Payroll Manager

National Church Residences•Dublin, OH

12d

About The Position

The Payroll Manager provides strategic and operational leadership for the organization’s payroll function, with end-to-end accountability for accurate, timely, and compliant payroll operations. The role oversees payroll processing, controls, compliance, reconciliation, reporting, issue resolution, team leadership, and continuous improvement. The Payroll Manager leads and develops the payroll team and partners with HR Operations, Finance, Total Rewards, Talent Acquisition, HR Technology, and business leaders. The position establishes strong controls, identifies and mitigates risk, uses Workday and related technology to improve efficiency and accuracy, and evolves payroll practices to meet organizational needs. The role balances operational excellence with continuous improvement across processes, controls, technology, service delivery, and employee experience. The position also partners with Finance and Accounting on payroll accounting, funding, reconciliations, general ledger integration, and period-end activities; supports audits and year-end reporting; and ensures responsive, professional service to employees and leaders. It provides direct leadership and oversight to payroll team members.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, or a related discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
Typically 7+ years of progressively responsible payroll experience, including experience leading complex payroll operations.
Typically 3+ years of people leadership, supervisory, or significant payroll team leadership experience.
Demonstrated knowledge of federal, state, and local payroll requirements.
Experience with enterprise HRIS/payroll systems.
Demonstrated experience with payroll controls, reconciliation, reporting, audits, and process improvement.
Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities with exceptional attention to detail.
Ability to manage multiple priorities and critical deadlines in a high-volume environment.
Strong communication skills and ability to partner effectively across HR, Finance, technology teams, and organizational leadership.
Ability to handle confidential employee and organizational information with a high degree of discretion.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Workday Payroll and/or Workday HCM.
Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) certification.
Experience supporting multi-state payroll operations.
Experience leading payroll process optimization, automation, system implementations, or major system enhancements.
Experience supporting payroll operations through organizational growth, acquisitions, divestitures, or restructuring.

Responsibilities

Provide end-to-end leadership and accountability for accurate and timely payroll operations across the organization.
Lead the team in regular, supplemental, off-cycle, and special payroll processing.
Establish operating procedures, calendars, controls, service expectations, and accountability for payroll processes.
Review and approve payroll results, reconciliations, exception reports, adjustments, and other critical activities.
Escalate and resolve complex payroll issues, identify root causes, and prevent recurrence.
Maintain payroll documentation, standard operating procedures, process maps, and business continuity plans.
Establish and evaluate payroll performance indicators, including accuracy, timeliness, service levels, exceptions, and operational trends.
Maintain payroll controls that protect employee information, organizational assets, and payroll accuracy.
Ensure compliance with applicable wage and hour, taxation, garnishment, withholding, recordkeeping, and payroll requirements.
Monitor legislative and regulatory changes and coordinate necessary process or system changes.
Establish and evaluate payroll controls, approvals, audits, reconciliations, and segregation of duties.
Partner with Finance and HR leadership on internal and external audits and address control or process gaps.
Identify payroll-related operational, financial, compliance, and employee-experience risks and develop mitigation strategies.
Lead, coach, and develop payroll team members; set expectations for performance, service, accountability, and professional growth.
Build team capabilities through cross-training, documentation, succession planning, and ongoing development.
Evaluate workload and team capacity and recommend staffing, role design, or process improvements as organizational needs evolve.
Serve as an escalation point and provide judgment and guidance on complex payroll situations.
Lead payroll-related configuration, processes, and enhancements within Workday and other applicable payroll technologies.
Partner with HR Technology and stakeholders to evaluate functionality, resolve issues, test changes, and implement enhancements.
Identify opportunities to automate manual processes, strengthen controls, reduce corrections, and improve efficiency.
Use payroll data and operational trends to identify root causes, improvement opportunities, and emerging risks.
Lead or participate in payroll projects, system implementations, integrations, acquisitions, divestitures, organizational changes, and other enterprise initiatives.
Promote standardized and scalable payroll processes that support organizational growth and change.
Partner with Finance and Accounting on payroll accounting, funding, reconciliation, general ledger integration, and period-end activities.
Ensure payroll-related accounts and transactions are reconciled and discrepancies are resolved promptly.
Provide payroll reporting, analysis, and insights to HR and Finance leadership.
Support year-end payroll activities and required reporting, including reconciliation and preparation of employee tax documentation.
Collaborate with Finance, HR, and external partners to resolve complex taxation, accounting, or payroll processing issues.
Provide responsive, accurate, and professional support to employees and leaders, with appropriate service expectations and escalation protocols.
Analyze recurring employee questions and payroll issues to improve communication, education, system functionality, or process design.
Partner with HR Operations and other HR teams to integrate payroll with hiring, compensation, benefits, leave, timekeeping, employee changes, and termination processes.
Communicate complex payroll information clearly to employees, leaders, and senior stakeholders.
Set team priorities and allocate work based on payroll cycles, business needs, and organizational risk.
Provide ongoing performance feedback and development, build team depth and redundancy, and foster a collaborative, service-oriented culture.