Manager, Payroll Operations & Control

Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading Canadian university is seeking a Manager, Payroll Operations & Control to oversee payroll processes and ensure compliance with regulations. This role involves leading a team, implementing payroll best practices, and interacting with various stakeholders to drive efficiency. Ideal candidates have significant payroll management experience and strong leadership skills to foster a collaborative environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 8 years of related experience.
• Experience with collective agreements and regulations.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Payroll and Benefits team.
• Implement risk controls for payroll compliance.
• Ensure accurate payroll records and reporting.

Skills

Leadership

Project Management

Payroll Compliance

Analytical Skills

Education

Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline

CPA Accounting program completion

Canadian Certified Payroll Manager Certification (CPM)

Tools

Workday

Job description

JOB SUMMARY

The University of British Columbia (UBC) is one of the largest universities in Canada, employing more than 15,000 faculty members and staff across more than 10 bargaining units. The Manager, Payroll Operations & Control will drive procedures to enhance segregation of duties, physical security of payroll information, and reduce off-cycle payrolls. The incumbent will lead the development, implementation and utilization of payroll best practices, delivering high service levels, managing projects, engaging with the business, driving change, and analyzing emerging trends to enable the University to deliver its mission. They are expected to be a subject matter expert on regulatory and contractual obligations in payroll with an emphasis on managing risk and maintaining a strong control environment.

The role addresses payroll issues under tight deadlines, including technical interpretation of legislation, financial reconciliations, and providing expert advice to the University community. Through close interaction with end-users and a focus on customer service, this position significantly impacts departments by influencing changes to operations, processes and procedures.

ORGANIZATIONAL STATUS

Reporting to the Director, Payroll, the Manager, Control and Operations is a key role for internal controls and governance over the payroll function. This role provides supervisory and leadership responsibility for the Team Leads. The Manager also supports the Director in representing the University and leading interactions with audits, banks, government and other external stakeholders. The Manager will liaise with senior faculty, staff, and teams within Finance, Tax, Risk Management and Human Resources.

WORK PERFORMED

• Lead the Payroll and Benefits team, set priorities, and provide guidance, coaching, training, performance management and evaluation, and career development for the team.
• Provide overall leadership and direction to team members, ensuring segregation of duties between each Team Lead and aligning skills with operations.
• Lead and manage the payroll and benefits team leads and the payroll team to ensure project timelines and service levels are met across the campus. Ensure compliance with statutory, contractual, and fiscal payroll and benefits obligations.
• Oversee the maintenance of accounting records, financial statements and reports. Develop proactive reports and analysis tools to minimize errors and identify issues; investigate and resolve problems and implement changes as needed.
• Identify process improvement opportunities and lead the implementation of new payroll processes and systems.
• Perform business process reviews, re-engineering and development of new processes to increase efficiency and effectiveness.
• Participate in needs analysis for the new Finance / HR system renewal project and implement recommendations for process and system improvements.
• Oversee the implementation of payroll and benefits project deliverables using project management skills.
• Develop and implement risk controls to ensure compliance with payroll legislation at federal and provincial levels.
• Review changes to each payroll for verification, sign-off of reconciliations, and control oversight on payment distributions to identify erroneous transactions and headcount changes.
• Ensure adequate policies, procedures and financial controls are in place, maintained, and monitored. Proactively correct inconsistencies or non-compliance.
• Review and approve source deduction remittances via online tax payment portal for UBC and all Paymaster groups.
• Accountable for the security and maintenance of all HR, employee data and payment records to support accounting, legal and regulatory requirements (e.g., FIPPA and BC privacy law).
• Provide leadership, interpretation and guidance on payroll policies and procedures. Develop and facilitate training to enable customers to operate within systems, policies and procedures.
• Responsible for payroll financial and management reporting to internal stakeholders, governmental and regulatory bodies, and outside agencies.
• Report on system performance, identify the origin of issues, and implement countermeasures to ensure system functionality and controls.
• Ensure payroll system implementations and upgrades are conducted properly, including reporting requirements, internal controls, business process mapping and documentation.
• Act as the subject matter expert during collective bargaining to ensure payroll regulations and external regulatory requirements are compliant.
• Provide interpretations of current agreements and policies on complex employee relations issues; recommend strategies to support effective negotiations.
• Develop and exemplify an excellent customer service culture for faculty, staff, and students.
• Design and maintain managerial and operational metrics to define performance, opportunities, and progress toward goals.
• Liaise with Financial Operations Leadership and with Finance, Tax, Risk, HR, Systems and Operations portfolios, as well as with senior faculty, staff and partners internal and external to the University.
• Encourage the team’s ability for innovative problem solving through collaboration with payroll team members and internal customers.
• Maintain knowledge of and compliance with all applicable wage laws and regulations at federal, provincial and local levels.
• Interface with the payroll service vendor / systems team to resolve problems and address operational issues.
• Perform periodic internal audits of payroll areas and coordinate with internal and external auditors.
• Analyze and audit T4 / T4a and other reconciliations for bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly balance and fund transfers.
• Maintain payroll guidelines and monitor compliance with policies, procedures and legislation.
• Manage payroll staff performance, including counseling, development plans, and performance appraisals.
• Carry out all other duties and projects related to the qualifications and requirements of the position as assigned by the Director, Payroll.

CONSEQUENCE OF ERROR

The Manager, Payroll Operations & Control plays a critical role in the successful operation and improvement of payroll services for a wide range of client groups, including academic and administrative units. The role ensures excellent customer service, system support, and service level agreements to achieve mandates and strategic objectives. Errors could lead to significant risks and inaccuracies in the University’s records, potentially affecting financial statements, fines, or employee payroll / benefits eligibility. Decisions and recommendations will significantly affect departmental standards and operations.

SUPERVISION RECEIVED

Works autonomously under broad directives from the Director, Payroll. Performance is reviewed for soundness of judgement, leadership, and attainment of objectives.

SUPERVISION GIVEN

This position provides functional leadership, supervision and expertise to approximately 25 Management & Professional and CUPE 2950 staff through Team Leads, with authority to hire, train, evaluate, discipline and terminate staff within the payroll and benefits team.

QUALIFICATIONS

Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including those in conflict with ones own. Demonstrates a commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline and completion of the CPA Accounting program (CA, CGA or CMA) preferred.

Completion of the Canadian Certified Payroll Manager Certification (CPM).

Minimum of 8 years of experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Prior experience as a subject matter expert in Payroll for a large, complex organization and people management experience related to hiring, training, evaluating, disciplining, and terminating staff.

Knowledge of working in an environment with collective agreements, applicable legislation and regulations.

Comprehensive knowledge of accounting principles including internal control and audit requirements; ability to administer and provide leadership to others.

Thorough knowledge of information systems relevant to payroll, preferably including Workday.

Ability to lead new system implementations and interfaces.

In-depth knowledge and experience of payroll processing for both domestic and international employees.

Broad knowledge of payroll and benefits practices and related business processes.

Ability to work under pressure with changing priorities and to meet deadlines.

Ability to maintain accuracy and attention to detail.

Proven ability to ensure uniform and consistent payroll policies, practices and procedures.

Strong commitment to team building and customer service excellence.

Strong written and oral communication skills.

Positive attitude and ability to work in a dynamic, fast-paced environment while managing and developing staff.

Excellent organizational and problem-solving skills.

Ability to solicit ideas from others to achieve defined business outcomes.