Sr. Payroll Manager

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; North Carolina; On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in Durham, NC is seeking a hands-on Senior Payroll Manager with deep Workday Payroll experience to lead and modernize global payroll operations. You will own end-to-end U.S.

and international payroll processes, manage external providers, and drive audits and reconciliations. The role emphasizes automation, AI, and scalable workflows to reduce manual touchpoints while maintaining accuracy and compliance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 10+ years of payroll experience for U.S. and international operations.
• Workday Payroll expertise with audit, troubleshooting, and optimization.
• Experience managing outsourced payroll providers and vendor accountability.
• Strong knowledge of payroll accounting, tax, SOX controls, and compliance.
• CPP or equivalent certification preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end payroll operations, including timesheet oversight, payroll audits, discrepancy resolution, payroll processing, funding coordination, and final payroll approval activities.
• Lead payroll delivery across U.S. and international locations, manage external payroll providers, and coordinate effectively with internal stakeholders across multiple countries.
• Oversee payroll-related employee inquiries and complex pay scenarios while ensuring timely resolution and strong service levels.
• Lead payroll audits, reconciliations, SOX control execution, evidence retention, and responses to internal and external audit requests.
• Monitor changes in payroll regulations and tax requirements to maintain compliance and operational readiness.
• Partner closely with Finance on payroll funding, payroll accounting, variance analysis, payroll journal entries, accruals, reconciliations, and month-end close activities.
• Own payroll-related benefit deduction reconciliations and partner with HR, Finance, and vendors to resolve discrepancies and strengthen upstream and downstream processes.
• Scrutinize payroll results, reports, interfaces, and reconciliations; identify anomalies and patterns; question unexpected results; and investigate issues through root cause before they impact employees, financial reporting, or compliance.
• Develop and execute the payroll roadmap for the organization, identifying opportunities to improve compliance, operational efficiency, and employee experience.
• Evaluate existing processes, eliminate unnecessary manual effort, standardize workflows, and implement sustainable process improvements.
• Use deep Workday Payroll expertise to improve business processes, reporting, auditing, integrations, data validation, and overall utilization of the platform.
• Identify practical opportunities to incorporate AI, automation, and emerging tools into payroll operations so the function continues to evolve and is not a late adopter of meaningful advancements.
• Establish, maintain, and continuously improve payroll policies, procedures, controls, governance practices, process documentation, and cross-training materials.
• Own payroll reporting, data validation, compliance monitoring, and ad hoc analysis.
• Build strong working relationships with HR, Finance, Legal, external providers, and other business partners to resolve issues and deliver sustainable solutions.

Skills

Workday Payroll

Payroll Audits

Outsourced Payroll

SOX Controls

Tax Compliance

Automation

Vendor Management

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Workday

Job description

Company

At BioCryst, we share a deep commitment to improving the lives of people living with hereditary angioedema (HAE) and other rare diseases. We leverage our expertise in structure-guided drug design to develop first-in-class or best-in-class oral small-molecule and injectable protein therapeutics. Our global headquarters is in Durham, North Carolina, we have a regional office in Boston, Massachusetts, and our employees span the globe across sites in multiple countries. We are proud of our culture of engagement and accountability that rewards people for innovative thinking and achievement of key objectives. For more information, please visit our website at www.biocryst.com or follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Job Summary

