Operations Support Consultant

As a valued employee of the British Council, you already help us deliver our mission to support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide. For over 90 years we have shaped brighter futures through education, arts, culture, language, and creativity.

We work with people in over 150 countries and reach over 700 million people.

We connect. We inspire.

Further Information 

• Number of positions: 1
• British Council Pay Band: 6
• Employment Type: Indefinite Contract Local
• Location: Noida, India
• Deadline to receive applications and Time: 23rd November 2026, 11:59PM IST

Role Purpose:

The Operations Support Executive is responsible for delivering efficient and compliant HR and payroll operations, providing expert administrative support across the People function. The role manages payroll and pre-payroll processes, ensuring accuracy, compliance with employment legislation and HMRC requirements, and effective collaboration with internal stakeholders, managed service providers, and payroll vendors. The position supports HR operations across the UK and multiple countries, overseeing both outsourced and in-house services while contributing to continuous process improvement and the delivery of high-quality People services across the organisation

Main Accountabilities:

HR Operations Governance

• Deliver a range of standardised HR operational processes and procedures to achieve specific and clearly measurable targets.
• Ensure MyHR updates are accurate, policy-compliant, and completed within defined timelines and controls.
• Maintain accurate employee data and documentation in MyHR and SharePoint.
• Carry out specific operational/ administrative duties required arising from specific HR country legal requirements.
• Ensure accuracy and timeliness of cyclical activities while maintaining compliance with global policies and local regulations.
• Manage exceptions, clarify processes, and escalate recurring issues to the Lead People Operations & Payroll Manager

• Ensure timely processing of Invoices/Purchase Orders (PO) for HR related vendor payments i.e. payroll vendor fees, 3rd party Vendor fees etc.

Payroll Operations 

• Complete payroll processes independently to ensure timely and accurate processing of payroll transactions.
• Check pre-payroll calculations and payroll calculations, including manual adjustments and system-generated outputs.
• Ensure maintenance of checklists and SOP documents for all workstreams to reflect current steps, responsibilities and timelines.
• Check and reconcile all necessary payroll reports.
• Confidently handle all aspects of statutory leave, payments and deductions and carry out manual calculations of statutory payments and Tax/NI calculations if required (SSP, SMP, SAP, ShPP, Parental Leave, Tax, NI and overpayments etc.).
• Administration of employee benefit schemes such as Child Voucher Scheme, Cycle to Work scheme, Smart Tech loans and Season Ticket loans.
• Handle third party reporting and payments.
• Month end processing and reconciliations

Global Mobility Payroll Operations

• Handle all payroll related matters for our UK employees on international assignments, to ensure they receive the correct pay and allowances at the appropriate time, with the appropriate implementation of British Council mobility policies and practices.
• Provide detailed specialist payroll instructions, for our UK employees on international assignments, to internal and external payroll teams including assignment allowances, hypothetical tax and hypothetical NIC and pension payment calculations.
• Perform post-payroll validation checks by reconciling payroll instructions, payroll outputs and employee payslips to ensure payroll changes have been implemented correctly, and employees receive the correct net pay.
• Check and reconcile all necessary payroll reports.
• Month end processing and reconciliations.
• Support bi-annual COLA reviews, annual location allowance and pay reviews, and exceptional allowance reviews. Verify that COLA, location and exceptional allowance rates provided by the external vendor have been correctly applied by the external payroll provider and resolve any discrepancies to ensure accurate employee payments.
• Role-holder is expected to use their knowledge of British Council HR policies, global mobility policies and processes to advise business areas and colleagues on international assignments, including tax compliance matters.

Stakeholder & Vendor Collaboration

• Partner with MSP, Finance and other People Function teams to ensure smooth payroll execution and reporting.
• Collaborate with in-country teams, approvers, and external vendors to resolve payroll issues.
• Maintain proactive communication with the payroll service providers via scheduled monthly/quarterly/annual meetings.
• Partner with our external vendor for payroll/tax advice and compliance for our UK employees on international assignments
• Support cross-functional initiatives for payroll-related data accuracy and process alignment.

Case & Employee Query Management

• Respond to payroll-related and hr operations related queries from employees via case management systems (C4C).
• Handle and resolve complex employee payroll issues such as tax queries, tax calculation checks etc.
• Strive to understand stakeholder queries and resolve tickets in a customer centric manner.
• Investigate discrepancies, exceptions, and one-off payments, ensuring timely resolution.
• Provide clear feedback to team members and pre-payroll teams on issues and improvements.

