Director of Payroll 

📍 Location: Central Valley, CA  
🕒 Schedule: Full-Time, Exempt | Hybrid (2 days onsite / 3 days remote)
🏢 Department: Headquarters
📋 Reports To: Chief Human Resources Officer
💰 Pay Range: $125,000 – $140,000 annually

✨  Make a Meaningful Impact

Aspiranet, a leading California-based nonprofit dedicated to supporting children, youth, and families, is seeking a dedicated and detail-oriented Payroll Director to join our team. If you thrive in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment and have a passion for providing excellent operational support while collaborating and working with the HQ team, we’d love to hear from you.

❤️ About Aspiranet

Aspiranet is a mission-driven nonprofit organization founded in 1975, serving communities across California. We support children, youth, and families through programs that include foster care and adoption, residential services, behavioral health, transitional age youth services, intensive home-based services, and community-based family resources.

At Aspiranet, we are guided by values of respect, integrity, courage, and hope, and we believe every role contributes to creating brighter futures.

📝️ Position Summary

The Payroll Director reports to the Chief Human Resources Officer and leads a team responsible for processing semi-monthly payroll for over 1,000 employees in a complex, highly regulated environment. This role ensures efficient payroll operations, tax reporting, auditing, and system management, while collaborating closely with finance, HR, and leadership to maintain full compliance. The ideal candidate has advanced knowledge of California and multi-state payroll regulations, is a Certified Payroll Specialist, experienced in system implementations, and excels in high-volume, continuous improvement settings.

🔍 Key Responsibilities

Payroll Operations & Compliance

• Direct and oversee accurate, timely payroll processing in a complex, grant-funded, high-volume environment.
• Ensure full compliance with all federal, state, and local employment, wage and hour, and tax laws and regulations.
• Provide final review and approval of all payrolls, filings, and related deliverables prior to submission.
• Serve as backup for payroll processing functions as needed to ensure continuity of operations.
• Perform other job-related duties as assigned in support of organizational needs.

Audit, Risk & Regulatory Management

• Lead and coordinate internal and external audits, including fiscal, governmental, 403(b), workers’ compensation, compensation, benefits, and wage and hour audits.
  
• Conduct ongoing internal audits of payroll processes, tax filings, rates, accruals, and controls to proactively identify risks and ensure audit-ready compliance.
  
• Partner with Finance, HR, and external auditors to resolve findings and strengthen controls.

Process Improvement & Documentation

• Develop, implement, and maintain comprehensive standard operating procedures (SOPs) for all payroll functions.
• Evaluate payroll systems and workflows to identify opportunities for automation, efficiency, and enhanced compliance.
• Lead or support payroll system implementations, upgrades, and process redesign initiatives.

Team Leadership & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Supervise, mentor, and develop payroll staff to promote accountability, technical excellence, and professional growth.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, accuracy, and service orientation within the payroll team.
• Build and maintain strong consultative partnerships with leaders and staff across the organization to support effective payroll operations.

✅ Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a closely related field required; Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or equivalent certification strongly preferred.
• Minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible payroll experience in a high-volume, audit-intensive, and highly regulated environment.
• Advanced expertise in California wage and hour laws, with demonstrated ability to apply regulations accurately within complex payroll operations; multi-state experience preferred.
• Proven experience leading or supporting payroll audits, including tax, wage and hour, benefits, retirement (403(b)), workers’ compensation, and governmental audits.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and enterprise-level payroll and timekeeping systems; UKG experience highly desirable.
• Prior experience with payroll system implementations, upgrades, or process redesign initiatives.
• Demonstrated ability to coach, train, and develop staff, and to communicate complex payroll concepts clearly to diverse stakeholders.
• Track record of driving continuous improvement, managing change, and building effective cross-functional partnerships.
• High level of integrity and discretion in handling sensitive and confidential information.
• Ability to meet all state-required conditions of employment, including Community Care Licensing requirements, fingerprinting, and Child Abuse Index clearance.

💻 Work Environment & Schedule

• This role will serve as a Monday – Friday standard 8:00 am – 5 pm business hours.

❤ Why Aspiranet?

• Competitive compensation, comprehensive benefits package, and a 403(b) retirement plan with employer matching.
• Access to the free Aspiranet Employee Perks Program. Enjoy exclusive discounts on entertainment, travel, wellness, pet care, gym memberships, theme parks, and more
• Flexible Hybrid Schedule. Enjoy the mix of remote and in-office work, supporting work-life balance
• Flexible paid time off including 11 paid holidays, 10 vacation days, 10 sick leave days, two diversity days, and paid birthday time off.
• Access to our employee assistance program including 24/7 crisis line; up to 6 counseling sessions per issue.
• Training opportunities are available to support your ongoing development and career aspirations.
• Collaborate in a supportive, inclusive, and mission-aligned culture.
• Opportunity to lead meaningful initiatives that support employee wellbeing.

🏋️‍‍ Physical Demands

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

This position typically operates in a standard office environment. The noise level is generally quiet and remains within OSHA’s established safety levels at all times.

⚖️  Equal Employment Opportunity

Aspiranet is an equal opportunity employer that recognizes the value of diversity. We believe a diverse workforce within a culture of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) increases creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and teamwork for the youth and families that we serve and the organization as a whole.  Aspiranet strives to provide our employees with a workplace that is welcoming, inclusive of differing world views, cultures, and lived experiences.

📝 How to Apply

Join us in building brighter futures.

Apply today through our career portal:

 👉 Click here to apply: www.aspiranet.org/careers

✨ Pro Tip: Once you’re in the portal, be sure to create an account to get started on your application! It’s quick, easy, and the first step to making a difference.