Workday Payroll Systems Lead

Advantage Solutions; Clayton (MO); On-site; USD 135,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Advantage Solutions in Clayton, MO seeks a Workday Payroll Systems Lead to own end-to-end payroll for multiple entities. You will act as SME for Workday Payroll and Time Tracking, guiding operations, IT, HR, and stakeholders to keep payroll accurate and compliant.

The ideal candidate brings hands-on payroll operations experience, deep Workday configuration knowledge, and strong collaboration across departments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required.
• 5+ years Workday Payroll experience with hands-on configuration.
• Experience with payroll across multi-entity environments.
• Strong knowledge of compliance for US/Canada payroll.

Responsibilities

• Process and support bi-weekly and semi-monthly payrolls for U.S. and Canadian employees across multiple entities.
• Lead Workday Payroll and Time Tracking SME with guidance and support for payroll operations, time entry, calculations, schedules, accruals, and pay-impacting transactions.
• Manage end-to-end payroll process including audits, retroactive processing, off-cycle payments, garnishments, tax updates, balancing, reconciliation, and issue resolution.
• Own Workday Time Tracking configuration and administration including time entry codes, work schedules, pay rules, calculations, validations, and payroll-impacting configurations.
• Partner with Payroll, HR, Operations, and IT to investigate and resolve discrepancies ensuring accurate pay results and policy compliance.
• Escalate complex payroll/time tracking issues and coordinate resolutions with Workday Support and vendors.
• Configure and maintain Workday Payroll components including earnings, deductions, taxes, pay groups, calculations, reporting, and business processes.
• Ensure compliance with US federal/state/local and Canada payroll regulations.
• Support payroll integrations and data interfaces by validating data and coordinating with technical teams.
• Lead testing for Workday releases, updates, and new requirements including planning and validation.
• Develop payroll/Time Tracking documentation and knowledge articles.
• Identify automation opportunities to improve processes and reduce manual effort.

Skills

Workday Payroll

Time Tracking

Multi-entity payroll

Payroll compliance

Workday integrations

Mentoring team

Root-cause analysis

Cross-functional communication

Workday certification(s)

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Workday integrations

Job description

Summary

Workday Payroll Systems Lead

U.S. and Canadian experienced Workday Payroll Systems Lead to serve as the subject matter expert for payroll processing and systems across a large, multi-entity organization. This role owns the end-to-end execution of payroll for multiple legal entities within Workday, while also acting as a technical and functional resource for the broader systems team. Serve as the lead Workday Payroll and Time Tracking Subject Matter Expert (SME). The ideal candidate combines deep Workday Payroll configuration knowledge with hands‑on payroll operations experience, and partners across Payroll, IT, HR, HRIS, and business stakeholders to keep processes running smoothly and evolving with the organization's needs.

Job Will Remain Open Until Filled

Responsibilities

The Company is one of North America’s leading sales and marketing agencies specializing in outsourced sales, merchandising, category management, and marketing services to manufacturers, suppliers, and producers of food products and consumer packaged goods. The Company services a variety of trade channels including grocery, mass merchandise, specialty, convenience, drug, dollar, club, hardware, consumer electronics, and home centers. We bridge the gap between manufacturers and retailers, providing consumers access to the best products available in the marketplace today.

Responsibilities

• Process and support bi-weekly and semi-monthly payrolls for U.S. and Canadian employees, ensuring accurate, compliant, and timely payroll execution across multiple legal entities
• Serve as the lead Workday Payroll and Time Tracking Subject Matter Expert (SME), providing guidance and support for payroll operations, time entry, time calculations, schedules, accruals, and pay‑impacting transactions
• Manage the end-to-end payroll process, including payroll audits, retroactive processing, off‑cycle payments, garnishments, tax updates, payroll balancing, reconciliation, and issue resolution
• Own and support Workday Time Tracking configuration and administration, including time entry codes, work schedules, pay rules, time calculations, premium pay rules, validations, and payroll‑impacting configurations
• Partner with Payroll, HR, Operations, and IT teams to investigate and resolve payroll and time‑related discrepancies, ensuring accurate pay results and compliance with company policies
• Act as the primary escalation point for complex payroll and Time Tracking issues, performing root‑cause analysis and coordinating resolutions with Workday Support, third‑party vendors, and internal stakeholders
• Configure and maintain Workday Payroll components including earnings, deductions, taxes, pay groups, payroll calculations, reporting, accounting configurations, and business processes
• Ensure payroll processes and system configurations comply with applicable U.S. federal, state, local, Canadian federal, and provincial payroll regulations and company policies
• Support payroll‑related integrations and data interfaces by validating inbound and outbound payroll data, monitoring exceptions, and partnering with technical teams to resolve issues
• Lead testing activities for Workday releases, payroll tax updates, Time Tracking enhancements, configuration changes, and new business requirements, including test planning, execution, and validation
• Develop and maintain payroll and Time Tracking documentation, process flows, job aids, testing scripts, and knowledge articles to support operational excellence and knowledge transfer
• Identify opportunities to improve payroll and Time Tracking processes through automation, standardization, reporting, and continuous improvement initiatives designed to reduce manual effort and improve payroll accuracy

Qualifications

• Education Requirements: Bachelor's degree
• Experience Requirements: 4-6 years experience in relevant field
• Travel requirement: No travel requirements

Supervisor Responsibility

Direct Reports: This position does not have supervisory responsibilities for direct reports

Indirect Reports: Does not have direct reports, but may delegate work of others and provide guidance, direction and mentoring to indirect reports

Required Knowledge and Skills

• 5+ years of Workday Payroll experience with hands‑on configuration and end‑to‑end processing
• Demonstrated multi‑entity payroll experience
• Strong functional and technical Workday Payroll knowledge
• Solid grasp of payroll compliance and multi‑state and multi‑entity requirements
• Proven independent troubleshooting ability
• Strong cross‑functional communication skills
• Workday Payroll certification(s)
• Experience with Workday integrations, enterprise interface loads, and reporting
• Experience mentoring team members on Workday
• Background supporting payroll through implementations, onboarding, or mergers and acquisitions
• Workday Time Tracking and Absence Management experience

Environmental & Physical Requirements

Office / Sedentary Requirements: Incumbent must be able to perform the essential functions of the job. Work is performed primarily in an office environment. Typically, requires the ability to sit for extended periods of time (66%+ each day), ability to hear telephone, ability to enter data on a computer and may require the ability to lift up to 10lbs.

Additional Information Regarding Job Duties

Job duties include additional responsibilities as assigned by one’s supervisor or other manager related to the position/department. This job description is meant to describe the general nature and level of work being performed; it is not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required for the position. The Company reserves the right at any time with or without notice to alter or change job responsibilities, reassign or transfer job positions, or assign additional job responsibilities, subject to applicable law. The Company shall provide reasonable accommodations of known disabilities to enable a qualified applicant or employee to apply for employment, perform the essential functions of the job, or enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment as required by law.

Important Information

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of associates so classified. The Company is committed to providing equal opportunity in all employment practices without regard to age, race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, religion, physical or mental disability, or any other category protected by law. As part of this commitment, the Company shall provide reasonable accommodations of known disabilities to enable an applicant or employee to apply for employment, perform the essential functions of the job, or enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment as required by law.