Compliance & Audit

• Ensure compliance with local legislation, global policies, and internal controls.
• Review, and ensure timely submission of statutory reports, accruals, and tax filings.
• Maintain audit-ready documentation, payroll records, and reference files.
• Liaise with third parties, government and statutory bodies as required.

Continuous Improvement & Automation

• Identify inefficiencies, recurring issues, and process gaps, proposing corrective actions.
• Lead process automation, payroll transformation, digitalisation, and system improvements.
• Share lessons learned from audits and reconciliations to enhance payroll service quality.
• Support review and implementation of SOPs, variance sheets, and knowledge documentation.
• Participate in error calibration and feedback sessions with the MSP to prevent recurring issues.
• Propose opportunities for process simplification, standardisation, and automation.
• Contribute to service optimisation, knowledge management, and maintenance of SOPs, process maps, and knowledge articles.
• Collaborate with Advisory, Payroll, Reward, and Finance colleagues to ensure a seamless end-to-end employee experience.

Communication & Reporting

• Communicate payroll deadlines, changes, and issues proactively to stakeholders.
• Proactively communicate with all approvers and key personnel to ensure effective coordination and approvals of payroll payments.
• Prepare and share payroll reports and journals for approvals.
• Escalate risks or delays promptly to management.
• Maintain organised payroll documentation, reports, and statutory returns.
• Archive or destroy records according to data protection policies.
• Ensure proper logging and tracking of payroll activities in internal systems.

Collaboration & Teamwork

• Support colleagues with workload, sharing knowledge and best practices.
• Promote consistency and adherence to payroll cut-off timelines.
• Participate in projects, initiatives, or activities beyond core payroll duties when required.
• Promote teamwork, efficient processes, and resource planning
• Show flexibility in delivering activities that are not strictly in this role scope.
• Involvement in projects or activities outside of the scope of work described here will be required. Support of local compliance requirements will be required.

Minimum/essential

• Experience in HR operations in a shared service environment.
• Extensive UK payroll knowledge, with experience of supporting the payroll activities of international assignee roles overseas.
• Experience of delivering payroll operations, processes and practices.
• Knowledge and experience of global mobility payroll operations including tax, social security, payroll support, policy application and compliance.
• Strong understanding of HMRC processes and regulations affecting payroll including Real Time Information processing, PAYE, National Insurance and rules

regarding direct payment and benefits

• Strong knowledge of current UK payroll related legislation and employment laws.
• Familiarity with HRIS platforms (e.g., SAP SuccessFactors or equivalent)
• Experience of maintaining/administrating employee benefits and wider payroll administration processes
• Highly Proficient in Excel, with excellent numeracy and literacy skills.
• High level of customer service and ability to deal with people at all levels
• Exceptional organisational skills, able to plan and prioritise work effectively, deal with multiple demands, manage competing deadlines and remain calm under pressure.
• Excellent attention to detail and high levels of accuracy.

Desirable 

• Expertise/Experience of global payroll operations across several countries including designing tools, processes and procedures.
• Experience working with an outsourced payroll vendor.
• Experience in continuous improvement or digital process automation.

Language

The British Council systems and global processes operate in English. Written and verbal proficiency in English is required” 

Requirements:
Please note that candidates must have the pre-existing, legal right to work in India.

Mobility / relocation / visa sponsoring support will not be provided. 
 
British Council supports working in new ways such as hybrid working, subject to full approval by line management and conditional upon our ability to provide the appropriate level of service.  This may not be appropriate for all roles but can be explored at interview.

Please note that all applications should be submitted in English only.      
It is advisable to apply in advance to avoid any technical issues at the last moment.

A connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Statement

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and we welcome applications from all sections of the community as we believe that a diverse workforce gives added depth to our work. The British Council is a Disability Confident Employer. The Disability Confident scheme helps challenge attitudes, increase understanding of disability and ensure staff are drawn from the widest possible pool of talent and we guarantee an interview for disabled applicants who meet the minimum role requirements. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities.

Safeguarding Statement

The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with. We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989. Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed in line with legal requirements and with the British Council’s Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.

If you experience any difficulties with submitting your application, please email askhr@britishcouncil.org