Payroll & HRIS Specialist

About the Role

We are seeking a highly organized, resourceful, and detail-oriented Payroll & HRIS Specialist to support payroll, HR systems, employee data, and related HR operations across multiple client environments.

This is a hands-on role for someone who is comfortable working across different systems,

companies, and processes. While payroll is a significant part of the position, this is not simply a payroll processing role. The Payroll & HRIS Specialist serves as a key operational resource wherever payroll, HR technology, employee data, benefits, timekeeping, and HR administration intersect.

The ideal candidate enjoys figuring things out. You should be comfortable entering a new

HRIS or payroll platform, learning how it works, identifying issues, researching solutions,

and helping create a more accurate and efficient process.

Because this role supports multiple client environments, priorities, systems, and processes may vary. Strong organization, documentation, follow-through, and the ability to manage several recurring processes at once are essential.

Key Responsibilities

Payroll Administration

• Process and support payroll across multiple client organizations and payroll schedules.

• Review payroll inputs for accuracy, including salaries, hourly wages, bonuses, commissions, deductions, reimbursements, PTO, and other adjustments.

• Validate employee changes before payroll, including new hires, terminations, compensation changes, benefit deductions, and tax-related updates.

• Perform pre-payroll and post-payroll audits and identify discrepancies.

• Research and resolve payroll discrepancies, missed payments, incorrect deductions, tax issues, direct deposit problems, and other payroll-related questions.

• Maintain payroll calendars, deadlines, approval processes, and recurring payroll checklists.

• Coordinate with payroll vendors and client contacts to resolve issues.

• Support off-cycle payrolls, final pay, corrections, and other non-standard payroll transactions when required.

• Maintain payroll records and supporting documentation.

HRIS Administration

• Serve as a hands-on administrator across HRIS, payroll, timekeeping, benefits, and related HR technology platforms.

• Maintain accurate employee profiles, job information, compensation data, reporting relationships, employment status, and other system records.

• Process employee lifecycle changes including hires, transfers, promotions, compensation changes, leaves, and terminations.

• Configure and maintain workflows, fields, permissions, employee documents, notifications, and other system settings as needed.

• Troubleshoot HRIS issues and determine whether problems relate to configuration, data, user access, integrations, or vendor functionality.

• Work directly with HRIS and payroll vendors when escalation or technical support is required.

• Support system implementations, migrations, integrations, and transitions.

• Assist with data imports, exports, audits, mapping, testing, and validation.

• Maintain appropriate system access and protect sensitive employee information.

Timekeeping, PTO & Benefits Administration

• Support timekeeping and attendance processes, including reviewing hours and resolving discrepancies.

• Maintain PTO policies, balances, accruals, and system configurations.

• Investigate PTO and timekeeping discrepancies and coordinate corrections when necessary.

• Support benefits-related payroll deductions and employee data changes.

• Assist with enrollment changes, terminations, eligibility updates, and reconciliation between HRIS, payroll, and benefits systems.

• Identify discrepancies between employee elections, payroll deductions, and vendor records.

HR Data & Reporting

• Maintain accurate and complete employee data across HR systems.

• Perform regular data audits and reconcile information between HRIS, payroll, benefits, and other systems.

• Prepare recurring and ad hoc HR and payroll reports.

• Assist with headcount, compensation, payroll, PTO, employee status, and other workforce reporting.

• Maintain trackers and supporting documentation where system reporting is insufficient.

• Identify data inconsistencies and proactively investigate their source.

HR Operations Support

• Support employee onboarding and offboarding from a systems and administrative perspective.

• Ensure employees are appropriately added to or removed from relevant systems.

• Maintain employee documentation and electronic personnel records.

• Assist with employment verification, payroll documentation, and other employee administrative requests.

• Support HR compliance processes where accurate employee or payroll data is required.

• Provide general HR operations support when work overlaps with payroll, systems, records, or employee administration.

Process Improvement & Documentation

• Document recurring payroll and HRIS processes through clear SOPs, checklists,

and process guides.

• Maintain client-specific payroll instructions and system documentation.

• Identify opportunities to simplify, automate, or improve repetitive HR processes.

• Help establish appropriate controls and review steps for sensitive payroll and employee-data processes.

• Create processes that can be consistently followed by another team member when coverage is needed.

• Proactively flag unclear, inefficient, or high-risk processes and recommend improvements.

Qualifications

• Prior experience in payroll, HRIS administration, HR operations, or a closely related field.

• Hands-on experience processing or supporting payroll.

• Experience working within one or more HRIS, payroll, timekeeping, or benefits platforms.

• Strong attention to detail and ability to identify discrepancies in employee and payroll data.

• Strong Excel or Google Sheets skills.

• Comfort learning unfamiliar technology and independently researching solutions.

• Ability to manage confidential employee and compensation information with discretion.

• Strong written communication and documentation skills.

• Ability to manage recurring deadlines while also responding to unexpected payroll or system issues.

• Strong problem-solving skills and willingness to investigate an issue through

resolution.

• Ability to work independently while communicating clearly when escalation or additional support is needed.

Preferred Experience

Experience with several of the following is helpful, although experience with every platform

is not required:

• Rippling

• QuickBooks Payroll

• Gusto

• ADP

• Paychex

• BambooHR

• Paylocity

• Paycom

• UKG

• Other HRIS, payroll, benefits, or timekeeping platforms

Experience supporting multiple companies, clients, business units, or payroll

environments simultaneously is strongly preferred.

Experience with payroll implementations, HRIS implementations, system migrations,

payroll cleanups, or data reconciliation is also highly valued.

What Makes Someone Successful in This Role

This role is particularly well suited to someone who:

• Notices when numbers or data do not look right.

• Double-checks their work without needing to be asked.

• Does not stop at the system isn't working and instead investigates why.

• Can learn unfamiliar software quickly.

• Keeps excellent notes and documentation.

• Understands that payroll deadlines are non-negotiable.

• Is comfortable switching between detailed administrative work and technical problem solving.

• Can manage several client environments without confusing processes or data.

• Proactively communicates when something is missing, inconsistent, or at risk.

• Enjoys making messy processes organized.