Senior Payroll Manager

Senior Payroll Manager

As the Senior Payroll Manager at West Shore Home, you will lead and own the end-to-end payroll and commissions functions, ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant payment of wages and incentive compensation. This role provides direct leadership to the Payroll Specialists and oversight of the Commissions Manager and Commissions team, while maintaining a hands-on role in payroll processing, auditing, issue resolution, system configuration, and continuous improvement. The Senior Payroll Manager will establish strong controls, scalable processes, documentation, cross-training, and reporting while partnering closely with Human Resources, Accounting, HRIS, and business leaders.

Key Role Accountabilities:

• Lead the Payroll and Commissions functions, providing direct leadership, coaching, performance management, and development to Payroll Specialists and the Commissions Manager, and ensuring effective leadership and development of the Commissions team.
• Maintain a hands-on role in bi-weekly payroll processing, including complex payroll transactions, reconciliations, audits, corrections, and payroll submission as needed to ensure continuity, accuracy, and timely completion.
• Oversee the end-to-end commissions process through the Commissions Manager, ensuring commissions are calculated, reviewed, approved, documented, and paid accurately and timely in accordance with approved compensation plans and Company policies.
• Partner with Sales, Operations, Finance, Human Resources, and other stakeholders to resolve commission discrepancies, interpret approved compensation plan requirements, and establish clear processes and controls for incentive compensation administration.
• Own payroll and commissions governance, including documented procedures, approval workflows, audit controls, segregation of duties, reconciliation standards, escalation protocols, and business continuity/cross-training plans.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local wage and hour, payroll tax, garnishment, final pay, recordkeeping, and other payroll-related requirements; proactively identify compliance risks and coordinate remediation.
• Act as the senior subject matter expert and escalation point for payroll processing, wage and hour administration, federal and state compliance, payroll system configuration, and commission administration matters.
• Support acquisitions, integrations, and organizational changes by validating employee compensation data, payroll setup, compliance requirements, commission requirements, system configuration, and required exceptions.

Minimum Requirements:

Education:

• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent combination of education related to work experience required.
• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) certification preferred.

Experience:

• 4+ years of progressive payroll experience in a complex, multi-state environment, including hands-on payroll processing and demonstrated technical ability to support payroll/HRIS applications.
• 5+ years of leadership/management experience, including experience leading payroll professionals; experience overseeing managers or multiple related teams strongly preferred.
• Experience overseeing variable compensation, commissions, or incentive compensation administration strongly preferred.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and experience with payroll reporting, reconciliations, audits, and data analysis.
• Experience with enterprise HRIS/payroll software required; Dayforce experience strongly preferred.

Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities:

• Solid understanding of payroll data elements and how they interact.
• Strong knowledge of multi-state payroll, wage and hour requirements, payroll controls, reconciliations, and payroll tax concepts.
• Demonstrated ability to lead through complexity, prioritize competing deadlines, and make sound decisions in a high-volume environment.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and root-cause analysis skills with the ability to translate findings into sustainable process improvements.
• Ability to build effective cross-functional relationships and communicate complex payroll and commission matters clearly to employees, leaders, and business partners.
• Experience developing SOPs, controls, cross-training, and business continuity practices for critical payroll and compensation processes.
• Must have a valid smart phone or smart device to log in to Company required systems using two-factor authentication.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive Health Insurance options (Medical, Dental, Vision, Accident, Life, Critical Illness, Short and Long-Term Disability)
• 401(k) Retirement Plan with company match
• HSA plan with company match
• Paid holidays and paid time off (PTO)
• Employee Referral Program
• Employee Discount Program

Culture and Community:

We believe that when employees feel valued and supported, they perform at their best. Our dedication to fostering a strong, value-driven culture has consistently earned us the Top Workplaces USA award as one of the nation's top employers, including recognition in Leadership, Purpose & Values, and Compensation & Benefits.

West Shore Home strives to Bring Happiness to Every Home ® and that goes beyond our customers and employees. We support positive change in our communities by volunteering, giving back, and supporting nonprofits that make a difference.