Payroll Specialist

Strategic Advisory Group; Wilmington (NC); On-site; USD 85,000 - 128,000; Full time

Job summary

Strategic Advisory Group in Wilmington, NC is seeking a Payroll Specialist to transform raw financial data into actionable insights for leadership. The role offers a salary range of $85,000 to $128,000 per year and a clear growth track, with a mentor to accelerate Process Improvement.

Ideal candidates bring senior-level contract experience in finance, proficiency with Workday Adaptive Planning, and a disciplined approach to forecasting headcount costs, compensation planning, and KPI reporting.

Qualifications

• Senior payroll/finance experience (5+ years) required.
• Contract role experience at a senior level.
• Ability to deliver craft-focused outcomes in a contract setting.
• Resilience across multiple finance cycles.

Responsibilities

• Translate KPI dashboards into plain language for non-finance leaders.
• Build KPI Reporting model to retire the manual workbook.
• Forecast headcount costs and partner with HR on compensation planning.
• Support due diligence and financial modeling for strategic initiatives.
• Field ad-hoc analysis for CFO needs before deadlines.
• Mentor junior accounting staff and review their work for accuracy.

Skills

Workday Adaptive Planning

Process Improvement

Job description

As a Payroll Specialist based in Wilmington, NC, you will turn raw financial data into clear insights leadership can act on. We offer $85,000 - $128,000, a clear growth track, and a team where your 5 years of experience genuinely move the needle.

Key Responsibilities

• Translate KPI Reporting dashboards into plain language for non-finance leaders
• Build the KPI Reporting model that finally retires the manual workbook
• Forecast headcount costs and partner with HR on compensation planning
• Support due diligence and financial modeling for strategic initiatives
• Field the flexible ad-hoc analysis the CFO needs before Monday
• Mentor junior accounting staff and review their work for accuracy

What You'll Bring

• Strong working knowledge of Workday Adaptive Planning and Process Improvement
• Willingness to commute to Wilmington, NC or work flexibly as needed
• Experience at the senior level inside a contract role
• Comfort being accountable for a craft-focused outcome in a contract role
• Resilience measured across 5 years of finance cycles
• The composure to deliver bad news early and clearly
• Curiosity and a continuous drive to sharpen your finance craft

Strategic Advisory Group grew up alongside its customers, scaling from a single Wilmington room into the finance partner much of NC now trusts. Mistakes get dissected for lessons at Strategic Advisory Group, never weaponized in your next review.

We pair $85,000 - $128,000 with a seasoned mentor, so your Process Improvement sharpens fast while the benefits quietly take care of everything else.

Freshly active this morning, the senior Payroll Specialist role wants candidates now.