BioCryst is seeking a hands-on Senior Payroll Manager with deep Workday Payroll experience to independently lead and modernize global payroll operations. This role will own end-to-end U.S. and international payroll processes, oversee a high-volume payroll inquiry function, manage external payroll providers, drive audits and reconciliations, and ensure accurate, compliant, and consistent payroll execution. We are looking for a builder and future-focused thinker who will evaluate current processes, scrutinize results, identify risks and inefficiencies, and redesign workflows to be more scalable, automated, and resilient. The ideal candidate has exceptional attention to detail, a naturally curious and investigative mindset, and the ability to identify and resolve issues before they impact employees. This individual will leverage Workday, automation, AI, and emerging technologies to reduce manual touchpoints, strengthen controls, and improve overall operational effectiveness.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end payroll operations, including timesheet oversight, payroll audits, discrepancy resolution, payroll processing, funding coordination, and final payroll approval activities.
• Lead payroll delivery across U.S. and international locations, manage external payroll providers, and coordinate effectively with internal stakeholders across multiple countries.
• Oversee payroll-related employee inquiries and complex pay scenarios while ensuring timely resolution and strong service levels.
• Lead payroll audits, reconciliations, SOX control execution, evidence retention, and responses to internal and external audit requests.
• Monitor changes in payroll regulations and tax requirements to maintain compliance and operational readiness.
• Partner closely with Finance on payroll funding, payroll accounting, variance analysis, payroll journal entries, accruals, reconciliations, and month-end close activities.
• Own payroll-related benefit deduction reconciliations and partner with HR, Finance, and vendors to resolve discrepancies and strengthen upstream and downstream processes.
• Scrutinize payroll results, reports, interfaces, and reconciliations; identify anomalies and patterns; question unexpected results; and investigate issues through root cause before they impact employees, financial reporting, or compliance.
• Develop and execute the payroll roadmap for the organization, identifying opportunities to improve compliance, operational efficiency, and employee experience.
• Evaluate existing processes, eliminate unnecessary manual effort, standardize workflows, and implement sustainable process improvements.
• Use deep Workday Payroll expertise to improve business processes, reporting, auditing, integrations, data validation, and overall utilization of the platform.
• Identify practical opportunities to incorporate AI, automation, and emerging tools into payroll operations so the function continues to evolve and is not a late adopter of meaningful advancements.
• Establish, maintain, and continuously improve payroll policies, procedures, controls, governance practices, process documentation, and cross-training materials.
• Own payroll reporting, data validation, compliance monitoring, and ad hoc analysis.
• Build strong working relationships with HR, Finance, Legal, external providers, and other business partners to resolve issues and deliver sustainable solutions.

Experience & Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 10+ years of payroll experience supporting U.S. and international payroll operations.
• Workday Payroll experience is required, with demonstrated ability to audit, troubleshoot, optimize, and improve payroll processes within the platform.
• Experience managing outsourced payroll providers and holding vendors accountable for quality, timeliness, issue resolution, and service delivery.
• Strong knowledge of payroll accounting, reconciliations, payroll tax, SOX controls, audit requirements, and compliance obligations.
• Demonstrated success leading payroll operations, process redesign, automation, system implementations, and cross-functional transformation initiatives.
• Exceptional attention to detail with strong analytical, problem-solving, and research skills.
• Demonstrated curiosity and willingness to investigate results that appear inconsistent or unexpected.
• CPP or equivalent payroll certification is preferred.

Equal Opportunity Employer & Protected Veterans / Individuals with Disabilities

BioCryst is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment opportunities without regard to age, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, Veterans status, disability and/or other protected class characteristics. Additionally, BioCryst is committed to achieving its business objectives in compliance with all federal, state and local law. Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.

Culture

Passionate. Smart. Motivated. We’re all these qualities—but most importantly, we’re committed to making a difference in the lives of those living with hereditary angioedema (HAE) and other rare diseases. If you’re someone who turns challenges into triumphs and aims to achieve beyond what you think is possible, we’re waiting for you. Culture is the fabric that binds us together and makes our company a special place to work. We are powered by our people, and every employee can provide valuable input on how we can achieve our goals through a culture of accountability. Our bold thinking comes from our “people-first” perspective, where we are united across fronts to do the right thing for patients, without fear of failure—but with embracing the learnings gleaned from setbacks that fuel our self-awareness. We value ownership, integrity, and the ability to laugh and learn from our mistakes. We are proud of our ability to reward innovative thinking and grow from personal and professional discovery.