Global Payroll Manager

fal•San Francisco, CA

About The Position

fal is hiring a Foundational Global Payroll Manager to own payroll end to end for a fast-growing, distributed team. The role covers US W-2 employees, US contractors, global employees through Employers of Record (EORs), and global contractors. The manager will run accurate, on-time payroll in Rippling, ensure bonuses and commissions are paid correctly, and build the controls and processes needed to scale payroll as fal adds states, countries, and headcount. This is a hands-on role combining payroll-cycle execution with the design of scalable payroll operations. It includes multi-state US payroll and tax compliance, hourly and non-exempt pay, global EOR payroll, contractor payments, variable compensation, accounting and audit controls, systems and process improvement, and employee support.

Requirements

At least 4 years of progressive payroll experience, including full ownership of multi-state US payroll.
Rippling payroll administration experience, including US and Rippling Global.
Hands-on global payroll experience through EORs and experience paying US and international contractors, including 1099s, W-8BENs, and classification considerations.
Experience with complex California hourly payroll, including daily overtime, regular rate, meal/rest premiums, and related records.
Experience administering bonus and commission payroll, including supplemental withholding and accruals.
Deep knowledge of federal, state, and local payroll tax, FLSA, and year-end reporting.
Comfort with journal entries, GL reconciliations, and month-end close.
Strong Excel or Sheets skills and a habit of auditing one’s own work.
Sound judgment with confidential data and clear, friendly communication.

Nice To Haves

Experience establishing payroll in a new country or entity.
Equity compensation payroll experience, including ISOs, NSOs, and RSUs, and experience with Carta.
Experience at a high-growth startup, ideally in AI or developer infrastructure.
CPP or FPC certification.
Experience automating manual work with scripts, integrations, or AI tools.
US benefits knowledge, including 401(k) and mandatory compliance.

Responsibilities

Run full-cycle multi-state US W-2 payroll in Rippling, including federal, state, and local tax compliance and new state registrations.
Handle year-end reporting, including W-2s, W-2Cs, and fringe reporting, as well as payroll-side benefit deductions.
Administer hourly, non-exempt, and intern payroll, including California daily overtime, double time, 7th-day rules, regular-rate calculations, timekeeping, meal/rest break attestations and premiums, compliant wage statements, and per-cycle audits.
Manage global EOR payroll inputs, register reviews, and invoice reconciliation; support new-country setup and entity decisions and maintain country-specific compliance.
Pay US and global contractors in the correct currencies; collect W-9 and W-8BEN forms; prepare 1099-NECs; assess classification risk with People and Legal; and complete monthly GL reconciliation.
Administer bonuses, commissions, and other variable pay, including supplemental withholding by state and country, commission validation with Sales Ops and Finance, and payroll for equity events such as RSU vesting and option exercises.
Prepare payroll journal entries, GL reconciliations, and month-end accruals; maintain controls and audit trails; handle agency notices and audits; and complete mandatory filings, including pay data reports.
Serve as a Rippling payroll expert, automate manual steps, maintain the payroll calendar, runbooks, and policies, and respond to employee payroll questions.