Consulting Sr Associate, Education & Research- Payroll Specialist

Huron • Chicago, IL

1d • $115,000 - $145,000

About The Position

Huron helps its clients drive growth, enhance performance and sustain leadership in the markets they serve. We collaborate with education organizations to develop strategies and implement solutions that enable the transformative change our clients need to own their future. Together, we empower clients to drive innovation, create sustainable funding streams and deliver better student outcomes. Today, leaders of higher education institutions and academic medical centers are spending too much time reacting to market forces, rather than focusing on the essential priorities that help students, faculty and staff thrive. The most productive path forward requires an intentional approach and innovative thinking, whereby stakeholders across the entire institution rally around a shared vision and embrace the hard work of effecting change. You’ll help our clients to achieve organizational effectiveness, improve student outcomes, implement new technologies and align resources and investments to ensure long-term sustainability. Join our team as the expert you are now and create your future. Huron helps its clients drive growth, enhance performance, and sustain leadership in the markets they serve. In higher education, we partner with colleges and universities to strengthen administrative operations and advance strategic priorities, enabling institutions to operate more effectively in an increasingly complex environment. Together, we help clients optimize internal processes, strengthen compliance, and deliver better outcomes for students, faculty, and staff. Higher education institutions face growing pressure to manage costs, comply with evolving regulatory requirements, and support their workforce efficiently and accurately. Effective payroll operations are critical to institutional stability, yet investing in new systems or technology alone is not enough to drive lasting improvement. Meaningful change requires experienced specialists who can assess current payroll practices, identify risk and inefficiencies, support system implementations, and help institutions design scalable, compliant payroll processes. As a payroll specialist at Huron, you will work directly with higher education clients to stabilize payroll operations today while helping build the foundation for future success. This includes supporting payroll transformations, improving data accuracy and controls, advising on compliance and process design, and partnering with our clients to strengthen workforce operations. Join Huron as the expert you are today and help institutions build resilient, sustainable payroll operations for the future.

Requirements

• At least three years of payroll or closely related professional experience
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
• Hands-on experience with payroll or HRIS platforms (e.g., Workday, ADP, UKG, Oracle, SAP)
• Working knowledge of payroll compliance, wage and hour regulations, and payroll processes
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to accuracy
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical-thinking skills
• Ability to travel up to 50% annually

Nice To Haves

• Experience in higher education, public sector, or other complex organizations
• Prior consulting or advisory experience supporting external clients
• Experience with multi-state, unionized, or multi-entity payroll environments
• Experience supporting payroll system implementations or process transformations
• Experience in benefits, compensation, or broader Total Rewards programs

Benefits

• Huron Consulting Group offers a competitive compensation and benefits package including medical, dental, and vision coverage to employees and dependents; a 401(k) plan with a generous employer match; an employee stock purchase plan; a generous Paid Time Off policy; and paid parental leave and adoption assistance.
• Our Wellness Program supports employee total well-being by providing free annual health screenings and coaching, bank at work, and on-site workshops, as well as ongoing programs recognizing major events in the lives of our employees throughout the year.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees