Payroll Specialist

Who we are

Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards.

As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously.

We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer-facing programme managers. We are looking for mission-driven people to join our European teams – and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits, and its ethical implications.

The role

Payroll at Helsing is not a back-office function — it is a foundation of trust. As a Payroll Specialist, you will prepare and deliver accurate, compliant payroll data across our international entities, with a particular focus on the DACH region. Payroll is processed in partnership with an external service provider; your role is to ensure that everything upstream of that process is precise, complete and delivered on time. Working closely with HR and Finance, you will contribute to a payroll infrastructure that scales as we grow. The work is detailed, consequential and sits at the intersection of people, finance and operations.

The day-to-day

• Prepare and consolidate payroll data across multiple entities and regions, ensuring all inputs delivered to our external service provider are accurate, complete and submitted on time

• Support the resolution of payroll queries, escalating complex matters where appropriate and communicating outcomes clearly to affected colleagues

• Work with external payroll and service providers to maintain data integrity and uphold agreed service standards

• Monitor and maintain compliance with local statutory obligations — including wage tax, social security and labour law — with a particular focus on Germany and the wider DACH region

• Contribute to month-end, quarter-end and year-end close processes, collaborating with Finance and Accounting on reconciliations and audit readiness

• Identify opportunities to reduce manual effort, increase accuracy and strengthen payroll processes through better use of existing tools and HRIS integrations

You should apply if you

• Have worked in a payroll operations role, handling multi-entity or multi-jurisdiction payroll — ideally including experience working alongside external payroll processors or service providers

• Have solid working knowledge of payroll compliance and statutory requirements in Germany, including wage tax, social security and relevant labour law

• Communicate fluently in both German and English — written and spoken — and are comfortable engaging with colleagues, service providers and local authorities

• Bring the attention to detail and consistency that means colleagues can trust payroll data to be accurate and on time

• Have worked with HRIS or payroll platforms and are comfortable learning new systems quickly

• Are motivated by Helsing's mission to protect democratic societies, and ready to engage with the responsibility that comes with it

Note: We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points.

Nice to Have

• Hands-on experience with DATEV Personal Online, HiBob, ISGUS or Zeus

• A background in Finance, Accounting, Human Resources or a related discipline — through formal study or equivalent practical experience

• Evidence of continued professional development in payroll and compensation, such as relevant further training or qualifications

Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns

• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world

• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defence industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward

• In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts

• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practise responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about

What we offer

• Competitive salary and VSOP options

• Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation

• Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

• Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health)

• Social: regularly company events and monthly social allowances

• Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers.

• Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work

These are the core benefits across all locations, there may be additional benefits in certain locations.

Helsing is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or gender identity. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation.

Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.