Interim Payroll & Benefits Supervisor / Manager

Overview

This role is responsible for day-to-day payroll operations for a multi-state workforce of roughly 1,600 employees, covering hourly and salaried populations across headquarters and fulfillment centers on the East and West Coasts, while also covering a planned leave.

Payroll is central to the position, with substantial reporting and Accounting audit responsibilities, including preparing payroll for year-end and supporting a Dayforce-to-Workday transition. In addition to payroll processing, this role handles a defined set of benefits administration tasks and owns payroll-related Workday configuration in partnership with Program Management.

The environment is growth-stage, so the role is hands-on—running payroll while also helping to build, document, and improve the payroll and Workday foundation. The goal is to ensure payroll is accurate, compliant, and on time, with documented processes that help maintain stability after the leave ends.

Responsibilities

Payroll Operations

• Supervise and coach the Payroll Coordinator; set priorities and ensure coverage around payroll deadlines.
• Own payroll accuracy and approvals across all populations, supporting both East and West Coast employees, including inputs, calculations, approvals, variance review, and reporting.
• Support processing for fulfillment centers and Last Mile (hourly and salaried processing owned by the Payroll Coordinator); when the Coordinator is out, run HQ payroll and execute payroll cycles end to end (regular, off-cycle, adjustments, final pay).
• Maintain payroll tax and regulatory compliance; track changes and communicate them to internal stakeholders (e.g., HR, Finance, managers).
• Operate and improve payroll controls and reconciliations; keep audit evidence ready for SOX/ICFR and external audits.
• Prepare recurring and ad hoc payroll reporting (reconciliations, headcount, tax and labor cost) for HR, Accounting/Finance, and leadership.
• Partner with Accounting on internal and external audits: prepare schedules, provide evidence, and respond to auditor requests.
• Lead year-end readiness with Accounting, including year-end reconciliations, tax filings, W-2 processing, and calendar-year close-out.
• Partner with Finance on payroll funding, tax remittances, journal entries, and general ledger reconciliations.
• Manage ADP, DailyPay, and other payroll vendors against service levels, including day-to-day issue resolution; troubleshoot local payroll requirements and escalations.

Uplevel Payroll and Benefits

• Define the operating model and a scalable roadmap with the Director, HR.
• Set quality metrics and use root-cause analysis to reduce repeat errors.
• Standardize, automate, and cross-train to support coverage.
• Review vendor performance and provide leadership with data-driven recommendations.

Documentation and Knowledge Transfer

• Document procedures and calendars.
• Deliver a knowledge-transfer handoff at the end of the engagement.

Benefits Administration

• Administer enrollments, eligibility, and life events across medical, dental, vision, 401(k), employer-paid, and ancillary plans; provide first-line employee support.
• Reconcile benefit deductions and 401(k) contributions to carrier invoices, vendor files, and payroll.
• Support open enrollment execution and benefits compliance reporting (e.g., ACA and COBRA) with Legal.
• Escalate plan design, vendor, and cost decisions to the Director, HR; collaborate with the People Operations Analyst on tracking claims activity.

Workday and HCM

• Own payroll-related Workday configuration and ADP integrations, including pay groups, earnings and deductions, tax set-up, and payroll calendars; resolve data and file errors.
• Partner with the Senior Program Manager (who leads the Workday roadmap) on payroll build-out, testing, and releases, including the Dayforce-to-Workday transition.
• Protect payroll data integrity through audits and clear documentation and training for HR and Finance.

Requirements

Required

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field (Business, Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, or a related discipline preferred).
• 7+ years of progressive payroll experience, including multi-state US payroll and a combined hourly and salaried workforce.
• Hands-on Workday experience, including payroll configuration or build, and in-house payroll processing in an ERP/HCM system.
• Experience managing third-party payroll vendors and SLAs; ability to troubleshoot unique local payrolls.
• Working knowledge of benefits administration: enrollments, deductions, 401(k), and carrier reconciliation.
• 2+ years leading or supervising payroll staff or a team.
• Comfortable in a startup or growth-stage environment, with a track record of building and improving processes, controls, and metrics.
• Advanced Excel proficiency and ability to communicate effectively with associates at all levels.

Preferred

• ADP experience, including integrations with Workday.
• Workday payroll or HCM implementation or migration experience; Dayforce experience a plus.
• SOX/ICFR payroll controls and audit support.
• Experience in hourly, high-volume operations (fulfillment or distribution) in a high-growth company.
• CPP, FPC, or similar certification; prior interim or leave-coverage experience.

Compensation & Benefits

• Base salary range: $100,000 - $125,000 per year

Location

Employment with this organization requires that employees be based in the United States. This is a condition of employment and must be maintained throughout the duration of employment.