Senior Payroll Manager

Principal Responsibilities

• Manage and support the end-to-end delivery of bi-monthly US, Puerto Rico and expatriate payroll in Workday, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and strong controls
• Partner with Finance and internal stakeholders to collect, validate, and process payroll inputs each pay period (e.g., deferred compensation, referral bonuses, taxable benefits, 401(k))
• Serve as the internal payroll tax and compliance SME, including deep knowledge of:
• multi-state and multi-jurisdictional taxation (US domestic and international cross-border)
• wage reporting, taxable income treatment, and employment tax rules
• employee mobility (remote work, multi-state workers, business travelers, domestic/international assignments)
• US Citizens worldwide wage and tax requirements
• Evaluate the payroll and tax impact of employee mobility and ensure appropriate reporting/withholding treatment
• Monitor changing federal/state/local regulations; assess business impact and lead implementation of policy, process, and system updates
• Manage quarterly and annual processes including tax filings, reconciliations, and W-2 production
• Lead the W-2 process with the vendor, including review of additional earnings and validation of accuracy/timeliness
• Oversee internal and external audits and compliance reporting (including 401(k) and Workers’ Compensation)
• Design, enhance, and monitor payroll controls, reconciliations, and review processes; ensure audit-ready documentation
• Manage third-party payroll/tax vendors (registrations, tax notices, quarterly/annual reconciliations, filings, and payments)
• Partner with HRIS/HR Systems teams on Workday Payroll updates, releases, testing plans, and post-release validations
• Drive operational efficiency via process improvement, automation, and KPI development
• Respond to employee inquiries and develop employee communications as needed
• Produce routine and ad hoc reporting and support special projects as required

Qualifications / Skills

• Bachelor’s degree required (Accounting/Finance or another business-related field preferred)
• 10+ years of multi-state payroll management experience in a complex business environment
• Deep expertise in employment taxes, wage reporting, and multi-jurisdictional taxation (including mobility/expatriate considerations)
• Thorough understanding of full-cycle payroll and the ability to explain payroll impacts to the general ledger/accounting
• Proven ability to research, interpret, and implement regulatory changes
• Workday Payroll experience required (experience with other large-scale payroll platforms a plus)
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel
• Strong communication skills (verbal and written); comfortable presenting to and partnering with senior stakeholders
• Proven experience with vendor management, project management, and driving process improvements
• Highly detail-oriented, strong ownership mindset, and able to operate effectively under tight deadlines while maintaining confidentiality