Director, Total Rewards

Job Description

Job Description

Job Title: Director, Total Rewards

Location: Atlanta, GA

Hire Type: Direct Hire

Pay Range: $180,000–$210,000 base salary plus 20% target incentive compensation

Work Model: Onsite

Schedule: Full-Time, Standard Business Hours

Recruiter Contact: Samantha Marranca | View email address on us.fitly.work

Nature & Scope:

Positional Overview

Our client is seeking a Director of Total Rewards to lead the enterprise strategy and execution of compensation, benefits, retirement, health and welfare, payroll, and executive reward programs. This is a broad leadership role with direct ownership of payroll execution and compliance—not simply oversight—and responsibility for delivering accurate, competitive, and financially sustainable programs.

The successful candidate will bring deep technical expertise, exceptional attention to detail, and the executive presence to advise senior leaders on complex rewards and compliance matters. This leader must also balance risk management with a practical, employee-centered approach and demonstrate the financial judgment needed to evaluate cost, trade-offs, and return on investment.

Role & Responsibility:

Tasks That Will Lead To Your Success

• Lead the enterprise total rewards framework across compensation, benefits, retirement, health and welfare, executive rewards, and related programs.
• Own payroll execution, controls, accuracy, and compliance, ensuring clean and timely processing across the organization.
• Lead annual compensation planning, merit review, incentive administration, and open enrollment cycles.
• Design, evaluate, and administer executive compensation and executive benefit programs in partnership with senior leadership and legal counsel.
• Maintain authoritative knowledge of FMLA, ADAAA, COBRA, HIPAA, FLSA, and other applicable employment and benefits regulations.
• Manage benefit, payroll, retirement, and consulting vendors; establish service expectations, monitor performance, and address issues proactively.
• Use market data, analytics, and financial modeling to assess competitiveness, program cost, employee impact, and ROI.
• Identify and remediate compliance, process, and control risks with a high degree of precision and accountability.
• Lead and develop the Total Rewards team while serving as an active, credible member of the director-level leadership group.

Required Experience

• 10+ years of progressive experience in compensation, benefits, total rewards, payroll, HRIS, or a closely related discipline.
• Substantial leadership and people-management experience, with demonstrated success leading technical HR professionals and enterprise programs.
• Direct, hands-on ownership of payroll execution and payroll compliance.
• Deep expertise in compensation, benefits, executive rewards, and regulatory compliance, including FMLA, ADAAA, COBRA, HIPAA, and FLSA.
• Strong analytical ability and exceptional attention to detail, particularly in high-risk or compliance-sensitive work.
• Executive presence and the ability to independently advise senior leaders, legal counsel, and other business partners.
• Financial literacy, including budget management, cost analysis, trade-off evaluation, and ROI assessment.
• Strong judgment, discretion, communication, and vendor-management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business, Finance, or a related discipline; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• Experience with UKG or a comparable enterprise HR/payroll platform.
• Experience designing or administering executive compensation and benefit plans.
• Professional certification such as CCP, CEBS, SHRM-SCP, SPHR, or a comparable credential.
• Experience supporting a distributed, multi-location organization.

Team & Environment

• Reports to the Vice President of Human Resources and leads a team with responsibility for compensation, benefits, payroll, and related programs.
• Culture emphasizes approachability, curiosity, energy, accountability, speed, and genuine care for people.
  

This is a confidential search. The company name will be disclosed only to candidates approved to move forward in the process. This position requires regular onsite presence in Atlanta, GA. Relocation assistance is not available.