Payroll Manager

The North America Payroll/Time Management Lead is responsible for overseeing and optimizing the timekeeping and payroll processing and resources across ESCO’s North American operations. Reporting directly to the ESCO CHRO, this role involves overseeing time and attendance systems, ensuring accurate and timely payroll processing, and providing functional leadership to payroll professionals at the sites and partnering with the UKG Managed Services team who processes the US payrolls. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in payroll management, excellent analytical skills, and strong leadership, influence, and collaboration capabilities.

Key Responsibilities:

• Payroll Processing Oversight: Oversee the US-wide payroll processing activities to ensure timely and accurate payroll disbursements, including regular, overtime, special pay, and year-end payroll activities. Process ESCO Corporate payroll for 39 employees including NEOs and other HCE officers.
• Timekeeping Oversight: Oversee the timekeeping systems to ensure accurate recording of employee work hours, attendance, and leave. Serve as functional lead for new timekeeping deployments and system enhancements and upgrades.
• Compliance and Regulations: Working with UMS and subsidiaries as the central payroll and time management leader point of contact, ensure compliance with federal, state, and local payroll regulations, including tax withholdings and reporting requirements.Special focus on wage and hour regulations in California, where ESCO has a very large employee population at its 5 sites there.
• Functional Leadership: Functionally lead and mentor those local resources who have payroll processing as part of their role. Provide guidance, training, and support to ensure high performance and adherence to best practices. Assess and drive a regionalized approach to payroll responsibilities to yield further synergies.
• Acquisition Integration: Lead payroll analysis and integration into UKG for new acquisitions including testing and employee communications working in tandem with HRIS Data & Analytics Lead, UMS, and other personnel as appropriate.
• System Optimization and Deployments: Continuously evaluate and enhance payroll and time management systems to improve efficiency, accuracy, and user experience. Serve as functional lead for expansions of/updates to payroll and time management system functionality partnering with HRIS, Data & Analytics Lead and subsidiary contact(s).
• International Payroll: Understand and stay current with local ex-US payroll providers and determine if other enhancements, conversions, and/or integrations are warranted. Partner especially closely with Canada payroll resources with increased integration of payroll processes with for example the Employee Stock Purchase Program expansion to Canada.
• Issue Resolution: Timely address and resolve more complex payroll and timekeeping issues, including discrepancies and employee inquiries.
• Reporting and Analysis: Prepare and analyze payroll reports and metrics to support business decisions and ensure financial accuracy leveraging Business Intelligence and other reporting tools.
• Collaboration: Work closely with HR, finance, tax, and other departments to ensure seamless integration and data accuracy across systems.
• Process Improvement and Harmonization: Identify opportunities for process improvements and implement best practices to streamline payroll and time management processes. Drive pay practice harmonization efforts to ensure consistency as appropriate.

Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, or a related field; relevant certifications (e.g., Certified Payroll Professional (CPP), Fundamental Payroll Certification (FPC)) preferred.
• Experience: Minimum of 10 years of experience in payroll and time management, with at least 4 years in a supervisory and/or functional leadership role.
• Skills:
• Proficiency in payroll software and timekeeping systems. UKG Payroll and Workforce Management experience a plus.
• Strong knowledge of payroll regulations and compliance.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Effective leadership, team management, and influence abilities.
• High attention to detail and accuracy.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Abilities:
• Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with the highest degree of discretion.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines.