Senior Payroll Specialist

• Own regular and off-cycle U.S. payroll processing in Rippling.
• Validate new hires, terminations, compensation changes, bonuses, deductions, reimbursements, and other payroll inputs.
• Administer and reconcile contractor payments.
• Coordinate payroll and bonus processing for employees engaged through EOR partners.
• Validate EOR payroll calculations and reconcile invoices and statements against internal records.
• Manage multi-state payroll requirements, including tax withholding, final pay, state registrations, tax notices, filings, and reconciliations.
• Administer benefits deductions, garnishments, retirement contributions, and other payroll deductions.
• Maintain accurate payroll and employee data in Rippling and troubleshoot configurations, reports, workflows, and records.
• Investigate payroll discrepancies, identify root causes, and drive issues through resolution.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for employee payroll questions.
• Support payroll-related audits, census requests, and benefits or insurance reviews.
• Manage year-end payroll activities, including W-2/1099 processing, annual reconciliations, and related tax requirements.
• Maintain payroll SOPs and controls and identify opportunities to improve accuracy, efficiency, and audit readiness.

• 5+ years of payroll experience, including at least 3 years directly administering U.S. payroll.
• Hands-on experience processing payroll in Rippling.
• Experience managing multi-state U.S. payroll; California and/or New York experience is strongly preferred.
• Strong knowledge of U.S. payroll taxes, wage deductions, federal and state requirements, final pay, and off-cycle payroll.
• Experience independently investigating and resolving payroll discrepancies.
• Strong Excel or Google Sheets skills, particularly for reconciliations and payroll reporting.
• Strong numerical reasoning and exceptional attention to detail.
• Professional fluency in spoken and written English.
• Strong communication and customer-service skills when handling sensitive employee payroll questions.
• The ability to work independently, manage recurring deadlines, and take ownership in a fast-paced environment.

• Payroll tax registrations, notices, and agency correspondence.
• 401(k), workers’ compensation, or payroll tax audits.
• Employee census requests and benefits reconciliations.
• EOR payroll administration.
• Contractor payment administration.
• Year-end W-2 and 1099 processing.
• Experience supporting a U.S.-based company from LATAM.
• Experience in a startup or high-growth environment.

• Take ownership of problems from identification through resolution.
• Care deeply about accuracy and catch discrepancies others might miss.
• Are comfortable investigating complex payroll issues independently.
• Balance strong controls with the need to move quickly.
• Communicate clearly and patiently with employees and internal stakeholders.
• Look for ways to make processes more reliable rather than simply following existing ones.

• Your payroll experience has primarily involved collecting or submitting information for someone else to process.
• You haven’t directly administered U.S. payroll.
• You don’t have hands-on experience with Rippling.
• You prefer HR-generalist work over deep payroll ownership.
• You’re looking for a people-management role rather than a hands-on individual contributor position.

Originally posted on Himalayas