Payroll and Benefits Coordinator

Book Harvest • Durham, NC

4d • Hybrid

About The Position

Book Harvest is seeking a Payroll and Benefits Coordinator to serve as the team’s day-to-day payroll and benefits resource and help build simpler, smarter systems. This full-time, hybrid role is based in Durham, North Carolina. The organization prefers a locally based candidate who can work from the Durham office approximately 40–60% of the week, but will consider candidates within 200 miles who can commute to Durham several times a month. Dependable availability during payroll processing and other critical periods is essential.

The role supports Book Harvest as it transitions payroll execution from Finance to Talent & Culture (HR), plans for a more frequent payroll schedule, and prepares for an HRIS transition. Working as an implementation partner to the Associate Director of People Operations, the coordinator will test improvements, translate ideas into practical workflows, support employees through change, and progressively take ownership of defined projects and work streams.

Responsibilities include processing and auditing payroll; administering benefits and reconciling related records and invoices; improving workflows and supporting payroll and HRIS changes; responding to employee questions; and maintaining confidential, accurate, compliant employee records. The role also partners with Finance, brokers, carriers, recordkeepers, and other teams, and supports payroll documentation for grant-funded positions, AmeriCorps members, interns, and work-study employees.

The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, tech-curious, organized, proactive, dependable, and empathetic. They combine accuracy with warm employee support and are interested in simplifying and automating processes. Book Harvest is a nationally recognized children’s literacy nonprofit based in Durham. It has placed more than three million books in the hands of children and families since 2011 and is scaling nationally. The organization prioritizes applications from people with lived experience of its programs or who come from the communities it serves. College degrees are not required.

The salary range is $44,895–$56,000. Book Harvest uses a predictable, step-based compensation model tied to experience and tenure and does not negotiate offers. The target start date is late December or early January. The hiring process includes application questions, a phone call, approximately two interviews, a work sample, and reference checks.

Requirements

• At least 4 years of work experience, with at least 1 year of relevant hands-on experience in payroll, benefits, other HR administration, or accounting strongly preferred.
• Hands-on experience processing or administering payroll in a payroll/HRIS platform.
• Working knowledge of earnings, deductions, tax withholding, and payroll reconciliation.
• Intermediate Excel or Google Sheets skills, including lookups, formulas, and reconciling datasets.
• Strong interest and aptitude in simplifying and automating processes.
• Accuracy, organization, confidentiality, and dependability with recurring deadlines.
• Sound judgment about what to handle independently and when to involve a colleague.
• Warm, clear written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain pay and benefits topics to employees at all levels and take ownership of requests.
• Commitment to Book Harvest’s mission and equity values, and a collaborative approach to working across teams.
• Integrity, emotional intelligence, self-development, and commitment to Diversity, Equity, Belonging, and Inclusion (DEBI).
• Ability to communicate clearly, work well on a team, manage time and projects carefully, make sound routine decisions, adapt to change, and connect daily work to Book Harvest’s mission.
• A college degree is not required.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with Paylocity or Employee Navigator, or similar platforms such as ADP, UKG, Paycom, or Paycor.
• Experience with multi-state payroll, benefits invoice reconciliation, retirement plan administration, open enrollment, COBRA, ACA, or state leave.
• Experience with nonprofit or grant-funded payroll and cost allocations.
• Experience with HRIS implementation, system migrations, or automated workflows.
• Familiarity with payroll, benefits, and leave compliance requirements.

Responsibilities

• Prepare and process payroll, maintaining approved hires, terminations, pay changes, mileage, reimbursements, deductions, and other adjustments.
• Audit payroll registers, manager-approved timecards, and paid time off banks; resolve discrepancies; and partner with Finance on reconciliations, journal entries, grant allocations, and specialized reporting.
• Support payroll documentation for grant-funded positions, AmeriCorps members, interns, and work-study employees, as well as multi-state payroll calendars, checklists, SOPs, internal controls, and year-end W-2 review.
• Coordinate benefits enrollment, eligibility changes, life events, coverage terminations, open enrollment, leave-related changes, and vendor coordination.
• Maintain and audit benefit records across Employee Navigator, payroll/HRIS, carrier portals, and internal files; reconcile benefits invoices, deductions, and retirement contributions; and work with brokers, carriers, recordkeepers, and Finance to resolve discrepancies.
• Flag complex benefits plan or compliance questions for review.
• Identify opportunities to streamline workflows, reduce manual work and recurring errors, and improve the employee experience through technology and automation.
• Design, test, document, and evaluate process improvements; support the move to a more frequent payroll schedule; and assist with the anticipated HRIS migration through process mapping, data validation, parallel payroll testing, and employee training.
• Own routine payroll and benefits questions from first contact through resolution, providing timely, empathetic, accurate communication.
• Lead payroll and benefits portions of onboarding; support employee self-service in Paylocity, Employee Navigator, and successor platforms; and create FAQs, pay-stub guides, and short tutorials.
• Escalate sensitive or high-risk matters with research, context, and proposed next steps, and remain involved through follow-up.
• Maintain accurate, confidential employee records, including work-location information, employment status, pay, benefits data, I-9s, and work authorizations.
• Assist with routine payroll, benefits, and multi-state compliance; run recurring cross-system audits for missing or outdated records; and protect confidentiality, data access, and records retention.
• Work toward reliable ownership of recurring operations and completion of at least two meaningful improvement projects during the first year.

Benefits

• 100% employer-sponsored healthcare, with elective dental, vision, disability, and life coverage.
• 401(k) with an automatic 3% employer contribution; no match is required.
• Generous paid time off.
• Dedicated paid family leave.
• Sabbatical leaves.
• Professional development funds.
• Flexible hybrid schedule.
• Structured onboarding and hands-on training.
• Purposeful workplace where work directly impacts children and literacy equity.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed