Director, Payroll Americas

BNY Mellon; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

BNY Mellon in Pittsburgh seeks a Director, Payroll Americas to lead payroll delivery across the United States, Canada and Latin America, with end-to-end accountability for accurate, timely, compliant payroll operations.

You will drive automation, AI and modern tech, manage in-house U.S. payroll multi-state and oversee outsourced providers internationally, building strong governance and a high-performing team.

Qualifications

• 15+ years progressive payroll experience with leadership of large U.S. payroll operations.
• CPP or similar qualification preferred.
• Experience operating in-house U.S. payroll with multi-state tax and compliance knowledge.
• Experience leading multi-country payroll operations including Canada and Latin America.
• Experience managing outsourced payroll providers with governance and KPIs.
• Strong payroll accounting, reconciliations, controls and audit knowledge.
• Interest in applying AI and automation to modernize payroll.
• Proven people leadership and change management capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end payroll operations across the Americas, ensuring accuracy and compliance.
• Govern in-house U.S. payroll including multi-state, federal, state and local taxation, deductions and benefits.
• Oversee outsourced providers across Canada and Latin America with KPI-driven governance.
• Build capability across a dispersed payroll organization through development and collaboration.
• Partner with People, Technology, Legal and CFO teams to resolve complex payroll matters.
• Drive simplification, standardization and automation across payroll processes.
• Champion payroll transformation using automation and emerging technologies.

Skills

Payroll leadership

Stakeholder management

Risk management

Automation & AI focus

People leadership

Change management

Communication skills

Education

CPP certification

Tools

Oracle Payroll

Job description

We're seeking a future team member for the role of Director, Payroll Americas to join our Payroll team. This role is located in Pittsburgh.

The Payroll Americas Director will lead payroll delivery across the United States, Canada and Latin America, with end-to-end accountability for accurate, timely, compliant and well-controlled payroll operations across the region.

This role requires an experienced payroll leader who can successfully operate across different delivery models, leading a complex, multi-state U.S. payroll delivered in-house using Oracle Payroll, while providing strong governance and vendor oversight for outsourced payroll services across Canada and Latin America.

The successful candidate will combine deep payroll expertise with strong people leadership, risk management and a continuous improvement mindset, while championing the use of automation, AI and emerging technologies to modernize payroll execution.

In this role, you'll make an impact in the following ways:

• Lead end-to-end payroll operations across the Americas, ensuring accurate, timely and compliant payroll delivery.
• Provide leadership and governance of the in-house U.S. payroll, including complex multi-state payroll, federal, state and local taxation, deductions, garnishments, benefits, year-end processing and regulatory requirements.
• Maintain a strong payroll control environment, proactively identifying and addressing operational, financial and compliance risks.
• Oversee outsourced payroll providers across Canada and Latin America, driving performance through effective governance, service levels, KPIs and issue management.
• Lead, develop and build capability across a geographically dispersed payroll organization, creating a culture of accountability, collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Partner closely with People teams, Technology, Legal, and Office of CFO teams including Tax, Accounting and Treasury, among other stakeholders to resolve complex payroll matters and deliver strategic priorities.
• Drive simplification, standardization and automation across payroll processes to improve efficiency, accuracy and scalability.
• Champion payroll transformation through automation, AI and emerging technologies, identifying opportunities to strengthen controls, reduce operational risk and enhance the employee experience.
• Lead payroll technology, transformation and change initiatives while maintaining operational stability and effective controls.
• Provide senior leadership with clear visibility of payroll performance, risks, issues and improvement priorities.

To be successful in this role, we're seeking the following:

• 12-15+ years progressive payroll experience, including leadership of large, complex, multi-state U.S. payroll operations.
• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or similar qualification preferred
• Demonstrated experience operating an in-house U.S. payroll model, with strong knowledge of U.S. payroll taxation, compliance, controls and year-end requirements.
• Experience using Oracle Payroll preferred
• Experience leading multi-country payroll operations, ideally including Canada and Latin America.
• Proven experience managing outsourced payroll providers, including service performance, governance, escalations and continuous improvement.
• Strong understanding of payroll accounting, reconciliations, controls, audit requirements and operational risk.
• Strong interest in the practical application of AI and emerging technologies to modernize payroll operations, improve controls and create operational efficiencies.
• Strong people leadership with the ability to develop high-performing teams and lead through change.
• Excellent communication, judgment and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to influence effectively across a complex global organization.

What Success Looks Like

The successful Payroll Americas Director will build a stable, controlled and scalable payroll operation, combining strong in-house U.S. payroll capability with effective vendor governance across Canada and Latin America.

They will be a forward-looking payroll leader who balances operational excellence and strong risk management with transformation, using automation, AI and emerging technologies to simplify processes, strengthen controls, increase efficiency and continually improve the payroll experience.