Manager, Payroll

Pearson; United States; On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

United States Digital Space LLC is seeking a Manager, Payroll to lead U.S. payroll operations across multiple pay groups and jurisdictions. You will oversee a distributed team and ensure accurate, compliant, on-time payroll delivery while partnering with HR, Finance, Tax, Treasury, and Technology.

You will balance operational excellence with transformation—driving automation, data-driven improvements, and scalable processes to elevate the employee experience in a complex, global environment.

Qualifications

• 5 - 8 years of leadership experience (organizational, technological, people and vendor management skills).
• 5 years of strong and continuous experience managing U.S. payroll operations, including multi-state and large enterprise environments.
• Tax and time and attendance background also needed.
• A track record of leading service delivery, operations, or shared services teams

Responsibilities

• End-to-end payroll delivery: Ensure payroll is executed accurately, compliantly, and on time across complex U.S. payroll operations
• Service performance and experience: Monitor quality and efficiency while continuously improving the employee and stakeholder experience
• Team leadership and capability: Lead, coach, and develop a geographically distributed payroll team, building resilience and shared accountability
• Stakeholder partnership: Serve as a trusted partner to HR, Finance, Tax, Treasury, and Technology, driving alignment and issue resolution
• Risk and compliance: Identify operational risks, strengthen controls, and support audit and regulatory requirements
• Continuous improvement and transformation: Drive standardization, automation, and data-driven enhancements to improve scalability and performance

Skills

Payroll leadership

US payroll operations

Stakeholder management

Data-driven problem solving

Job description

Job Title: Manager, PayrollDescription:: In this role, you will lead end-to-end U.S. payroll operations within a global, complex environment—ensuring accurate, compliant, and efficient delivery while continuously elevating the employee experience. You’ll partner across HR, Finance, Tax, and Technology to drive operational excellence and modernize payroll through data, automation, and scalable processes.

The RoleAs Manager, Payroll, you will oversee the delivery of U.S. payroll services across multiple pay groups and jurisdictions, leading a distributed team and ensuring a seamless, compliant payroll experience for employees.

This is a role for someone who is energized by both operational excellence and transformation—you’ll balance running a high-performing payroll function while identifying opportunities to improve, automate, and scale.

In your first six months, you’ll build strong stakeholder partnerships, stabilize and optimize service delivery, and identify key improvement opportunities that enhance accuracy, efficiency, and employee experience.

What sets this role apart is the opportunity to help shape the future of payroll operations—leveraging data, technology, and process innovation to build a more modern, resilient, and employee-centric payroll function.

What You’ll Own

• End-to-end payroll delivery: Ensure payroll is executed accurately, compliantly, and on time across complex U.S. payroll operations
• Service performance and experience: Monitor quality and efficiency while continuously improving the employee and stakeholder experience
• Team leadership and capability: Lead, coach, and develop a geographically distributed payroll team, building resilience and shared accountability
• Stakeholder partnership: Serve as a trusted partner to HR, Finance, Tax, Treasury, and Technology, driving alignment and issue resolution
• Risk and compliance: Identify operational risks, strengthen controls, and support audit and regulatory requirements
• Continuous improvement and transformation: Drive standardization, automation, and data-driven enhancements to improve scalability and performance

About You

You bring deep payroll expertise and a passion for delivering high-quality, compliant payroll services in a complex environment.

You likely have:

• 5 - 8 years of leadership experience (organizational, technological, people and vendor management skills)
• 5 years of strong and continuous experience managing U.S. payroll operations, including multi-state and large enterprise environments.
• Tax and time and attendance background also needed.
• A track record of leading service delivery, operations, or shared services teams
• Deep knowledge of payroll regulations and operational controls
• Experience working with outsourced providers and enterprise payroll systems

Beyond your experience, you are someone who:

• Takes ownership and drives accountability for outcomes
• Builds strong, collaborative relationships across functions
• Uses data and insights to solve problems and improve performance
• Thrives in environments that balance operational execution with continuous improvement and change
• Leads and develops teams with a focus on growth, resilience, and performance

What You’ll Get

• The opportunity to lead a critical function that directly impacts employee experience at scale
• Exposure to a complex, global operating environment with diverse stakeholders
• The chance to shape and modernize payroll operations through automation and innovation
• Opportunities to grow your leadership capability while driving meaningful operational improvements
• A role that connects operational excellence with long-term transformation and business impact