Job Title: Zoho Payroll Specialist (Payroll Setup & Configuration)
Location: Pune, Maharashtra, India (Balewadi)
Work Mode: Hybrid / On-site as needed
Employment Type: Contract / Consultant
About the Role
We are looking for a Zoho Payroll Specialist to help set up and configure payroll operations for our Pune office in India. We are a growing 20-person startup, and we need someone who combines strong payroll and compensation structure knowledge with hands-on experience in the Zoho Payroll platform.
This role is ideal for a professional who understands both the finance and compliance side of Indian payroll and the system configuration side inside Zoho Payroll. The person should be able to work independently, recommend a clean payroll setup, and, when needed, collaborate in person from our office in Balewadi, Pune.
Key Responsibilities
- Review our current employee compensation structure and recommend a clean, scalable payroll setup for a startup environment
- Configure Zoho Payroll for our India team, including salary components, earning and deduction heads, reimbursement structures, and pay schedules
- Set up payroll to align with Indian statutory and tax requirements, including items such as PF, ESIC, Professional Tax, TDS, gratuity, bonus, leave encashment, and full & final settlement, as applicable
- Ensure payroll structure is practical from both a finance/accounting and employee compensation standpoint
- Advise on best practices for structuring CTC, fixed vs variable pay, reimbursements, and compliance-linked components
- Configure employee records, salary templates, payroll rules, and approval workflows
- Support integration or coordination with related systems if needed (for example, finance/accounting or HR workflows)
- Validate payroll calculations through test runs before go-live
- Document the final setup and provide handover/training to the internal team
- Be available to troubleshoot initial payroll cycles after implementation
Required Qualifications
- Proven experience working on Indian payroll setup and processing
- Hands-on experience configuring and managing Zoho Payroll
- Strong understanding of Indian payroll structures, salary components, taxation, and statutory compliance
- Ability to translate compensation and finance requirements into a properly configured payroll system
- Experience working with small or mid-sized companies, startups, or fast-moving teams
- Comfortable working independently and advising leadership on practical payroll decisions
- Strong attention to detail and accuracy
- Good communication skills and ability to explain payroll setup decisions clearly
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with Zoho ecosystem tools such as Zoho People, Zoho Books, or related workflows
- Experience helping a company move from informal/manual payroll processes to a structured payroll setup
- Based in Pune or able to work from the Balewadi office when needed
- CA / MBA Finance / payroll certification / HR operations experience is a plus, but not mandatory
Engagement Scope
- Initial focus: Payroll structure design + Zoho Payroll setup/configuration
- Team size: approximately 20 employees in India
- Potential for continued support during early payroll cycles, if needed
