Global Payroll Business Operations Leader

We made history and now we work to transform the future – for our customers, our communities and our families. You'll see your work on the road every day, helping people move freely and pursue their dreams. At Ford, you can build more than vehicles. Come build what matters.

Finance strategically partners with operations to drive outstanding business results and enhance Ford’s industry leadership. When you join us, you’ll be able to contribute financial expertise that impacts all areas of our company, including planning, manufacturing, marketing and global distribution.

In this position... 

Reporting to the Senior Director, Global Payroll Operations, the Global Payroll Business Operations Leader is responsible for driving operational excellence, strategic execution, and business transformation across Ford's Global Payroll organization. This role serves as the operational backbone of the payroll leadership team, ensuring strategic initiatives, cross-functional programs, governance activities, and organizational priorities are executed with speed, discipline, and measurable business impact.

As a trusted business partner, you will collaborate across Payroll, Finance, Human Resources, Technology, Legal, Compensation, Benefits, Tax, Treasury, and external partners to lead initiatives that improve operational performance, strengthen governance, and enable scalable payroll delivery.

As stewards of one of Ford's most critical employee-facing functions, our mission is to deliver an exceptional customer experience while ensuring every employee is paid accurately, compliantly, and on time. Our vision is to maximize the potential of our people by building a world-class payroll organization that accelerates organizational growth through operational excellence, innovation, automation, and continuous improvement.

This role requires a highly collaborative leader who thrives in ambiguity, balances strategic thinking with operational execution, and consistently drives results across large, complex, global initiatives. Success in this position requires strong executive presence, exceptional organizational skills, and the ability to influence without direct authority while building trust, accountability, and alignment across diverse stakeholder groups.

What you'll do...

• Lead operational planning and execution for strategic payroll initiatives in partnership with Finance, Human Resources, Technology, Benefits, Compensation, Legal, Treasury, Tax, and external service providers.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to payroll leadership by identifying operational risks, recommending solutions, and driving execution of critical business initiatives.
• Develop and maintain enterprise roadmaps, integrated project plans, governance forums, dashboards, and executive reporting.
• Drive alignment across multiple workstreams while managing priorities, dependencies, and competing business demands.
• Build strong partnerships across all levels of the organization to influence decision-making and deliver business outcomes.
• Anticipate organizational challenges and proactively resolve issues before they impact delivery.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, ownership, transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Drive adoption of operational best practices, governance standards, and disciplined execution across the Global Payroll organization.
• Lead organizational readiness efforts supporting system implementations, process redesign, acquisitions, and business transformation initiatives.
• Ensure operational processes, governance models, and reporting capabilities scale effectively with organizational growth.
• Promote the use of automation, artificial intelligence (AI), analytics, and technology-enabled solutions to improve operational efficiency and enhance payroll service delivery.
• Support payroll leadership in developing strategic priorities, organizational planning, and long-term transformation initiatives.

You'll have...

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) designation preferred.
• Minimum of 12 years of progressive payroll leadership experience.
• Minimum of 8 years leading complex payroll operations, business operations, program management, or enterprise transformation initiatives.
• Strong understanding of end-to-end payroll operations, including upstream and downstream business processes.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex cross-functional programs across multiple business functions.
• Proven ability to influence senior leaders and stakeholders without direct authority.
• Exceptional organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity, establish priorities, and execute effectively in a fast-paced environment.
• Outstanding written, verbal, and executive presentation skills.
• Demonstrated ability to build trust, foster collaboration, and lead organizational change.
• Comfortable operating at both strategic and tactical levels while maintaining a strong focus on execution and business outcomes.

Even better, you may have...

• Experience supporting large, global payroll organizations within a shared services environment.
• Experience with Oracle HCM Cloud, Oracle Payroll, ADP, or comparable enterprise payroll platforms.
• Experience leading payroll transformations, global process standardization, mergers and acquisitions, or large-scale organizational change initiatives.
• Experience managing SOX controls, internal audits, regulatory compliance, and payroll governance programs.
• Strong understanding of payroll accounting, finance, and general ledger impacts.
• Experience leading payroll technology implementations, integrations, and enterprise transformation programs.
• Demonstrated success leveraging automation, robotic process automation (RPA), artificial intelligence (AI), and workflow technologies to simplify business processes.
• Advanced analytical capabilities with experience using Microsoft Excel, Power BI, Alteryx, or similar business intelligence tools.
• Working knowledge of Agile methodologies, project management frameworks, and enterprise portfolio management practices.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, including Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Project, Visio, and SharePoint.
• Expertise creating executive presentations, strategic roadmaps, dashboards, scorecards, program plans, and stakeholder communications.
• Ability to synthesize complex information into concise, actionable insights tailored for executive and technical audiences.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage

• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more

• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more

• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases

• Tuition assistance

• Established and active employee resource groups

• Paid time off for individual and team community service 

• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day 

• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time. 

This position is leadership level 5 and ranges from $141,700-$268,300.     

Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: New Hire Benefits

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

This position is hybrid (onsite four days per week) for candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location or remote for non-local candidates. #LI-Hybrid #LI-Remote

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