Payroll Director

About the Role

Success Academy Charter Schools is a high-energy, fast-paced network of dual-mission public charter schools dedicated to closing the achievement gap and providing a world-class education to all children. We hold ourselves to incredibly high standards, and our central network office operates with the same relentless pursuit of excellence as our classrooms.

As the Lead Payroll, you will hold primary day-to-day responsibility for the end-to-end payroll operations of a complex, 3,000+ employee organization. Reporting directly to the Leader of Finance Operations, you will manage a dedicated team of 1–2 specialists and serve as a strategic change agent, bridging the gap between routine processing and high-level financial transformation.

Key Responsibilities

• Operational Leadership: Execute and oversee semi-monthly and bi-weekly payroll for 3,000+ employees, ensuring 100% accuracy, timeliness, and compliance.
• Regulatory Expertise: Serve as the resident Subject Matter Expert (SME) for payroll regulations, specifically for New York State and multi-state US jurisdictions.
• Deductions Management: Maintain deep technical knowledge of withholdings, including complex payroll taxes, medical elections, 403(b) contributions, garnishments, and diverse benefit deductions.
• Systems & Integration: Lead the maintenance and optimization of integrations between the HRIS and payroll processing systems.
• Compliance & Audit: Drive the issuance of annual W-2 statements and manage all internal/external audit inquiries.
• Stakeholder Partnership: Act as a critical business partner to Benefits, HR, FP&A, and Accounting. Manage external vendor relationships, including brokers and 403(b) financial advisors.
• Transformation & Innovation: Proactively identify opportunities to automate, optimize, and audit the payroll lifecycle to increase compliance, streamline workflows, and reduce manual overhead.

Requirements

Education & Certification

• Degree: Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field required.
• Certification: Active Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or Fundamental Payroll Certification (FPC) designation is required.

Technical Skills & Experience

• Direct Experience: 8+ years of progressive payroll experience, with at least 2 years in a supervisory or leadership capacity.
• Software Proficiency: Experience with ADP is required; experience with Workday is strongly preferred.
• Excel Mastery: Advanced data manipulation skills, including multi-function formulas, pivot tables, and sophisticated data formatting.
• Regulatory Knowledge: Comprehensive, up-to-date understanding of Federal, State, and Local laws, including FLSA.

Leadership & Soft Skills

• Change Management: Proven ability to act as a "change agent," bringing transformation experience to an entrepreneurial, fast-paced, and high-volume environment.
• Communication: Refined emotional intelligence with the ability to influence stakeholders, deliver exceptional internal customer service, and negotiate buy-in across departments.
• Critical Thinking: A hands-on problem solver who can easily balance granular detail with big-picture process improvement.

Compensation, Benefits & Perks

At Success Academy, we invest boldly in our Network team with a comprehensive package designed to support your health, financial future, and overall well-being:

• Day-One Health & Wellness: Medical, dental, and vision coverage starting your first day (SA covers 82% of our core medical plan), plus a free One Medical membership and confidential mental health support via EAP/Talkspace.
• Financial Security: 403(b) retirement plan with a 3% employer match, up to $2,400/year in employer HSA contributions, employer-paid life/disability insurance, and Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) eligibility.
• Time to Recharge: Generous paid time off, paid holidays, and paid parental leave.
• Perks & Stipends: A $50/month cellphone stipend ($600/year), pre-tax commuter benefits, backup family care, and performance-based earning incentives.