Associate Manager - HR (on Contract)

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This role owns the core People Operations engine at Monks. The Associate Manager - HR ensures that payroll, compliance, employee experience, and HR operations run with precision, integrity, and consistency. The role partners closely with leadership, finance, payroll vendors, and employees to build a strong, reliable people foundation that scales with the business.

Key Responsibilities

Payroll, Compliance & Governance

Lead end-to-end payroll governance through third-party payroll partners ensuring timely, accurate, and confidential salary processing.
Own monthly payroll cycles including attendance, leave management, compensation changes, incentives, reimbursements, and full & final settlements.
Ensure 100% statutory compliance across PF, ESI, TDS, gratuity, and all regulatory filings; actively support internal and external audits
Act as the primary interface between employees, finance, and payroll vendors, managing escalations, discrepancies, and service-level commitments.
Strengthen payroll controls, documentation, and process efficiencies to improve accuracy, reduce errors, and elevate overall employee experience
Conduct regular HR and payroll audits to validate compliance, accuracy, and process adherence

HR Operations & Systems

Own day-to-day HR operations and continuously improve workflows for scale, efficiency, and employee satisfaction.
Maintain high data integrity on Workday HRIS, ensuring accurate reporting, analytics, and decision support.
Lead onboarding and employee lifecycle processes to deliver a smooth, high-quality experience from day one.

People Strategy, Culture & Engagement

Partner with People leadership and business stakeholders to execute people strategies aligned with organizational growth.
Drive rewards management programs and support leadership in compensation-related initiatives.
Lead employee engagement, culture, and inclusion initiatives including townhalls, HR boot camps, recognition programs, and company-wide celebrations.
Own employee wellness initiatives such as health camps, vaccination drives, and wellbeing programs.

Leadership Reporting & Workforce Insights

Build and present leadership dashboards and workforce reports covering attrition trends, engagement insights, and key HR metrics.
Translate people data into actionable insights for leadership and business planning

Employee Relations & Policy

Serve as a trusted HR partner handling employee relations, grievances, conflict resolution, and policy interpretation with consistency and fairness
Support managers in navigating performance, conduct, and employee concerns.

Success in This Role Looks Like :

Payroll is always on time, error-free, and compliant.
Employees experience HR as dependable, responsive, and human.
Leadership has clear visibility into workforce health and trends.
Processes scale smoothly as the organization grows.
Compliance risks are proactively managed and controlled.

Ideal Candidate Profile.

6–8 years of progressive HR experience with strong exposure to payroll, compliance, and people operations.
Proven experience working with payroll vendors and statutory frameworks in India.
Hands-on experience with HRIS platforms (Workday preferred).
Strong stakeholder management across leadership, finance, vendors, and employees
High ownership mindset with excellent problem-solving and execution skills

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About Monks

Monks is the global, digital-first, data-driven, unitary operating brand of S4 Capital plc. With a legacy of innovation and specialized expertise, Monks combines an extraordinary range of global Marketing and Technology Services to redefine how brands interact with the world. Through Monks.Flow, its flagship AI ecosystem for marketing orchestration, Monks transforms marketing into a growth engine, collapsing timelines and connecting brands to culture in real time. By deploying bespoke intelligent agents across disciplines and delivering culturally relevant, high-impact creative and digital solutions, Monks solves key critical business challenges across the entire brand enterprise to help brands sustain long-term impact.

Monks was named a Contender in The Forrester Wave™: Global Marketing Services, ranks among Cannes Lions' Top 10 Creative Companies (2022-25) and remains the only partner featured in AdExchanger’s Programmatic Power Players list every year (2020-24). Named Adweek’s first AI Agency of the Year (2023) and The One Show’s inaugural AI Pioneer Organization, Monks was also awarded Business Intelligence Group’s 2025 Excellence in Artificial Intelligence Award in both the Organizational and AI Product categories. As a trusted partner to cutting-edge innovators in tech, Monks earned titles such as Optimizely Experimentation Partner of the Year (2025), runner-up for the Adobe Firefly Partner Award (2024), and Workato’s AI Visionary Customer Impact Award (2024). Additionally, Monks achieved a record-breaking number of FWAs and continues to hold the most of any partner.

We are an equal-opportunity employer committed to building a respectful and empowering work environment for all people to freely express themselves amongst colleagues who embrace diversity in all respects. Including fresh voices and unique points of view in all aspects of our business not only creates an environment where we can all grow and thrive but also increases our potential to produce work that better represents—and resonates with—the world around us.