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Job Title: Presales & Solutions Architect – HR/Payroll & Global Capability Centers (GCC)Business Unit: Zalaris – APAC & Global MarketsLocation: Chennai / Bangalore (primary) | Open to travel ~25% domestic & internationalReports to: EVP – APAC & EVP- Group Commercial & Sales1. Role PurposeServe as the strategic bridge between Sales, Product, and Delivery, crafting winning solution architectures and presales collateral for Zalaris’ multi-country HR/Payroll services and emerging GCC offerings. The role combines deep functional expertise with the commercial acumen needed to translate client pain points into scalable, compliant, and cost-effective solutions on SAP, PeopleHub, and allied platforms.2. Key ResponsibilitiesPresales for HR & Payroll Services- Collaborate with Sales and Delivery teams to understand client needs and design appropriate HR and Payroll solutions. - Support the RFP/RFI response process by contributing to solution overviews, pricing inputs, and capability presentations. - Coordinate and lead solution demonstrations and presentations of Zalaris PeopleHub, SAP HCM, SuccessFactors, and related offerings. - Maintain and continuously improve presales documentation, standard offering materials, and reusable proposal assets. - Act as a liaison between customer requirements and internal solution/delivery teams to shape proposals that reflect client expectations.Presales Support for GCC Services- Support sales opportunities for Zalaris’ GCC offerings including BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer), managed GCC, and hybrid models. - Prepare high-level value propositions, location strategy overviews, and indicative total cost of ownership (TCO) models for prospective GCC clients. - Participate in client workshops and discussions to position Zalaris’ global delivery, compliance, and workforce management capabilities. - Provide relevant case studies, frameworks, and reference examples to support client decision-making. - Liaise with internal stakeholders to identify and respond to evolving customer needs in global delivery and shared services.3. Success Measures (First 12 Months)- Win rate and pipeline conversion for HR/Payroll & GCC pursuits ≥ 30% - Average deal cycle shortened by ≥ 15% through reusable assets & rapid solutioning - Two marquee GCC deals signed with validated TCO savings > 20% for clients - Positive stakeholder feedback (≥ 4/5) from Sales, Delivery, and Clients on solution quality4. Required Qualifications & Experience- Education: Bachelor’s in Engineering, Business, or HR; MBA or equivalent desirable. - Domain Expertise: - 10+ years in HR/Payroll operations or consulting; 5+ years in presales/solution architecture. - Proven track record designing multi-country payroll models (APAC, EMEA, Americas). - Hands-on exposure to SAP HCM, SAP SuccessFactors, or comparable enterprise payroll suites. - GCC & Outsourcing: - Experience on Shared Services/GCCs offering, including transition, TUPE/offshoring, and SLAs. - Familiarity with ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR, and local payroll data-protection statutes. - Technical & Tools: Ability to work with IT architects to articulate cloud architectures, integration patterns (APIs/ETL), RPA/AI enablers, and analytics as required for client workshops. - Commercial Skills: Deal pricing, business case modelling, contractual scoping, and risk management. - Soft Skills: Executive-level communication, workshop facilitation, negotiation, and storytelling.5. Preferred Attributes- Experience dealing with Multi Country Nordic/European/Asian and American clients and understanding of unionized payroll environments.6. Behavioral Competencies- Customer Obsession: Think from the outside-in; anchor every design on client value. - Analytical Rigor: Balance innovation with compliance and cost realism. - Influence Without Authority: Steer cross-functional teams under tight timelines. - Growth Mindset: Continuously codify learnings into playbooks, accelerators, and templates.