboration while holdingproviders accountable for delivery, issue resolution, and continuous improvement• Lead escalation management for critical payroll, compliance, and service issuesacross internal and external partnersWho You Are:• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Finance, Accounting, Business, or a relatedfield preferred• 10+ years of progressive payroll experience, including significant people leadershipresponsibility in a complex, multinational environment• Deep expertise in global payroll operations, payroll compliance, controls, and bestpractices• Strong knowledge of payroll governance, audit readiness,



and internal controlenvironments• Demonstrated experience leading payroll process improvement, transformation,and systems-related initiatives• Experience operating in a hands-on leadership role with the ability to move betweenstrategic planning and detailed execution• Proven ability to lead teams through complexity, change, and ambiguity• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills and experience working in matrixed,international organizations• Excellent verbal, written, presentation, and stakeholder management skills• Ability to clearly articulate risks, tradeoffs, and opportunities to audiences at alllevels of the organization• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to use data andjudgment to drive decisions• Demonstrated ability to influence outcomes through credibility, storytelling, andfact-based recommendations• Strong work ethic, ownership mindset, and willingness to roll up sleeves as needed• Experience with payroll vendor management, global payroll implementations, andservice delivery governance strongly preferred• CPP, FPC, or relevant international payroll certification is a plusSuccess in This RoleSuccess in this role will be measured by the ability to deliver compliant and accuratepayroll operations globally, strengthen the control environment, improve scalability andefficiency, build a high-performing team, and serve as a trusted strategic partner to thebusiness. The ideal candidate combines operational rigor, strong people leadership, globalperspective, and a continuous improvement mindset.We acknowledge that many candidates may not meet every single role requirement listed above. If your experience looks a little different from our requirements but you believe that you can still bring value to the role, we’d love to see your application!​Who We Are:We’re Criteo, the Commerce Intelligence Platform. Criteo helps businesses turn shopper signals into commerce outcomes while delivering more relevant experiences for shoppers. We use proprietary commerce intelligence and AI decisioning to drive relevance for shoppers and performance for businesses.At Criteo, our culture is as unique as it is diverse. From our offices across the globe or from the comfort of home, our 3,600 Criteos collaborate together to build an open, impactful, and forward-thinking environment.We foster a workplace where everyone is valued, and employment decisions are based solely on skills, qualifications, and business needs—never on non-job-related factors or legally protected characteristics.What We Offer:? Ways of working – Our hybrid model blends home with in-office experiences, making space for both. ? Grow with us – Learning, mentorship & career development programs. ? Your wellbeing matters – Health benefits, wellness perks & mental health support. ? A team that cares – Diverse, inclusive, and globally connected. ? Fair pay & perks – Attractive salary, with performance-based rewards and family-friendly policies, plus the potential for equity depending on role and level. Additional benefits may vary depending on the country where you work and the nature of your employment with Criteo. SummaryLocation: BarcelonaType: Full time

📌 Global Payroll Director (Barcelona)
🏢 Criteo
📍 Barcelona