Payroll Manager

KRUSH Tech is an international technology company developing advanced hardware solutions for defense, aerospace, communications, and autonomous systems. We're launching our U.S. operations from the ground up, building a next-generation, vertically integrated aerospace organization focused on advanced uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS), autonomy, and sensing technologies for the U.S. market and strategic partners. Our teams work across RF, embedded systems, electronics, mechanical engineering, software, manufacturing, and supply chain to turn some of the industry's most demanding engineering challenges into reliable, production-ready solutions, combining the agility of a startup with the ambition to compete at the leading edge of UAS and autonomous systems.

We are seeking an experienced, proactive Payroll Manager to own and manage payroll operations for our U.S. workforce. This hands-on role combines accurate, timely payroll delivery with responsibility for the systems, configurations, controls, and processes that support a growing organization.

Reporting to the Chief Human Resources Officer, the Payroll Manager will partner closely with HR, Accounting and Finance, and business leaders to manage multi-state payroll, maintain compliance, and strengthen payroll operations. The ideal candidate has completed a payroll system implementation and understands how to translate changing business requirements into system rules, workflows, and reliable processes.

The role begins as an individual contributor with ownership of the payroll function, with the opportunity to help build and lead a team as payroll complexity increases.

• Own end-to-end payroll processing for exempt and non-exempt employees across Alabama, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, and support additional states as the company grows
• Manage contractor payment processing through Paylocity, coordinating payment details and approvals with Accounting and Finance
• Validate and process timecard records, earnings, overtime, benefit deductions, garnishments, payroll adjustments, and other payroll inputs
• Partner with HR and Accounting and Finance to ensure new hires, terminations, compensation changes, and other employee updates are accurately reflected in payroll
• Maintain compliance with federal, state, and local payroll requirements, with particular attention to California wage and hour rules
• Establish and maintain certified payroll processes as applicable contracts begin, owning the preparation, reconciliation, and timely submission of required reports and verifying wage rates, worker classifications, fringe benefits, and supporting records against contract requirements
• Own payroll system administration and configuration, translating business and compliance requirements into earnings and deduction codes, calculation rules, workflows, and reporting
• Evaluate, test, validate, and document system changes before deployment, partnering with Paylocity and internal stakeholders
• Manage payroll data imports, exports, mapping, and integrations, maintaining accuracy across connected systems
• Review and reconcile payroll before submission, secure required approvals, and resolve discrepancies and their underlying causes
• Partner with Accounting and Finance on payroll reconciliations, general ledger reporting, accruals, and month-end close
• Coordinate with Accounting and Finance and the payroll provider on payroll tax reporting, quarter-end and year-end activities, and W-2 review and corrections
• Establish and maintain payroll calendars, documented procedures, approval controls, and audit-ready records, and support internal and external…