VP, North America Payroll Transformation

State Street; Quincy (MA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 189,000; Full time

Job summary

State Street is seeking the Head of North America Payroll, Vice President, to lead end-to-end payroll for the United States and Canada in collaboration with global HR process owners, HR Centers of Excellence, Finance, Tax, Legal, Technology, Risk and third‑party providers.

The role focuses on accurate, timely payroll delivery, a strong control environment, and transforming NA payroll through process redesign, standardization, automation and operating-model improvements, while building trusted

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree with 10-15 years of relevant payroll experience, including leadership responsibility for complex United States and Canadian payroll operations.
• Proven ability to lead and build high-performing teams and cultures within the region and across a global organization.
• Design, implement, and manage a highly effective payroll risk and control environment, including audit support and sustainable remediation.
• Transform payroll operations through process redesign, standardization, automation, technology implementation, vendor change, or operating-model improvement.
• Strong knowledge of US and Canadian payroll operations, payroll tax, statutory reporting, year-end requirements, employee payments, reconciliations, and vendor governance.
• Experience leading complex projects and change initiatives while maintaining payroll continuity, compliance, and stakeholder alignment.
• Accountable for quality, accuracy, timeliness, and control of results, with the judgment and urgency required to manage complex issues.
• Strong leadership, analytical, organizational, communication, change-management, time-management, and prioritization skills.
• Track record of building effective relationships with senior leaders, internal stakeholders, control partners, and third-party providers; Workday experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead all aspects of people management with a focus on fostering an environment where employees are engaged to do their best work.
• Oversee end-to-end payroll delivery for the United States and Canada, including payroll results, reconciliations, funding, employee payments, tax and statutory obligations, year-end activities, and complex exceptions.
• Design, implement, document, and sustain a strong payroll risk and control framework, including preventive and detective controls, segregation of duties, approvals, access governance, reconciliations, exception reporting, evidence retention, and periodic control-effectiveness reviews.
• Lead remediation of control deficiencies, audit findings, compliance gaps, payroll errors, and recurring process failures; identify root causes, establish corrective actions, and expedite material risks promptly.
• Define and execute the North America payroll transformation roadmap, including operating-model redesign, process simplification, standardization, automation, technology enablement, data-quality improvement, and reduction of manual work and key-person dependencies.
• Establish measurable service, accuracy, compliance, control, productivity, and transformation outcomes; regularly report performance, risks, dependencies, and remediation progress to leadership and stakeholders.
• Represent North America on global transformation, governance, merger and acquisition, vendor-transition, system-implementation, and policy initiatives.
• Monitor US and Canadian payroll, tax, employment, and regulatory developments and ensure required operational, system, control, and communication changes are implemented timely.
• Manage third-party payroll and tax providers against contractual obligations, service levels, control expectations, issue-resolution commitments, and transformation objectives.
• Drive technology requirements and lead payroll testing, implementation, integration, and stabilization activities in partnership with HR Technology and other stakeholders.
• Maintain clear process ownership, standard operating procedures, control narratives, payroll calendars, business-continuity plans, cross-training, and governance forums.
• Provide leadership to resolve complex payroll issues and build strong partnerships with HR, Finance, Tax, Legal, Technology, Risk, Internal Audit, employees, and third-party providers.

Skills

Leadership

Payroll expertise

Stakeholder management

Communication

Change management

Time management

Analytical

Workday experience

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Workday

Job description

State Street is seeking the Head of North America Payroll, Vice President, to lead end-to-end payroll for the United States and Canada in collaboration with global HR process owners, HR Centers of Excellence, Finance, Tax, Legal, Technology, Risk and third‑party providers.

The role focuses on accurate, timely payroll delivery, a strong control environment, and transforming NA payroll through process redesign, standardization, automation and operating-model improvements, while building trusted