Linda Obertin, CPP, Hilton Worldwide’s Senior Director, Human Resources – Global Lead Payroll, and a member of PayrollOrg’s Board of Directors, is a seasoned executive with more than three decades of global leadership experience, holding senior roles within Fortune 100 corporations and leading transformational initiatives across finance and HR functions. Her career has taken her to over 60 countries, enriching her leadership with deep cultural insight and a global perspective. 

A recognized thought leader in the payroll industry, Obertin served as PayrollOrg’s President in 2010 and 2021 and was named Payroll Woman of the Year in 2002.  

Her passion for global payroll and shared services is matched by her commitment to elevating the strategic visibility of payroll within the C-suite.  

Q: How has payroll’s function changed, and what do payroll leaders need to communicate to the C-suite?

Payroll has transformed into a strategic business performance enabler. Today’s payroll leaders deliver high-value services supporting organizational agility in an increasingly complex world. 

As companies expand across borders, the compliance burden grows exponentially. Articulating payroll’s strategic value—and the risks of noncompliance—is essential for executive decision-making. Navigating regulatory frameworks across countries, states, and systems requires expertise and foresight. 

Forward-thinking payroll leaders can drive enterprise-wide initiatives enhancing workforce alignment, engagement, and responsiveness. By advancing automation, fortifying compliance infrastructure, and harnessing data analytics, payroll becomes a source of insight—informing talent strategy, operational efficiency, and risk management. 

Payroll is no longer just about paying people. It’s about empowering the business and creating a competitive advantage. 

Q: What does the C-suite need to understand about supporting payroll and its contributions? 

Empowering an organization begins with investing in talent and tools. The same strategies that build resilient, future-focused organizations should be applied to payroll. 

Payroll professionals are the first responders to critical business issues, delivering compliant, creative, and scalable solutions. Their agility and precision make them indispensable in moments demanding speed and accuracy. 

The data housed within payroll systems can inform senior leadership and drive smarter decision-making. Often overlooked, this intelligence holds the power to shape strategy, forecast trends, and illuminate workforce dynamics. 

Recognizing payroll as a strategic function unlocks its potential to drive competitive advantage and elevate employee engagement. Payroll isn’t just about transactions—it’s about transformation. 

Q: How do you incorporate cultural intelligence and diversity into your global payroll strategy? 

Organizations that embrace diversity and foster inclusion consistently outperform their peers, drive innovation, and attract top talent. This belief aligns deeply with one of my core values: to be respectful and inclusive of every voice and perspective. 

As leaders, we must leverage both emotional and cultural intelligence to effectively manage, relate, and collaborate across diverse teams. Building trust through cultural connection and mutual respect is essential to driving engagement and aligning with both company and departmental brands.  

Before entering a new country or location, I prioritize researching and connecting with local leadership to understand the team dynamics and cultural landscape. Country culture plays a pivotal role in change management and service delivery—and understanding these nuances is key to successful integration. 

Q: How have you successfully integrated payroll insights into broader corporate strategy?

In a previous leadership role, I managed a global workforce of more than 250,000 employees and administered a contingent labor population exceeding 60,000 individuals across 40 countries. I partnered with our supply chain organization to co-sponsor a global initiative that fundamentally reimagined how we managed non-payroll talent. 

Together, we designed and implemented a new service model and infrastructure that streamlined the selection, onboarding, and offboarding processes—delivering a consistent, high-quality experience that mirrored our core employee journey. This transformation improved operational efficiency and stakeholder satisfaction, and also generated significant financial impact, saving the organization millions annually in procurement and servicing costs. 

Q: How do you advocate for payroll in this period of rapid organizational change? 

Advocacy is about aligning purpose, resources, and outcomes through disciplined execution and change management. When leaders understand the strategic rationale behind investments—whether in technology, talent, or process excellence—they become powerful advocates for continuous improvement.  

The ability to flex, pivot, and lead through ambiguity is what separates resilient organizations from reactive ones. Staying anchored in strategy and embracing innovation fosters a culture where transformation is welcomed, not feared. Payroll’s ability to adapt and lead through change is a strategic asset driving enterprise-wide resilience and readiness. 

Q: What opportunities and challenges do you foresee for artificial intelligence (AI) and automation reshaping global payroll processes? 

Automating core functions such as data entry, wage calculations, tax deductions, and compliance checks is a game-changer. These capabilities reduce manual errors, improve data integrity, enhance service quality, and free up valuable time for higher-impact work. 

AI’s predictive power enables payroll teams to anticipate issues before they arise, support proactive decision-making, and contribute to broader business strategies. AI positions payroll teams to support customer queries autonomously, forecast workforce trends, and build data-rich business cases to inform executive decision-making. 

However, not all payroll professionals possess the strategic mindset or comfort level with emerging technologies required to lead in this new environment. As we move beyond managing transactions, we must continuously plan for what’s next—and empower teams to think beyond their current scope. 

Payroll leaders must also ensure AI’s ethical use. AI introduces new considerations around data privacy, algorithmic bias, and regulatory compliance. Maintaining trust across the organization requires disciplined governance and transparency. 

Q: How do you navigate increasing global regulatory complexities in payroll compliance? 

Senior leaders must recognize that payroll is often the first team required to respond to new regulatory events. Our multi-faceted strategies leverage a wide range of sources and subject matter experts to stay ahead of the evolving regulatory landscape. 

