Senior Manager, Payroll Accounting

EdCast; Mountain View (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Cornerstone OnDemand is seeking a Senior Manager, Payroll Accounting to lead a team of 5 payroll accountants across multiple global sites. The role oversees end-to-end payroll accounting, accruals, balance sheet reconciliations, and flux analysis while partnering with payroll processing to resolve issues and drive automation.

Ideal candidates will have 8+ years in payroll accounting within a multinational setup, strong leadership, and advanced knowledge of global payroll concepts across the US,

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business or Finance.
• 8+ years of payroll accounting and close/reconciliation experience.
• Experience leading teams in a global multi-entity organization.
• Strong knowledge of payroll concepts across multiple countries.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of payroll accountants across 27 countries.
• Manage payroll postings, accruals, balance sheet reconciliations, and variance analysis.
• Ensure timely month-end close and audit readiness.
• Drive automation to improve accuracy and efficiency.
• Collaborate with Payroll Processing, FP&A, IT and Talent teams.
• Support internal and external payroll and financial audits.

Job description

Job Title: Senior Manager, Payroll Accounting

Location: Costa Rica

Company Overview:

Cornerstone OnDemand (CSOD) is at a critically important juncture in the company’s lifecycle. CSOD is the world’s largest and most successful stand-alone unified Talent Management company and one of the world’s largest SaaS companies. The company is entering a phase of achieving scale and global expansion through continued relentless execution.

Job Summary:

The Senior Manager, Payroll Accounting will lead a team of 5 payroll accountants (based in Costa Rica India) responsible for end-to-end payroll accounting across 27 countries, supporting 3,000+ employees (“Cornerstars”). This role owns payroll accounting close activities (postings and accruals), monthly balance sheet reconciliations, and entity-level payroll variance/flux analysis. You will partner closely with Payroll Processing to resolve issues quickly and drive automation to improve accuracy, controls and close efficiency.

Key Responsibilities:

• Team Management : Lead, coach, and develop a team of 5 payroll accounting team members; set priorities, manage capacity, and ensure high-quality outputs across all deliverables


• Payroll accounting accruals (global scope): Oversee payroll postings and ensure accurate accounting for payroll-related accruals including pensions, bonuses (various plans), and restructuring-related items across 27 countries.


• Month-end close execution: Ensure all payroll accounting entries and related deliverables are completed accurately and on time to meet month-end deadlines.


• Entity-level analysis flux explanations: Own the entity-level payroll analysis process; support the team in producing balance sheet and income statement flux/variance analysis used by senior finance leadership to understand and explain movements


• Balance sheet reconciliations: Lead the monthly reconciliation process for payroll-related balance sheet accounts, ensuring completeness, accuracy, and appropriate documentation and controls


• Cross-functional issue resolution: Partner with Payroll Processing teams to investigate and resolve payroll accounting questions and discrepancies as they arise, driving timely resolution and clear communication


• Automation process improvement: Design and implement automation and standardization initiatives for payroll accounting (e.g., improving data flows from ADP/ActivePay into Oracle, templates, controls, and reconciliations) to reduce manual effort and strengthen accuracy and compliance.


• Build relationships: Partner with Talent teams, FP A IT to resolve queries, provide intelligent analysis and develop future improvements


• Support internal and external payroll and financial audits : Partner with Accounting and statutory accountants to prepare accurate payroll records, reconciliations and supporting documentation, responding promptly to auditor queries, and ensuring the timely resolution of audit findings.

Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in business, Finance, or a related field.


• Registered Private Accountant (CPI)


• Experience: 8+ years of progressive experience in payroll accounting, accounting operations, controllership, or close/reconciliation roles within a multi-entity global organization


• Proven experience leading teams (people management and/or strong functional leadership)


• Experience within a multinational, Shared Service Centre (SSC), Global Business Services (GBS) or BPO environment strongly preferred.

Skills:

• Strong analytical skills with demonstrated ability to deliver clear, audit-ready reconciliations and variance explanations


• Ability to operate effectively under month-end deadlines and coordinate across time zones and stakeholders.


• Ability to lead and motivate a team.


• Interpersonal skills strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities.


• Strong knowledge of payroll accounting concepts (wages, taxes, pensions, bonus accruals, and related balance sheet accounts) across multiple countries (US, India, France and Costa Rica are a must)


• Hands-on experience with Oracle, FloQast and payroll systems such as ADP and/or ActivePay (or similar), including leveraging system outputs for journal entries, reconciliations, and analysis


• Strong knowledge of MS office especially Excel, PowerPoint Outlook.


• Advanced English and good written and verbal communication skills to interact upward and cross functionally are a must


• Must be comfortable operating in a fast-paced global organisation undergoing significant transformation.


• Experience of technology-enabled process improvement


• Extra dose of awesome if you have…