Payroll Specialist

Payroll Specialist

Wall Township, NJ

French & Parrello Associates (FPA), a multidisciplinary consulting engineering firm with offices throughout New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts, is seeking an experienced Payroll Specialist to join our Accounting Department in our Wall Township headquarters. The Payroll Specialist will be responsible for managing full-cycle, multi-state biweekly payroll for more than 300 employees while ensuring accuracy, compliance, confidentiality, and timely processing. This role requires a detail-oriented payroll professional with advanced experience in ADP Workforce Now, Deltek Vision/Vantagepoint, and payroll administration within a professional services environment.

The ideal candidate will bring strong technical payroll expertise, exceptional organizational skills, and the ability to independently manage recurring payroll deadlines. This position plays a critical role in supporting FPA's employees by ensuring accurate compensation, benefit deductions, reporting, and payroll records while partnering with Accounting, Human Resources, and leadership teams to maintain efficient and compliant payroll operations.

Representative Payroll & Professional Services Experience

FPA's Accounting Department supports a growing, employee-owned engineering and consulting organization with more than 300 employees across multiple offices and disciplines. Our team manages complex payroll processes that support a project-based professional services environment, including multi-state payroll administration, employee compensation changes, benefit processing, time tracking integration, and compliance reporting.

The Payroll Specialist will have the opportunity to manage payroll operations within a dynamic organization where accuracy, confidentiality, and process improvement are essential. This role will support employees across engineering, administrative, and technical disciplines while working with integrated systems including ADP Workforce Now and Deltek Vantagepoint. The position provides the opportunity to contribute to the continued growth and success of FPA by ensuring employees are paid accurately and payroll processes are executed efficiently from onboarding through year-end reporting.

Responsibilities

• Process full-cycle, multi-state biweekly payroll in ADP Workforce Now for 300+ employees.
• Import and reconcile timesheet data from Deltek Vantagepoint into ADP Workforce Now, ensuring accuracy between systems.
• Review Deltek time analysis reports, including straight time and overtime reporting, prior to payroll processing.
• Calculate and process straight time over 40 hours for eligible salaried engineering staff while maintaining supporting documentation.
• Manage payroll grid entries, including earnings codes, deductions, leave adjustments, commuter benefits, and other payroll-related corrections.
• Process benefit deductions, 401(k) contributions, garnishments, and payroll adjustments accurately and timely.
• Review payroll registers, statistical summaries, and payroll reports to identify and resolve discrepancies.
• Process off-cycle payroll payments, bonuses, and net-to-gross calculations as needed.
• Manage manual check processing, direct deposit setup, and coordination with Accounting for payroll-related activities.
• Maintain organized payroll documentation, including employee changes, compensation updates, new hires, separations, and leave adjustments.
• Ensure compliance with federal and multi-state payroll regulations, tax requirements, wage and hour laws, and recordkeeping standards.
• Support year-end payroll activities, including W-2 preparation, reconciliations, and reporting.
• Utilize advanced Excel functions to analyze payroll data and resolve discrepancies.
• Maintain strict confidentiality of employee compensation and personal information.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of full-cycle, multi-state payroll processing experience.
• Advanced hands-on experience with ADP Workforce Now, including payroll processing, payroll grids, QuickCalc, and reporting functions.
• Experience with Deltek Vision or Deltek Vantagepoint, particularly time and expense integration with payroll.
• Advanced Excel skills with the ability to analyze and reconcile payroll data.
• Strong understanding of payroll tax withholding, benefits deductions, garnishments, 401(k) administration, and payroll compliance.
• Experience processing payroll within a professional services, consulting, architecture, engineering, or project-based environment preferred.
• Exceptional attention to detail and accuracy with the ability to manage high-volume payroll processing.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize deadlines and work independently.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) designation.
• Experience supporting payroll across multiple states, including New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts.
• Experience with year-end payroll processing and W-2 preparation.
• Familiarity with commuter benefit programs and pre-tax deduction administration.
• Experience working within an employee-owned or professional services organization.

Additional Information

• Sponsorship for U.S. employment authorization is not available for this position.
  Relocation assistance is not available for this position.
• This is an in-office position based at FPA's Wall Township, NJ headquarters; remote work is not available.
• Ability to meet strict, recurring biweekly payroll deadlines.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive employee information.
• Standard office environment.

Don't meet every qualification? At FPA, we recognize that great candidates bring diverse experiences and perspectives. If you are excited about this opportunity but do not meet every listed requirement, we encourage you to apply. Your experience may be exactly what we need for this role or another opportunity within our growing team.

The FPA Difference

Large firms offer scale. FPA offers opportunity.

For more than 50 years, French & Parrello Associates (FPA) has been delivering innovative solutions that shape communities, support infrastructure, and drive progress throughout the region. As an employee-owned, mid-sized consulting firm, FPA combines the resources and stability of a growing organization with the collaboration, accessibility, and personal investment of a close-knit team.

At FPA, every employee plays an important role in our continued success. As a Payroll Specialist, you will be a trusted resource responsible for ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant payroll processing while supporting the employee experience across our organization. Your attention to detail, systems expertise, and commitment to accuracy will directly contribute to the success of our employees and the efficiency of our operations.

Our collaborative environment provides the opportunity to work closely with Accounting, Human Resources, and leadership teams while gaining exposure to the processes that support a growing, multidisciplinary organization. We invest in our people through professional development, training, and opportunities to grow because we believe our employees are the foundation of our success.

At FPA, you are not just processing payroll-you are helping support the people behind the projects, strengthening our organization, and contributing to a workplace where employees can thrive.

Benefits

Benefit packages for this role will start on the 1st day of employment and include medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as HSA, FSA, and DCFSA account options, and 401k retirement plans. Employees in this role are also entitled to paid sick leave and/or other paid time off as provided by applicable law.

Compensation

The projected compensation range for this position is $76,000 to $95,000. Actual compensation will depend on factors including experience, education, qualifications, and skill set. FPA recognizes and rewards performance through an annual bonus program and offers a signing bonus for this particular position for qualified candidates.