Payroll Operations Leader

Role Overview

• Design and lead the payroll operations team and processes to ensure accurate, timely, and compliant payroll processing for all associates across the US, Canada, and Mexico.
• Partner closely with HR, Finance and Accounting, and other key stakeholders to execute end-to-end payroll processes and resolve complex payroll-related issues.
• Build proactive partnerships with external vendors to ensure payroll processes are executed timely, accurately, and in full compliance with all regulations and company standards.
• Leverage and coach the continuous improvement tools empowering the team to proactively identify, root cause, and solve problems to drive sustainable process improvements.
• Champion operational excellence by fostering a culture of innovation to identify and evaluate impactful solutions to drive process efficiency and automation, allowing the team to focus on higher-value activities.
• Analyze payroll data and metrics to identify trends, ensure data integrity, and support informed decision-making for leadership.
• Establish and track key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness, accuracy, and efficiency of payroll operations, and lead the team through problem-solving when targets are not met.
• Lead payroll integration during mergers and acquisitions, partnering with upstream and downstream process owners to ensure seamless transitions and maintain operational continuity across all entities.
• Develop and maintain documentation for payroll procedures, controls, and process improvements to support audit readiness and operational transparency.
• Ensure adherence to federal, state, and local payroll regulations, proactively monitoring legislative changes and implementing necessary adjustments to maintain compliance.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resources, Business, Accounting, or a related field required; or equivalent experience will be considered in addition to 10+ years of a combination of payroll operations and managerial responsibility.
• Experience leading payroll operations for US, Canada, and Mexico.
• Proven track record of designing and scaling payroll process automations that reduce cycle time and error rates while measurably improving the associate experience.
• HRIS experience required.
• Workday implementation, configuration, and maintenance experience AX.
• Advanced MS Office skills are required – especially Excel.
• Demonstrated ability to prioritize and focus teams on the highest‑value initiatives—ensuring effort is consistently directed toward the work that drives the greatest operational and associate experience impact.
• Demonstrated experience delivering and developing a team who delivers high quality, operationally excellent work.
• Must possess strong attention to detail and analytical reasoning, problem-solving, and the ability to influence and communicate at all levels in the organization.
• Occasional travel required.

Benefits

• Equal Employment Opportunity
• Reasonable Accommodations