Global resources such as PayrollOrg provide valuable insights and real-world case studies illuminating the complexities of compliance across jurisdictions. Additionally, we actively engage with internal and external legal partners, collaborate with industry peers, and maintain strong networks to interpret regulatory changes and assess their impact. 

Our growing library of standards and baselines enables us to measure, monitor, and forecast regulatory shifts using data-driven analytics. These insights are essential for communicating the implications of change to senior leadership—ensuring timely decisions, operational readiness, and strategic alignment.

Q: How can payroll data be leveraged to inform executive-level decision-making? 

The wealth of payroll data impacts everything, from workforce management (WFM) and operational efficiency to technology adoption, policy impact, employee engagement, financial wellness, and even merger and acquisition activity. The scope of insight from payroll data is vast and drives executive-level decision making. 

When leveraged effectively, payroll data informs both short- and long-term strategies, offering a panoramic view of workforce dynamics. Payroll deserves a seat at the table, contributing meaningful analytics and foresight that drive smarter decisions and more agile planning. 

Q: What role does payroll play in fostering financial inclusion and global equity? 

Across many regions, payroll teams conduct pay equity analyses to identify and correct disparities related to gender, race, geography, and job roles. Transparent pay structures, supported by regular audits, help ensure employees are compensated fairly—regardless of location or position. 

Payroll also plays a central role in administering and supporting total rewards programs, including the following: 

• Benefits and wages 

• Absence and leave programs 

• Early wage access (EWA) and financial wellness initiatives 

• Retirement and pension schemes 

• Employee stock purchase plans and equity programs 

• Senior leader compensation 

• Global mobility and international assignments 

These programs require payroll’s active collaboration with partners across HR, finance, and compliance. Payroll teams manage data and reporting, conduct ongoing audits, and provide customer service—often holding partial or full ownership of these functions. 

Given that payroll and total rewards are among the top expenses for most organizations, it is essential that payroll be included from strategic planning through to reporting. By aligning payroll operations with broader organizational values, leaders can drive meaningful progress in equity, inclusion, and financial well-being across the workforce. 

Q: How will payroll leadership evolve with the growing prevalence of decentralized and hybrid workforces? 

The shift to decentralized and hybrid models allows organizations to centralize leadership, offer greater flexibility to workers, and embrace remote work as a core component of their operating model. 

Managing remote teams successfully requires elevated emotional intelligence and soft skills to sustain engagement and morale. Leadership can ensure teams remain engaged and supported by establishing clear roles and responsibilities, fostering effective communication, and promoting productive collaboration across time zones and geographies. 

Hybrid models also demand heightened accountability in managing sensitive data. Strong controls and disciplined data governance are essential to maintaining compliance and trust. 

Q: How can payroll departments drive sustainability and social responsibility initiatives? 

Historically, payroll has aligned with environmental goals by transitioning to digital services and eliminating paper-based processes—not only supporting environmental stewardship but also enhancing employee engagement through self-service tools. Digital data retention eliminates the need for physical storage, reducing costs and improving accessibility. But payroll’s impact extends well beyond environmental efforts. 

Payroll teams manage and support programs that promote healthy lifestyles and financial literacy, reinforcing our commitment to employee well-being. A standout example is PAYO’s “Money Matters” program, which delivers financial education to youth nationwide. 

Q: What are the top risks in global payroll today, and how do you mitigate them at the executive level?

Effective risk mitigation is a top priority for global payroll leaders. A comprehensive Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) analysis reveals the constant volatility that payroll operations must navigate. The most resilient organizations proactively define contingency plans and align them across internal and external partners to ensure continuity and compliance within their delivery models. 

Payroll leaders must prioritize talent and succession planning. Investing in development and training across payroll strengthens operational resilience, enhances engagement, and supports long-term workforce strategy. 

Q: How do you balance cost efficiency with employee satisfaction in payroll operations? 

Achieving this balance requires intuitive tools enabling employees to access and manage data, information, and guidance—proactively or on-demand. High-quality, timely, and consistent service delivery, executed with empathy and respect, is essential to reinforcing trust and satisfaction across the organization. 

By partnering across the broader ecosystem—including benefits, compensation, IT, and finance—payroll leaders can help shape enterprise-wide decisions driving efficiency and ensuring timely investments in service delivery.  

Q: What does being an executive leader in payroll mean to you?

Payroll touches lives in profound and personal ways. It’s more than a process. It’s a commitment. A promise. 

My life’s mission has always been to make a meaningful difference, and payroll offers that opportunity every single day. 

Leadership is about mentoring with purpose, modeling integrity, and helping others discover and amplify their strengths. Supporting career journeys, fostering growth, and building community are essential to sustain and uplift the next generation of leaders. 

This industry is more than systems and compliance—it’s a global network of people united by shared needs and aspirations. No matter where we live or work, we all seek security, respect, and opportunity. At its best, payroll delivers all three. 

PayrollOrg is a cornerstone of professional payroll development. The annual Executive Summit is the premier forum for senior leaders—fostering strategic dialogue, peer learning, and industry advancement. It’s a much-needed space for executives to connect and grow. 

Leadership is not just about what you know; it’s about who you learn from, how you show up, and the legacy you help build. 

Frank J. Mendelson is the Acquisitions Editor for PayrollOrg.