Payroll Manager

Payroll Manager

Location: Essex, CT — onsite
Compensation: $100,000–$120,000
Schedule: Monday–Friday | 8:00 AM–4:30 PM

Why This Payroll Manager Opportunity?

A well-established, growing company in the industrial/marine services space — backed by private equity and expanding through acquisition — is seeking a Payroll Manager to own end-to-end payroll for a 200+ person, multi-state workforce. This is a high-visibility role stepping ahead of a planned retirement, with a genuine path to build out and lead the payroll function as the company scales.

You'll partner directly with the CFO to modernize payroll processes, transition from manual workflows to a more automated/documented system, and help guide the organization through a period of real transformation.

Responsibilities of the Payroll Manager:

• Process full-cycle payroll for approximately 230–250 employees across multiple states
• Manage weekly payroll while ensuring accuracy across varying pay rates, job codes, and labor allocations
• Process payroll for employees who frequently work across multiple states and job sites
• Maintain payroll compliance with federal, state, and local regulations
• Reconcile payroll data and ensure accurate reporting between Sage 300 and ADP
• Partner closely with Accounting and Finance to support payroll-related reporting and reconciliations
• Identify opportunities to streamline and automate manual payroll processes
• Help document payroll procedures and create standardized workflows
• Serve as a key contributor to future payroll system implementations and process improvements
• Support the company's continued growth through acquisitions by helping build scalable payroll operations

Preferred Experience of the Payroll Manager:

• 7+ years of progressive full-cycle payroll experience
• Experience processing complex, multi-state payroll
• Strong understanding of payroll compliance, taxes, and wage regulations
• Experience working with multiple pay rates, job costing, or employees working across various assignments is a plus
• Payroll implementation or payroll system conversion experience is highly desirable
• Experience in construction, industrial services, project-based organizations, or professional services is a strong plus
• Experience with Sage 300 and/or ADP is a plus
• Bachelor's degree preferred; extensive payroll experience may be considered in lieu of a degree