Director, Payroll Services
Founded in 1821, The George Washington University is the largest institution of higher education in the District of Columbia, to include ten academic units, with a full-time equivalent enrollment of a little over 20,000 students and approximately 11,000 employees. The George Washington University is a community dedicated to learning, communication, respect, service and teamwork. As one of the largest private employers in the District of Columbia, the university seeks employees who support the teaching, research, and public service mission of the university. The University is currently seeking qualified applicants for the Director, Payroll Services position.
The Payroll Services department, under the Finance Division, is dedicated to providing accurate and timely services to employees and other stakeholders. We are responsible for paying all employees in compliance with federal and local labor laws. We have a commitment to embrace change that promotes increased productivity and we strive to exceed the expectations of our customers.
The Director, Payroll Services reports directly to the Associate Vice President, Tax, Payroll, and Benefits Administration, and designs, directs and delivers complex and routine services related to payroll administration and is accountable for ensuring accurate and timely processing and reconciliation of the entire University payroll.
The Director, Payroll Services is a Subject Matter Expert (SME) planning for the function. The incumbent oversees the execution of all payrolls on-time with 100% accuracy and supervises the payroll staff in carrying out responsibility for payroll preparation and production for each pay period.
The Director, Payroll Services regularly collaborates with other leaders within the Division and University to ensure appropriate communications and handling of payroll related matters. The incumbent relies on extensive experience and judgment to plan and accomplish goals.
Job Duties:
Establish a payroll strategy and vision that aligns with University needs and stakeholder requirements. Utilizes and leverages existing and new technology to drive excellence across all payroll functions.
Oversee the preparation and production of all payrolls (including international, bi-weekly, monthly and additional/supplemental) for the University including all scheduling, disbursements, issue resolution, report generation, and validation/reconciliation of payroll data to auditing, accounting, and payroll specifications.
Lead, direct and manage the processes according to policies, procedures, and schedules set by the University, including for the collection of overpayments, payments for garnishments and child support payments, retroactive payments, payroll deductions, retirement plan remittances, and other related information.
Responsible for the timely payment and reporting of all federal and state payroll taxes, including unemployment.
Maintain compliance with federal, state and local employment law and serves as liaison for agency audits. Also serves as liaison for internal audit, financial statement audit and retirement plan audit.
Responsible for the University’s Time Reporting System (Kronos).
Responsible for administration of commuter benefits program, SmartBenefits and processing of parking enrollment/deductions.
Responsible for the reconciliation and production of W-2 forms and all related payroll year-end tax reporting.
Coordinate payroll administration of 457(f) Restoration Plan, including calculations for year-end contributions, vesting and distributions. Liaison with Fidelity Investments.
Responsible for monthly and quarterly reports to executive leadership.
Expert (SME) with deep functional knowledge of payroll and is responsible for the long-term and short-term
Manage evaluation, development, documentation, and implementation of all applicable payroll related policies and procedures. Ensure that all written and electronic communications from applicable oversight departments are disseminated to the appropriate University personnel in a timely manner.
Maintain knowledge of, and ensures compliance with, current legal regulations and reporting requirements as it relates to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and state labor law.
Maintain the integrity of payroll data in all internal and external systems. Routinely audit payroll information in systems and retain all payroll records in accordance with state and federal requirements and guidelines.
Work with payroll staff to provide leadership in recommending, developing, and implementing business system upgrades and system changes, drive for continuous improvement by identifying and recommending solutions to address process improvement opportunities to streamline and optimize operational effectiveness within Payroll.
Manage the performance, goals and development of payroll department including formal supervision of 4 staff members: Payroll Manager, Payroll Tax Associate, Sr. Accountant and Sr. Business Analyst, Payroll/Benefits. Write and deliver performance evaluations and monitor production and overall work quality.
Liaison and regularly engages with colleagues in Finance Division, Faculty Affairs, Student Employment, HR Services and Solutions, Division of Information Technology, Human Resource Information Systems, Compensation, Benefits Administration, Finance Directors to evaluate reporting, communicate updates and advance improvements in payroll matters.
Represents Payroll in various working groups/projects involving human capital management (e.g. compensation, payroll, time reporting, time off, etc.), and participate in related training and information meetings.
Perform other duties as assigned. The omission of specific duties does not preclude the supervisor from assigning duties that are logically related to the position.
To apply, please go to:
The university is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer that does not unlawfully discriminate in any of its programs or activities on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or on any other basis prohibited by applicable law.