Senior Payroll Operations Leader

Mariner Finance; White Marsh (MD); On-site; USD 94,000 - 134,000; Full time

Job summary

Mariner Finance, headquartered in Baltimore, MD, seeks an experienced Payroll Operations Lead to manage end-to-end payroll across multiple states. You will ensure timely, accurate processing, regulatory compliance, and strong controls while partnering with HR, Finance, and Legal to support business goals.

The role emphasizes leadership, process improvement, and cross-functional collaboration within a fast-paced financial services environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required or four years of equivalent experience.
• Six+ years in progressive payroll roles, multi-state preferred.
• Experience with large workforces (1,500+ employees) and high accuracy.
• Hands-on payroll operations leadership and team management.
• Strong knowledge of payroll laws, tax regulations, and compliance.

Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end payroll function, executing full-cycle multi-state processing for biweekly payrolls.
• Own payroll operations: calculating, balancing, approving, and confirming payroll each cycle.
• Administer and maintain payroll systems, testing, upgrades, and issue resolution.
• Develop and improve payroll processes and internal controls for efficiency and compliance.
• Audit payroll transactions and resolve discrepancies promptly.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local payroll laws and reporting.
• Lead audits and ensure audit readiness with internal and external stakeholders.
• Work with HR, Finance, Legal, and vendors to optimize payroll operations.

Skills

Payroll leadership

Regulatory compliance

Multi-state payroll

Audits & controls

Analytical skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR Management, Finance, Accounting, or related field

Tools

Dayforce

UKG

HRIS

Microsoft Office

Job description

Mariner Finance, headquartered in Baltimore, MD, seeks an experienced Payroll Operations Lead to manage end-to-end payroll across multiple states. You will ensure timely, accurate processing, regulatory compliance, and strong controls while partnering with HR, Finance, and Legal to support business goals.

The role emphasizes leadership, process improvement, and cross-functional collaboration within a fast-paced financial services environment.