Senior Director, Global Equity and Payroll

Senior Director, Equity at Affirm

Affirm is reinventing credit to make it more honest and friendly, giving consumers the flexibility to buy now and pay later without any hidden fees or compounding interest. As we scale globally, we are seeking a highly experienced and strategic leader to architect the future of our Equity and Payroll functions, ensuring that every employee worldwide receives a premier experience defined by consistency, precision, and ease.

As the Senior Director of Global Equity and Payroll, you will be a highly influential, collaborative leader, reporting directly to the CAO, responsible for autonomously overseeing the entire global function across our complex, high‑growth multinational employee operations (US, Canada, Poland, UK, Spain, Australia, the Netherlands, and expanding rapidly). This pivotal role requires defining and driving the strategic roadmap, managing all aspects of global payroll and critical equity administration.

• Strategic Execution & Optimization
  • Drive Global Scale:
    Architect, implement, and optimize global processes for payroll and equity administration to support our rapid international expansion and growing global employee base.
  • Vision &
    
    Roadmap:
    
    Design and recommend new global policies, technology roadmaps, and organizational structures that are scalable and compliant across current and future geographies.
  • Operational Excellence:
    Manage the entire global function (Payroll and Equity) ensuring timely, accurate, and compliant execution of all pay cycles and equity events.
  • Budget Management:
    Manage significant vendor relationships and transformation budgets, driving high‑value and cost‑effective solutions.
• Leadership & Organizational Development
  • Lead and Inspire Multiple Teams:
    Oversee the Global Payroll and Global Equity Administration teams, fostering a culture of ownership, precision, and continuous improvement.
  • Change Leadership:
    Successfully lead the team through rapid evolution—including international expansion, M&A integrations, and significant systems/process changes.
• Risk Management & Compliance
  • Complex Compliance:
    Establish and enforce rigorous compliance with all relevant international and domestic laws, regulations, periodic filings, and tax requirements.
  • Audit & Reporting:
    Serve as the primary point of contact for external audits related to payroll and equity, ensuring rigorous internal controls (SOX) are in place and adhered to.
  • Subject Matter Expertise:
    Serve as a deep SME on global requirements and market best practices.
• Cross-Functional Influence & Partnership
  • Executive Partnership:
    Build trust and effective partnerships with senior leaders and VPs across People, Legal, Tax, Treasury, Finance, and IT.
  • Employee
    
    Experience:
    
    Lead with empathy while upholding a reputation of excellence in all payroll and equity related matters.

• 12+ years of progressive experience managing complex Global Payroll and Global Equity functions. High‑growth, multinational public company experience preferred.
• Experience in a 2,000+ global employee environment.
• Deep expertise in global equity administration (e.g., Schwab) and complex global payroll systems and vendors.
• Proven track record of driving large‑scale functional transformation, including major global system implementations (e.g., Workday).
• Expert‑level knowledge of complex international compensation and tax compliance requirements.
• Demonstrated experience managing M&A integration for payroll and equity operations.
• Exceptional executive‑level communication and presentation skills, with proven ability to influence technical and non‑technical stakeholders globally.

Pay Grade – U

Equity Grade – 15

Employees new to affirm typically come in at the start of the pay range. Base pay is part of a total compensation package that may include equity rewards, monthly stipends for health, wellness, and tech spending, along with benefits.

USA base pay range (CA, WA, NY, NJ, CT) per year: $285,000 – $355,000

USA base pay range (all other U.S. states) per year: $253,000 – $323,000

We’re extremely proud to offer competitive benefits anchored to our core value of people come first.

• Health care coverage – affirm covers…