Manager, Payroll - US PEO
$113k - $152k USD
About Remote
Remote is solving modern organizations’ biggest challenge – navigating global employment compliantly with ease. We make it possible for businesses of all sizes to recruit, pay, and manage international teams. With our core values at heart and future focused work culture, our team works tirelessly on ambitious problems, asynchronously, around the world. You can find Remoters working from 6 different continents (Antarctica left to go!) and all of our positions are fully remote.
With Innovation as one of the core values, we have built Automation and AI capabilities into the requirements for every role.
We encourage every member of the Remote team to bring their talents, experiences and culture to the table to help us build the best-in-class HR platform.
With Innovation as one of the core values, we have built Automation and AI capabilities into the requirements for every role.
We encourage every member of the Remote team to bring their talents, experiences and culture to the table to help us build the best-in-class HR platform.
If you are energetic, curious, motivated and ambitious, be part of our world. Apply now and define the future of work!
What this job can offer you
We are seeking a Manager, Payroll - US PEO to lead the operational delivery, compliance governance, and continuous improvement of our US PEO payroll function. This role owns the day-to-day PEO payroll operating model, manages risk and escalations, and ensures consistent, compliant payroll delivery across a growing PEO client base.
The US PEO Manager sits at the intersection of Payroll Operations, Tax, Benefits, Product, and Engineering, translating complex PEO requirements into scalable operating standards. This is a hands-on leadership role requiring deep US PEO payroll expertise, strong people and process leadership, and comfort operating in a fast-scaling, remote-first environment.
What you bring
- Several years of US payroll experience, with significant hands-on experience in a PEO environment.
- Proven expertise in multi-state US payroll and co-employment models.
- Strong knowledge of US payroll tax, benefits, and labor compliance.
- Prior experience leading or mentoring payroll professionals.
- Ability to operate independently while managing complex, high-risk payroll scenarios.
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to explain complex payroll issues clearly to non-experts.
- Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience supporting or scaling PEO payroll operations in a high-growth or tech-enabled company.
- Exposure to payroll system implementation or internal payroll engine development.
- Experience partnering with Product or Engineering teams.
- Familiarity with remote-first, asynchronous work environments.
Key Responsibilities
PEO Payroll Operations & Compliance
- Own end-to-end US PEO payroll operations, including on-cycle, off-cycle, and correction payrolls.
- Ensure accurate handling of multi-state payroll, including work-state vs residence-state taxation under a co-employment model.
- Oversee PEO-specific compliance areas, including:
- Federal, state, and local tax withholdings and filings
- SUTA/FUTA and state unemployment complexities
- Workers’ compensation and benefits-related payroll deductions
- Co-employment risk and client responsibility boundaries
- Act as the final escalation point for high-risk payroll, tax, or compliance issues.
Team Leadership & Performance Management
- Lead and develop a team of PEO payroll specialists, providing coaching, feedback, and performance guidance.
- Establish clear expectations around accuracy, timeliness, documentation, and ownership.
- Review payroll outputs, reconciliations, and risk items to ensure operational quality.
- Support onboarding, training, and skill progression for PEO payroll team members.
Operating Model & Process Improvement
- Define and maintain PEO payroll operating standards, SOPs, and control frameworks.
- Identify operational gaps, risk patterns, and scalability issues; drive process improvements and automation where possible.
- Partner with cross-functional teams to improve payroll workflows, controls, and client experience.
- Ensure strong documentation, audit readiness, and evidence quality.
Cross-Functional Partnership
- Partner closely with Product and Engineering to inform PEO payroll system enhancements and roadmap priorities.
- Collaborate with Tax, Benefits, Legal, and Finance teams to resolve complex PEO issues.
- Provide subject-matter guidance on US PEO feasibility, risk, and scalability.
- Support go-to-market, sales, or implementation teams as an advisor on PEO payroll capabilities and limitations.
Reporting & Risk Management
- Provide regular updates on operational health, risks, escalations, and performance metrics.
- Own incident management for PEO payroll issues, including root cause analysis and corrective action plans.
- Ensure compliance with internal controls and external regulatory requirements.
Practicals
- You'll report to: Senior Manager, Payroll Operations
- Team: Payroll Operations
- Team size: 1
- Location: United States
- Start date: As soon as possible
Application process
Roughly 2.5 hours across 3 weeks
- Interview with recruiter
- Interview with General Manager, PEO
- Interview with future manager
- Interview with Senior Director, Payroll Operations
- Bar Raiser Interview
- Prior employment verification check
Remote's Total Rewards philosophy is to ensure fair, unbiased compensation and fair equity pay along with competitive benefits in all locations in which we operate. We do not agree to or encourage cheap-labor practices and therefore we ensure to pay above in-location rates. We hope to inspire other companies to support global talent-hiring and bring local wealth to developing countries.
At first glance our salary bands seem quite wide - here is some context. At Remote we have international operations and a globally distributed workforce. We use geo ranges to consider geographic pay differentials as part of our global compensation strategy to remain competitive in various markets while we hiring globally.
Our salary ranges are determined by role, level and location, and our job titles may span more than one career level. The actual base pay for the successful candidate in this role is dependent upon many factors such as location, transferable or job-related skills, work experience, relevant training, business needs, and market demands. The base salary range may be subject to change.
At Remote, we foster internal mobility as a key element of our culture of employee growth and development, supported by a compensation philosophy that guarantees pay equity and fairness. Therefore, all compensation changes associated with an internal move will be reviewed by the Total Rewards & People Enablement team on a case by case basis.
The annual salary range for this full-time position is
$112,500—$151,900 USD
Benefits
Our full benefits & perks are explained in our handbook at remote.com/r/benefits. As a global company, each country works differently, but some benefits/perks are for all Remoters:
- work from anywhere
- flexible paid time off
- flexible working hours (we are async)
- 16 weeks paid parental leave
- mental health support services
- stock options
- learning budget
- home office budget & IT equipment
- budget for local in-person social events or co-working spaces
How you’ll plan your day (and life)
We work async at Remote which means you can plan your schedule around your life (and not around meetings). Read more at remote.com/async.
You will be empowered to take ownership and be proactive. When in doubt you will default to action instead of waiting. Your life-work balance is important and you will be encouraged to put yourself and your family first, and fit work around your needs.
If that sounds like something you want, apply now!
How to apply
- Please fill out the form below and upload your CV with a PDF format.
- We kindly ask you to submit your application and CV in English, as this is the standardised language we use here at Remote.
- If you don’t have an up to date CV but you are still interested in talking to us, please feel free to add a copy of your LinkedIn profile instead.
We will ask you to voluntarily tell us your pronouns at interview stage, and you will have the option to answer our anonymous demographic questionnaire when you apply below. As an equal employment opportunity employer it’s important to us that our workforce reflects people of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences and this data will help us to stay accountable. We thank you for providing this data, if you chose to.
Please note we accept applications on an ongoing basis.