Natalia Mamea is a senior payroll consultant with over 25 years’ experience across payroll operations, HR, finance, and employment-related compliance in Aotearoa New Zealand. She supports organisations to improve payroll confidence, manage legislative risk, and strengthen payroll operating practices in practical and proportionate ways.

Natalia is a certified NZPPA Consultant and an active member of several payroll and HR professional networks. Her credentials have been developed through decades of hands-on experience in complex, high-risk payroll environments, spanning both strategic and operational leadership roles and experience working within payroll software providers. She has supported small and large workforces across multiple pay cycles, including organisations operating in historically non-compliant settings. This depth of applied experience enables Natalia to translate legislation and policy into practical payroll outcomes that work in real organisations. She provides a specialist bridge at the intersection of payroll operational compliance and employment law.

Her career includes senior payroll and operations leadership roles with organisations such as Fonterra, IAG, Fletcher Building, Carter Holt Harvey, Manukau Institute of Technology, and Affinity Employer Services, as well as more recent work as an independent payroll consultant. Natalia has led payroll operations for workforces of up to 14,500 employees and has played key roles in Holidays Act remediation programmes, payroll system implementations, and payroll risk management initiatives.

Natalia is recognised for her calm, methodical approach and her ability to provide clear, balanced advice without unnecessary complexity. She works collaboratively with HR, finance, and employment relations teams to identify payroll risks early, support informed decision-making, and build sustainable payroll practices. She is a strong advocate for getting payroll right, recognising the discipline as both a technical science and a people-centred profession that relies on trust, clarity, and empowerment.