Director of Payroll

We are partnering with a large, nationally recognized hospitality organization on a highly visible Director of Payroll opportunity. This role sits at the center of a complex, high-volume payroll operation supporting 50,000+ employees across nearly every U.S. state and select international locations. It is a true leadership role with significant operational, compliance, and systems responsibility—ideal for a payroll leader who thrives in scale, complexity, and impact.

This position offers the chance to own and shape enterprise-wide payroll strategy, lead a seasoned team, and drive continuous improvement across systems, controls, and processes within a well-capitalized, growth-oriented organization.

• Enterprise ownership of payroll operations at national scale
• Strategic visibility and influence across Finance, HRIS, Tax, IT, and Leadership
• Opportunity to drive process optimization, automation, and system integration
• Stable, established organization with meaningful leadership runway

• Lead all payroll operations for 50,000+ associates
• Manage multi-state and limited international payrolls with significant tax/EIN complexity
• Oversee allocations, accruals, payroll liabilities, audits, and year-end processes (W-2s)
• Partner closely with HRIS and IT on system integrations, testing, and risk mitigation
• Drive short- and long-term payroll strategy focused on accuracy, efficiency, and compliance
• Develop, mentor, and lead a large, experienced payroll team
• Serve as the senior escalation point for complex payroll, tax, and compliance matters
• Proficiency with UKG (Ulti Pro), Dayforce and related payroll platforms
• High-volume, highly regulated payroll environment
• Emphasis on documentation, controls, and best practices

• Proven leadership in high-volume payroll environments (10,000+ employees)
• Strong experience with high volume tax/EIN complexity, knowledge of multi-state payroll (all 50 states ideally), payroll tax, and compliance
• Payroll certification (CPP) a plus
• Comfortable operating in a hands-on, in-office leadership role

• Compensation: up to $160,000 base + bonus (depending on experience)
• Reporting To: VP of Payroll & Accounts Payable

This is an outstanding opportunity for a senior payroll leader who wants real ownership, real scale, and real impact—not just oversight. If you’ve led complex payroll operations and want a seat at the table in a large, people-driven organization, this role offers both challenge and long-term opportunity.

Director

Full-time

Accounting/Auditing and Human Resources

Retail and Consumer Services