Equity Compensation Lead: Ops & Compliance

LevelUP HCS; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 104,000 - 173,000; Full time

Job summary

LevelUP HCS is seeking a Manager, Equity Compensation to oversee the administration and ongoing operations of its equity compensation programs. The role collaborates with Payroll, HRIS, Finance, and external vendors to manage the full equity lifecycle in a hybrid setup between Lake Forest, IL and Downtown Chicago.

You will drive data integrity, controls, audits, and reporting, while identifying automation opportunities and coaching team members.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of equity compensation administration experience within a public company, equity plan provider, major consulting/advisory firm, or similar environment.
• Strong knowledge of RSUs, PSUs, stock options, and equity plan administration.
• Solid understanding of equity-related tax, payroll, accounting, and regulatory requirements.
• Experience with integrations between stock plan systems, HRIS, and Payroll.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the administration of equity compensation programs, including grants, vesting and releases, exercises, cancellations, adjustments, and other equity transactions.
• Ensure equity activity is accurate, timely, and compliant with applicable company policies, tax requirements, and regulatory standards.
• Manage the relationship with the external stock plan administrator, including service levels, issue resolution, testing, escalations, and system enhancements.
• Oversee data integrations between the equity platform, HRIS, and Payroll, ensuring employee, award, transaction, and tax information is accurate and complete.
• Partner with Payroll to support equity-related tax withholding, reporting, processing, and applicable deposit requirements.
• Investigate and resolve discrepancies between equity, HRIS, and payroll data while improving reconciliation processes.
• Partner with Accounting, Controllership, SOX, Executive Compensation, and other stakeholders on controls, reporting, compliance, and audit activities.
• Maintain documentation and support internal and external audits related to equity compensation.
• Develop reporting and dashboards that provide visibility into equity activity, share utilization, dividend accruals, and other key program metrics.
• Identify opportunities to automate manual processes, improve reconciliations, strengthen controls, and enhance system integrations.
• Support employee and executive communications by developing educational materials, FAQs, enrollment information, and other equity-related resources.
• Provide leadership and coaching to team members while serving as a subject matter expert for equity compensation.
• Evaluate opportunities to improve the overall efficiency, scalability, and participant experience of the equity compensation function.

Skills

RSUs, PSUs, stock options

Internal controls

Audit readiness

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business, or a related field

Tools

Stock plan administration platforms

Job description

LevelUP HCS is seeking a Manager, Equity Compensation to oversee the administration and ongoing operations of its equity compensation programs. The role collaborates with Payroll, HRIS, Finance, and external vendors to manage the full equity lifecycle in a hybrid setup between Lake Forest, IL and Downtown Chicago.

You will drive data integrity, controls, audits, and reporting, while identifying automation opportunities and coaching team members.