Senior Payroll Systems Analyst in Santa Monica, California

Senior Payroll Systems Analyst
- Time & Attendance

Culver City, CA Pay: $102.00 - $106.00 per hour

The Senior Payroll Systems Analyst
- Time & Attendance is responsible for leading the end-to-end transformation of Time & Attendance systems within a complex, unionized environment. This role combines program management, functional expertise, and systems knowledge to ensure accurate time capture, compliant pay calculations, and seamless integration with payroll operations. The successful candidate will lead transformation initiatives, translate collective bargaining requirements into system configurations, oversee testing and reconciliation, and serve as a trusted advisor to business and technical stakeholders.

• Lead large-scale Time & Attendance transformation initiatives from planning through implementation.
• Manage program governance, timelines, risks, dependencies, and executive reporting.
• Partner with system integrators and internal stakeholders to drive successful project delivery.
• Lead Agile delivery activities, including sprint planning and execution.
• Interpret Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) and translate labor requirements into operational and system rules.
• Configure and validate timekeeping and payroll rules, including daily and weekly overtime, sixth- and seventh-day premiums, meal penalties, shift differentials, guarantees, minimum calls, and turnaround or rest requirements.
• Ensure Time & Attendance processes comply with applicable union and regulatory requirements.
• Lead requirements workshops with subject matter experts and functional leaders.
• Document detailed functional requirements, business processes, and process flows.
• Identify process gaps, inefficiencies, and opportunities for automation.
• Translate business requirements into system configurations and functional solutions.
• Provide functional expertise across Time, Payroll, and HCM platforms.
• Support integration design between Time & Attendance, Payroll, HCM, and related systems.
• Validate system data flows and ensure alignment across integrated platforms.
• Analyze time and payroll data for accuracy, completeness, and compliance.
• Define testing strategies, including parallel testing and validation.
• Perform reconciliation between timekeeping and payroll outputs.
• Maintain data integrity and support audit readiness.
• Lead stakeholder communication, alignment, training, and adoption activities.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to leadership and key business stakeholders.

• 10+ years of experience in payroll, Time & Attendance, and systems implementations.
• Deep experience working in unionized environments.
• Experience with UKG Pro, Workday, Infor, or similar Time, Payroll, or HCM systems.
• Strong knowledge of union payroll and timekeeping requirements.
• Experience interpreting Collective Bargaining Agreements and translating requirements into system rules.
• Strong analytical and data management skills.
• Experience leading large-scale systems transformation initiatives.
• Strong project and program management skills.
• Experience with requirements gathering, functional design, testing, data reconciliation, and system integration.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to work effectively with business leaders, functional teams, technical teams, and system integrators.

• Experience in the entertainment industry or another highly unionized environment.
• Experience with Agile methodologies.
• Experience working with system integrators.
• Payroll audit and compliance experience.
• Experience leading complex Time & Attendance transformation programs.