Payroll Lead

Schumacher•Bethlehem, PA

About The Position

F. Schumacher & Co. is seeking a hands-on Payroll Lead for its Finance department’s Treasury team. Reporting to the Treasury Manager, the Payroll Lead will run payroll for more than 500 employees, own payroll tax registration and reconciliation, maintain accurate employee records, and manage corporate card, expense reimbursement, and travel programs. The role will support the implementation of Rippling as the company’s payroll, corporate card, expense reimbursement, and travel system, while continuing to process payroll in UKG during the transition. It will also help close a former entity in each state where it operates, including payroll tax account closures and final payment remittances in coordination with Finance. The position has no direct reports, but its scope, team size, and influence on payroll operations are expected to grow with the business. The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, independent, comfortable with change, and able to handle sensitive employee information with sound judgment.

Requirements

5–10 years of progressive payroll experience, including end-to-end processing for more than 500 employees.
Hands-on experience running payroll in Rippling.
Multi-state payroll experience, including state and local tax registration, filings, and reconciliation.
Strong knowledge of federal, state, and local payroll regulations, including final-pay rules.
Proven ability to reconcile payroll registers, tax filings, and general ledger entries.
Proficiency in MS Windows and the Office suite.
Advanced Excel skills, including VLOOKUPs and pivot tables, for audits and reconciliations.
High attention to detail, sound judgment when handling confidential data, and ability to meet fixed payroll deadlines.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to handle multiple tasks and change direction based on business needs.
Comfort working across multiple systems.
High level of ownership, accountability, and initiative.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business, or a related field.
Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or Fundamental Payroll Certification (FPC).
Experience with UKG Pro or similar payroll systems.
Experience closing out an entity, including payroll tax account closures across multiple states.
Year-end payroll experience, including W-2 processing.
Experience overseeing a corporate card program and related online portals, such as Rippling, Amex, or JPMorgan PaymentNet.
Experience processing expense reimbursements with a system such as Rippling or Expensify.
Experience managing a company travel system, such as Rippling or Concur.
Experience managing a team or direct report.

Responsibilities

Run the full payroll cycle for more than 500 employees, from data intake through final approval and funding.
Enter payroll transactions in UKG, including hires, terminations, pay changes, bonuses, commissions, incentives, deductions, garnishments, and off-cycle payments.
Maintain accurate employee payroll profiles, including pay, tax, direct deposit, and deduction setups.
Prepare and review pre- and post-payroll audits and variance reports, resolving discrepancies before payroll is finalized.
Process off-cycle, manual, and final paychecks in accordance with state final-pay requirements.
Respond promptly and accurately to employee and manager payroll questions.
Own state and local payroll tax registrations, including new account setups, rate updates, and agency correspondence.
Reconcile payroll tax filings and payments against payroll registers and agency records each pay period and quarter.
Research and resolve tax notices, penalties, and account discrepancies.
Support Q4 and year-end close, including W-2 preparation and review.
Assist with pay runs during the UKG-to-Rippling transition, including parallel runs.
Gather, validate, and map migration data, including employee records, earnings and deduction codes, tax setups, and year-to-date balances.
Test Rippling payroll results and reconcile them against UKG output.
Document new payroll processes and controls, and keep registrations up to date in UKG and Rippling.
Work on the transition of POA and TPA to Rippling in January.
Help close the former entity in each operating state, including payroll tax account closures and final filings.
Coordinate with Finance on tax-agency and other payee remittances tied to the former entity.
Track entity closure status by state and escalate open items or risks.
Manage the corporate card program, including issuing and replacing cards, cancelling cards, and booking journal entries for card transactions.
Process biweekly employee expense reimbursements.
Manage a shared inbox for employee questions about expense reimbursements, corporate cards, and travel.
Assist with additional projects and reporting as needed.
Respond to and manage inquiries in a timely and professional manner, ensuring information is accurate and providing a strong customer experience.