Senior HR Operations Lead (Payroll Escalations)
- Pay Rate: $39.19/hour on W2
- Contract Length: 6 months (with possible extension and/or conversion)
- Location: Houston, TX 77002 (Onsite)
- Work Schedule: 1st Shift | Monday – Friday | 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM CST
Raise is currently hiring a contract team member on behalf of our client. They’re expanding their team to meet growing needs, making this a unique opportunity to work with an industry leader.
Overview
- The Senior HR Operations Lead (Payroll Escalations) serves as the subject matter expert for pre-payroll administration and payroll-impacting HR data.
- This role owns payroll readiness, leads risk identification efforts, and acts as the escalation point for complex data, tax, and compliance issues prior to payroll execution.
Responsibilities
- Lead pre-payroll validation activities and readiness checks.
- Identify payroll and tax risks before payroll execution and coordinate resolution.
- Partner with Payroll to ensure clean handoffs and reduce post-payroll corrections.
- Administer and validate complex payroll-impacting changes (retroactive scenarios, multi-state work location changes)
- Serve as escalation point for payroll tax data issues prior to payroll run.
- Support audit preparation and payroll readiness reviews.
- Provide coaching and guidance to Tier 2 Associates and Tier 1 staff.
- Support workload prioritization around payroll calendars and cutoff timelines.
- Act as point of contact during pre-payroll windows.
- Lead or support improvements to workflows, checklists, and controls.
- Partner with HRIS, Payroll, Tax, and Continuous Improvement teams to reduce upstream defects.
- Maintain and enhance SOPs, knowledge articles, and training materials.
Supervisory Responsibilities
- Coach and mentor less experienced team members
- Act as team leader on complex systems projects
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s Degree (accredited) in Computer Science, MIS, Business Administration, or related field
- OR High School Diploma/GED with four (4) years of relevant work experience
- 4–7+ years of HR operations, payroll support, or HRIS administration
- Strong understanding of how HR transactions impact payroll and payroll tax
- Advanced knowledge of HRIS and payroll systems (Intermediate Excel, Oracle HCM, UKG-Timekeeper, ADP)
- Strong understanding of payroll readiness, tax implications, and HR data dependencies
- Experience serving as an escalation point in an HR Service Center or shared services model
- Strong analytical, documentation, and communication skills
- Ability to lead projects and prioritize effectively
Ideal Candidate Profile
- Highly professional and poised.
- Prior leadership or senior-level experience required.
- Agile mindset
- Exercises strong professional judgment with minimal supervision.
- Experience in Oil & Gas, Energy, or Manufacturing industries (10,000+ employee environments preferred)
- Comfortable in fast-paced corporate environments.
- Self-starter
Looking for meaningful work? We can help
Raise is an established hiring firm with over 65 years of experience. We believe strongly in making the world a better place through work, which is why we’re a certified B Corporation and donate 10% of our profits to charity.
We strive to build teams that reflect the diversity of the communities we work in. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including people from traditionally underrepresented groups such as women, visible minorities, Indigenous peoples, people identifying as LGBTQ2SI, veterans, and people with visible/nonvisible disabilities.
We have a dedicated webpage for accommodations where you can learn more about what we offer, and request accommodation: https://raise.jobs/accommodations/
In order to submit candidates for roles, our clients will sometimes require personal information to confirm the identity of applicants and their legal status to work. Raise will never ask you for personal or banking information unless you have been selected for a job. If you are ever unsure about the legitimacy of this or another job posting by Raise (or have any other questions), please contact us at +1 800-567-9675 or hello@raiserecruiting.com
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