Career Category

Human Resources

Job Description

Role Summary

In this critical role, you will lead end-to-end payroll operations for Amgen India, ensuring employees are paid accurately and on time, while maintaining full compliance with Indian statutory requirements and Amgen internal controls. You will own payroll governance, process excellence, vendor management, reporting, and audit readiness—driving accuracy, employee experience, and operational efficiency.

Key Responsibilities

1) Payroll Delivery & Governance (End-to-End) (Mandatory Skills)

• Own the monthly payroll cycle for all India employees (and any applicable categories such as interns/contractors where in scope).
• Ensure accurate, timely processing of payroll inputs: new hires, exits, transfers, promotions, salary revisions, variable pay, arrears, recoveries, leave/LOP adjustments, and reimbursements (as applicable).
• Validate payroll calculations for earnings, deductions, taxes, benefits, perquisites, and statutory contributions.
• Establish strong controls for cut-off adherence, approvals, segregation of duties, maker-checker reviews, and payroll sign-off.

2) India Payroll Compliance (Statutory & Tax) (Mandatory Skills)

Ensure ongoing compliance with all applicable India payroll and labor regulations, including (as applicable to Amgen India’s structure):

• Income Tax (TDS on Salary): monthly TDS computation, deductions/exemptions validations, tax declarations/proofs, perquisite taxation, annual true-up, and employee tax support.
• Quarterly/Annual Tax Deliverables: coordinate and ensure timely filing/support for Form 24Q, Form 16 issuance, challan reconciliations, TRACES downloads, and resolution of defaults/notices.
• Provident Fund (EPF): UAN compliance, monthly ECR filings, challan payments, member updates, inspections support.
• Professional Tax (PT): state-wise PT compliance based on work location, payments and returns.
• Labour Welfare Fund (LWF): applicability assessment and periodic remittance/returns.
• Gratuity: eligibility tracking, provisioning support, settlement processing, and documentation.
• Bonus / Statutory Payments: applicability assessment and compliant processing where required.
• Maintain compliance with Payment of Wages, applicable Shops & Establishments provisions, and other local statutory requirements relevant to payroll administration.
• Maintain a compliance calendar and ensure zero missed statutory deadlines; proactively identify regulatory changes and implement updates.

3) Employee Support & Case Resolution

• Serve as an escalation point for employee payroll queries related to pay slips, tax, deductions, benefits, arrears, final settlement, and statutory documents.
• Ensure clear, timely communication and a high-quality employee experience, with documented SLAs and consistent resolution standards.

4) Final Settlement & Separation Payroll

• Manage accurate and compliant Full & Final settlement, including LWD processing, notice pay, leave encashment, recoveries, statutory impacts, and issuance of required employee documents.
• Coordinate with HR and Finance to ensure separation inputs are complete, approved, and compliant.

5) Controls, Audit, and Documentation

• Maintain accurate payroll records and documentation for internal audits, statutory audits, and external inspections.
• Ensure payroll processes align with Amgen’s internal control framework (e.g., SOX-aligned practices where applicable) including access controls, change logs, reconciliations, and approval evidence.
• Partner with Finance to ensure payroll is correctly accounted for: GL mapping, accruals, provisions, reconciliations, and variance analysis.

6) Process Excellence, Systems & Continuous Improvement

• Develop, standardize, and continuously improve payroll SOPs, checklists, and operating rhythm.
• Drive automation and error-proofing, reduce manual interventions and improve first-time-right accuracy.
• Own payroll systems/process integration points (e.g., HRIS/Workday interfaces, attendance/leave feeds, vendor tools).
• Define and monitor payroll performance metrics: payroll accuracy, retro frequency, off-cycle payments, query volumes, cycle time, compliance timeliness.

7) Vendor & Stakeholder Management

• Manage payroll vendor(s) and ensure delivery against SLAs, compliance standards, and quality benchmarks.
• Oversee vendor invoices, contracts (as applicable), and service reviews, drive continuous improvement and issue remediation.
• Liaise with HR, Finance, Legal/Compliance, and IT to ensure alignment on policies, controls, and strategic priorities.

Reporting & Deliverables

• Monthly payroll sign-off package and variance insights for leadership.
• Statutory compliance tracker and evidence repository.
• Quarterly/annual deliverables coordination (e.g., Form 24Q, Form 16, audits).
• KPI dashboard: accuracy, timeliness, employee query trends, and improvement actions.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, Accounting, Finance, HR, or related field (MBA/PGDM preferred).
• 5–8 years of progressive experience in payroll and HR operations, ideally within a shared services or corporate environment.
• Significant experience in India payroll operations, including statutory compliance and vendor governance.
• Strong working knowledge of India payroll statutes: Income Tax (TDS), PF, PT, LWF, Gratuity (and ESI/Bonus where applicable).
• Proven experience in payroll audits, reconciliations, and control-based operations.
• High integrity, strong attention to detail, and ability to handle sensitive data confidentially.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a multinational/regulated environment (life sciences/pharma preferred).
• Hands-on exposure to Workday and payroll integration models.
• Experience creating SOPs, standard work, and driving automation/process redesign.
• Proficiency in MS Office, particularly Excel.

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