Manager, Payroll

About the Position

The Manager, Payroll provides operational leadership and day-to-day administration of the University’s payroll function, ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant payroll processing for employees and faculty, including regular, off-cycle, and executive payroll. The position directly supervises payroll team, serves as a hands-on Workday Payroll subject matter expert, and oversees payroll managed services providers (Payroll, Tax, and Garnishments). The role maintains effective payroll controls, resolves complex issues, partners with HR, Compensation, HRIS, Finance, and Benefits, and drives improvements in payroll accuracy, efficiency, and employee service.

What You'll Do

• Lead end-to-end payroll production and processing, including collection, calculation, entry, validation, and updating of payroll data; ensure accurate and timely regular, off-cycle, employee, faculty, and executive payroll and resolution of payroll exceptions.

• Direct the issuance of paychecks and electronic payments; oversee payroll reconciliations, payroll and tax accounting, and bank account funding in partnership with vendors and Finance; ensure timely review and resolution of discrepancies.

• Serve as a Workday Payroll subject matter expert and maintain payroll system and data integrity. Support hands-on payroll processing, troubleshooting, testing, configuration changes, integrations, releases, enhancements, and issue resolution in collaboration with HRIS and technical resources.

• Ensure compliance with applicable federal, state, and local payroll and tax regulations, including multi-state payroll, wage and hour requirements, tax levies, garnishments, and other involuntary deductions; maintain appropriate documentation and controls.

• Oversee payroll managed services vendors for payroll processing, payroll tax, and garnishments; monitor deliverables and service levels, manage escalations, and coordinate adjustments, amendments, refunds, notices, and service issues.

• Audit and approve reconciliations of quarterly and annual payroll tax returns, W-2s, and third-party sick pay; oversee year-end activities and maintain effective approval processes, audit support, and payroll control procedures.

• Select, mentor, coach and evaluate staff; establish and monitor appropriate employee performance objectives; prepare and present employee performance discussions, including one-on-one meetings and quarterly check-ins; implement mentoring and coaching plans, or correction action, where appropriate.

• Perform other duties as required or apparent.

• NOTE: The Primary Accountabilities above are intended to describe the general content and requirements of the position and are not intended to be an exhaustive statement of duties. Incumbents may perform all or most of the Primary Accountabilities listed above. Specific goals or responsibilities will be documented in incumbents’ performance objectives as outlined by the incumbents’ immediate manager.

Supervisory Responsibilities

Directly supervises the payroll team and provides day-to-day operational direction and oversight of payroll managed service providers.

Minimum Education and Related Work Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Human Resources, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

• Five (5) years of progressively responsible payroll experience, including complex payroll operations and multi-state payroll.

Additional Qualifications

•Experience with Workday

•Seven (7) or more years of progressively responsible payroll experience and previous direct supervision and development of payroll employees.

• Demonstrated hands-on experience with Workday Payroll, including payroll processing, troubleshooting, testing, and supporting system changes.

• Experience leading payroll operations, projects, and/or employees.

• Strong knowledge of federal, state, and local payroll requirements, including payroll taxes, garnishments, and related compliance obligations.

• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills; ability to manage competing deadlines and resolve complex, sensitive payroll issues accurately.

• Effective written and verbal communication and collaboration skills across HR, Compensation, HRIS, Finance, Benefits, and external providers.

• Ability to maintain confidentiality of payroll and employee information and exercise sound judgment

• Experience with Workday Payroll reporting, calculated fields, business processes, configuration, integrations, releases, enhancements, and automation.

• Experience managing third-party payroll, payroll tax, and garnishment service providers and monitoring vendor service levels.

• Experience in a large, complex, multi-state organization, including executive payroll and complex compensation arrangements.

• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) designation.

• Experience developing payroll reporting, metrics, reconciliations, internal controls, audit documentation, and process improvements.

University of Phoenix is an equal opportunity employer.

If you are an active-duty military member seeking employment when off-duty, compliance with Department of Defense Joint Ethics Regulation, 5500-7-R, is required prior to starting employment with University of Phoenix. You are advised to contact your base Judge Advocate General to seek such approval and answer any questions.