Payroll Manager

NFP•Melville, NY

About The Position

We are a newly independent wealth management firm, with approximately $500 million in revenue, recently carved out from a larger parent company and acquired by a leading private equity sponsor. With a strong foundation of client relationships, acquisitions, and growth potential, we are in the process of standing up new systems, processes, and controls to support our next phase of expansion. This is a unique opportunity to help shape the tax infrastructure of a high-growth platform from the ground up. The Payroll Manager plays a critical role in ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant payroll delivery across the organization. This role is responsible for end-to-end payroll administration for employees in the USA, Canada, and the UK, while also serving as a key contributor to the company’s Workday HCM implementation and ongoing optimization. Reporting to the Global HR Operations & Services Leader, the Payroll Manager partners closely with HR, Benefits, Finance, vendors, and employees to ensure payroll processes are executed with precision, strong controls, and a high level of service. This role blends hands-on payroll execution with process improvement and system enablement, helping modernize and scale payroll operations as the organization grows. The ideal candidate is highly detail-oriented, deadline-driven, and comfortable operating in fast-paced environments—bringing strong payroll expertise, multi-country knowledge, and the ability to support HR technology initiatives.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, Business, or a related field preferred.
7-10+ years of hands-on experience administering payroll, including experience supporting multi-country or global employee populations.
Strong knowledge of payroll processes, tax regulations, and statutory requirements in the USA, Canada, and/or the UK.
Demonstrated ability to manage vendors, meet strict deadlines, and handle sensitive and confidential information.
High attention to detail with strong reconciliation, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to explain payroll concepts clearly.
A hands-on, solutions-oriented mindset with a commitment to accuracy, compliance, and continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting or working within Workday HCM, ADP or integrations is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Own the end-to-end administration of payroll for employees across the USA, Canada, and the UK, ensuring accurate and timely processing each pay cycle.
Serve as the primary point of contact for payroll-related inquiries, including pay calculations, deductions, taxes, garnishments, and issue resolution.
Coordinate payroll inputs including new hires, terminations, compensation changes, bonuses, commissions, and time and attendance data.
Ensure accurate payroll data, reconciliations, and seamless coordination with HR, Benefits, Finance, and payroll vendors.
Partner with external payroll providers and internal stakeholders to manage ongoing operations, escalations, audits, and year-end activities.
Ensure payroll processing complies with federal, state, provincial, and country-specific regulations across the USA, Canada, and the UK.
Maintain strong internal controls, audit trails, and documentation to support compliance and financial accuracy.
Support year-end processes including W-2s, T4s, P60s/P45s, and other statutory reporting requirements.
Monitor legislative and regulatory changes impacting payroll and support implementation of required updates.
Act as a key functional partner for payroll-related processes during the Workday HCM implementation.
Support system design, configuration, testing, data validation, and user acceptance testing related to payroll integrations and upstream data.
Partner with the HR Operations Leader to identify opportunities to automate payroll processes, improve data integrity, and enhance employee self-service.
Support ongoing Workday optimization, enhancements, audits, and release testing that impact payroll operations.
Conduct regular payroll audits and reconciliations to ensure data accuracy and resolve discrepancies.
Maintain up-to-date process documentation, SOPs, and payroll calendars.
Identify process gaps and recommend improvements to increase efficiency, reduce risk, and improve the employee experience.
Partner closely with HR Business Partners, Benefits, Finance, and HR Operations to ensure seamless end-to-end employee lifecycle support.
Provide payroll reporting and insights to support audits, reconciliations, and decision-making.
Support HR and Finance initiatives and projects as needed, particularly those tied to HR operations and systems.