Senior Director, Payroll

McKesson Corporation; Richmond (VA); Hybrid; USD 141,800 - 236,300; Full time

Job summary

McKesson is seeking a Senior Director, Payroll in Richmond, VA to lead the newly independent payroll function, overseeing Dayforce implementation and outsourced processing partners. This role requires seasoned leadership, deep governance knowledge, and an ability to build a payroll organization from the ground up.

The ideal candidate has 13+ years in payroll leadership, strong SOX experience, and a proven track record in complex multi-state environments with a hands-on, strategic mindset.

Qualifications

• 13+ years of progressive payroll leadership in a large, multi-state org.
• Public company experience or strong SOX exposure required.
• Experience driving payroll system implementations (Dayforce preferred).

Responsibilities

• Design and execute payroll strategy for the independent company, ensuring accuracy and scalability.
• Build and lead the payroll team; manage structure, responsibilities, and performance.
• Oversee end-to-end payroll operations for U.S. employees across states.
• Partner with Accounting on accruals, GL reconciliations, and SOX controls.

Skills

Payroll leadership

Multi-state payroll

SOX compliance

Stakeholder management

Communication

Systems integration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, HR, or Business

CPP or related certification

Tools

Dayforce

Job description

McKesson is an impact-driven, Fortune 10 company that touches virtually every aspect of healthcare. We are known for delivering insights, products, and services that make quality care more accessible and affordable. Here, we focus on the health, happiness, and well-being of you and those we serve - we care.

What you do at McKesson matters. We foster a culture where you can grow, make an impact, and are empowered to bring new ideas. Together, we thrive as we shape the future of health for patients, our communities, and our people. If you want to be part of tomorrow's health today, we want to hear from you.

Sr. Director, Payroll

Location: Richmond, VA, USA - 9954 Mayland Drive

Hybrid

The Opportunity

The Senior Director of Payroll will serve as the strategic and operational leader for all payroll-related activities for McKesson Medical‑Surgical. This role is responsible for designing, building, and leading the payroll function as the organization completes its separation from McKesson. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in payroll governance, system implementations, controls, and service delivery in a complex, multi‑state enterprise environment.

This leader will oversee the implementation of Dayforce as the company's HCM and manage relationships with outsourced payroll processing partners. They will establish a best‑in‑class payroll operating model built on compliance, operational excellence, and employee experience. The role requires a hands‑on executive who excels in ambiguity and is energized by building functions from the ground up.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Design and execute the overall payroll strategy for the newly independent company, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and scalability.
• Build and lead the payroll team, including hiring, structure, responsibilities, and performance management.
• Serve as a key leader in the organization's separation activities, leading payroll carve‑out planning, execution, and stabilization.

Operational Ownership

• Oversee end‑to‑end payroll operations for all U.S. employees in a multi‑state environment, ensuring timely and accurate processing.
• Direct management of an outsourced payroll processing model; establish strong SLAs, KPIs, and governance routines with external partners.
• Partner closely with Accounting on critical areas including payroll‑related accruals, GL reconciliations, journal entries, and compliance with SOX controls.

Technology & Integration

• Lead the payroll workstream in the implementation of Dayforce, including system configuration, testing, integration, and go‑live.
• Partner with HR, IT, Finance, and external consultants to ensure successful HCM deployment and stable post‑implementation operations.
• Drive automation and process optimization through system capabilities and thoughtful design.

Compliance & Controls

• Ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local wage and hour laws, tax requirements, and reporting obligations.
• Develop and maintain internal controls required for a public company environment; partner closely with Internal Audit and external auditors.
• Manage relationships with regulatory agencies, tax authorities, and jurisdictional entities as needed.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration

• Partner with HR/Total Rewards, Accounting, Benefits, Legal, and external advisors to support business needs and corporate initiatives.
• Provide payroll insights for financial planning, forecasting, and analysis.
• Act as an escalation point for complex payroll matters, employee issues, or executive inquiries.

Leadership & Culture

• Build an engaged, high‑performing team and foster a culture of accountability, service, and continuous improvement.
• Communicate effectively with senior leadership, offering clear perspectives, data‑driven insights, and strategic recommendations.

Minimum Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent experience. Typically requires 13+ years of professional experience and 6+ years of diversified leadership, planning, communication, organization, and people motivation skills (or equivalent experience).

Key Qualifications

• 13+ years of progressive payroll leadership experience in a large, complex, multi‑state organization.
• Prior experience leading payroll for a public company or an organization with strong SOX requirements.
• Deep knowledge of federal, state, and local payroll regulations.
• Experience leading or significantly contributing to an HCM or payroll system implementation, ideally Dayforce.
• Proven success managing outsourced payroll service models.
• Strong technical acumen, including payroll accounting, systems integration, and internal controls.
• Exceptional leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.

Preferred

• Experience in corporate separations, carve‑outs, or standing up new functions.
• Prior responsibility for both strategic leadership and hands‑on operational execution.

Education/Certifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, HR, Business, or related field.
• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or related certification.

About Medical‑Surgical

McKesson Medical‑Surgical (MMS) is a subsidiary and publicly reported segment of the McKesson Corporation. MMS distributes medical‑surgical supplies, pharmaceuticals, diagnostic equipment and supplies to virtually every type of healthcare setting and provider outside of the traditional hospital. These markets - often referred to as Alternate Care or Non‑Acute Care - include physician offices, surgery centers, long‑term care providers, laboratories, home health and hospice agencies, health systems, government facilities, and online marketplaces and retailers.

Alternate Care markets are growing rapidly and MMS is proud to be a leader in this space. With a team of approximately 8,000 employees, a network of 15 distribution centers and approximately 900 delivery vehicles, we partner with more than 2,200 leading manufacturers and serve over 200,000 customer accounts across the U.S. Our catalog includes more than 280,000 SKUs of branded and private‑label medical‑surgical products - from bandages to specialty pharmaceuticals and COVID‑19 tests.

Our Base Pay Range for this position

$141,800 - $236,300

Equal Employment Opportunity

McKesson provides equal employment opportunities to applicants and employees, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, age, genetic information, or any other legally protected category. For additional information on McKesson's full Equal Employment Opportunity policies, visit our Equal Employment Opportunity page.

McKesson is committed to being an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and offers opportunities to all job seekers with disabilities. For reasonable accommodations, please contact [e-mail] (U.S.) or [e-mail] (Canada). Resumes or CVs sent to these email boxes will not be accepted.