Thanks for your interest in Success Academy! Running a large, fast-growing, and high-performing network of public charter schools takes a village - families, children, teachers, staff and faculty, advocates, and supporters alike. We are growing fast in New York and expanding to Florida, and we would love to welcome you to our community! We work tirelessly every day to ensure children have access to a fun, rigorous, whole-child education regardless of zip code or economic status. When you join SA, you play a part in giving every student who walks through our doors a fair shot at reaching his or her potential.
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.
Core Responsibilities
Operational Leadership: Execute and oversee semi-monthly and bi-weekly payroll for 3,000+ employees, ensuring 100% accuracy 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. You will manage external vendor relationships, including brokers and 403(b) financial advisors.
Transformation & Innovation: Identify opportunities to automate, optimize, and audit the payroll lifecycle to increase compliance and reduce manual overhead.
Qualifications and Experience
Education and Certification
Education: 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
Direct Experience: 8+ years of progressive payroll experience, with at least 2 years in a supervisory or lead capacity.
Software: Proficiency in ADP is required; experience with Workday is strongly preferred.
Excel Mastery: Advanced skills, including multi-function formulas, pivot tables, and sophisticated data formatting.
Regulatory Knowledge: Comprehensive understanding of Federal, State, and Local laws, including FLSA.
Soft Skills & Leadership
Change Management: Proven ability to act as a "change agent" , bringing transformation experience to an entrepreneurial, high-volume environment.
Communication: Refined emotional intelligence with the ability to influence stakeholders and negotiate buy-in across departments.
Critical Thinking: A hands-on problem solver who can balance granular detail with big- picture process improvement.
Exact compensation may vary based on skills and experience. This position is not bonus eligible.
Success Academy Charter Schools is an equal opportunity employer and actively encourages applications from people of all backgrounds. Compensation is competitive and commensurate with experience. Success Academy offers a full benefits program and opportunities for professional growth.
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Current Success Academies Employees:
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We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our organization. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We actively seek applications from people of all backgrounds to strengthen our community and the perspectives needed to flourish in a multicultural world. Success Academy offers a full benefits program and opportunities for professional growth.
Success Academy Charter Schools does not offer employment-based immigration sponsorship.
Top Skills
What We Do
Since 2006, Success Academy has tackled educational inequities head-on by providing exceptional public education for 20,000 K-12 students in New York City. Our network of over 50 free public charter schools is looking for diverse, ambitious, talented people like you to join our team! Starting on your first day, you’ll receive world-class training and mentorship while working in a collaborative environment with passionate colleagues. As part of the Success Academy team, you will have ample growth opportunities within our network — including leadership roles. Success Academy is seeking candidates from all majors and backgrounds. All interviews are virtual, and a degree in Education is not required to teach. If you graduated or will be graduating with a bachelor's degree between Dec 2023 and Dec 2024, we encourage you to apply! We encourage you to look at our current openings and consider applying.
