The following jobs outline payroll positions for the Payroll Management Learning Path. Their job descriptions will aid in determining which Learning Path best fits your needs.
Job Descriptions
Payroll Practitioner III (Senior)
Performs all duties of Payroll Practitioner I and II and other duties including balancing and controlling earnings and deduction totals, calculating and preparing general ledger entries, inspecting automated system output such as registers and standard reports, determining and correcting out-of-balance conditions, preparing and filing tax reports, gathering payroll data for inclusion in financial statements, and researching and preparing special reports for management, calculating military and jury duty pay, and processing garnishments and levies. May train less experienced payroll practitioners and direct their daily work. Requires 2 to 4 years of payroll experience and may require experience with a specific payroll system. May require an associate's degree or equivalent experience. FPC or CPP designation preferred.
Payroll Supervisor
Supervises 2 or more Payroll Practitioners in carrying out responsibility for payroll preparation/production in the payroll department. Reports to the top payroll position or to a Payroll Manager. Typically requires 3 to 5 years of payroll experience and an associate's degree or equivalent training and education. This is a unit supervisor in a department where one unit is responsible for payroll preparation/processing and one or more other units are responsible for tax reporting/records and benefits administration/payroll systems. CPP designation preferred. This is not the most senior payroll position.
Payroll Manager/Director
Manages the activities of 2 or more units within a large centralized payroll department in carrying out responsibility for payroll preparation/processing and one or more related responsibilities such as tax reporting, benefits-records administration, or payroll systems maintenance. Generally will have one or more Payroll Supervisors as direct reports. Alternately, this employee may manage a regional or sectional payroll and related activities in an organization that has multiple stand-alone payrolls reporting to a centralized payroll authority. Generally requires 5 or more years of payroll or closely related experience. May require a bachelor's degree in accounting, business, or a related field. CPP designation preferred. This position reports to the most senior payroll position. If this employee spends more than 50% of time personally performing payroll processing and related activities, match the position to Lead Payroll Administrator.
Director/Vice President of Payroll
As the most senior person in the organization whose primary responsibility is payroll and related activities, incumbent directs the activities of the senior payroll management team and respective staff members. Incumbent develops and controls all tasks necessary to accomplish the organization's payroll processing objectives, including relationships with internal and external auditors and state and federal agencies. More than 50% of incumbent's time is spent on corporate payroll strategy, planning, communications, and marketing the payroll function and related services. Generally requires 5 to 7 years of payroll or closely related experience. May require a bachelor's degree in accounting, business, or a related field. CPP designation preferred. Regardless of title, this is the most senior payroll position in the organization; the primary task is managing and directing the activities of others.
Increase your knowledge with core competency education:
Understand payroll trends
Stay abreast of the latest compliance and industry trends by taking advantage of compliance education.
Complete your learning path through certification
Attaining the Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) verifies mastery of payroll knowledge, skills, and abilities and is recognized by the payroll industry as the gold standard in payroll certification.
Continue your professional development
Attending conferences is a great way to earn continuing education credit toward recertification, meet other payroll professionals, and stay up-to-date with the latest in payroll industry trends, compliance, and hot topics.