Director, Payroll

At Real Chemistry, making the world a healthier place isn’t just an aspiration—it’s our everyday reality. Our drive to transform healthcare is informed by our blend of deep scientific expertise, human-centred creativity, and AI-driven insights, fostering a unique environment where innovation thrives and our people are impact-obsessed. As a global agency, we provide a full suite of services across healthcare communications and marketing to our clients, including top players in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.

Our #LifeatRealChem culture is rooted in our people—we believe we are best together and are committed to excellence for both our clients and colleagues. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting your career, if you share our passion for healthcare and connection, we invite you to explore our opportunities.

Discover your purpose. Embrace innovation. Experience #LifeatRealChem.

Overview

Real Chemistry is seeking a Director of Payroll to lead end-to-end payroll operations for our U.S. employee population of approximately 1,700 employees across multiple entities. This role is responsible for ensuring accurate, compliant, and timely payroll execution across salaried, hourly, and temporary workforces.  The Director will serve as a key partner to HR and Finance, oversee a small team, and drive continuous improvement in payroll processes, controls, and systems to support a growing, multi-entity organization.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead full-cycle U.S. payroll operations across multiple entities, including bi-monthly (salaried) and bi-weekly (hourly/temporary) payroll cycles
• Ensure accurate and timely processing for ~1,700 employees, including both permanent and contingent workforce populations
• Manage and develop a team of Payroll Analysts, providing coaching, performance management, and operational oversight
• Oversee payroll-related components including taxes, benefits, and 401(k), ensuring compliance across federal, state, and local jurisdictions
• Serve as a primary partner to HR and Finance on employee lifecycle events, reporting, reconciliations, and issue resolution
• Ensure compliance with all payroll regulations, including tax filings, audits, and resolution of agency notices
• Drive process optimization, documentation, and strengthening of internal controls to support audit readiness and scalability
• Support payroll-related system initiatives, including integrations and data flow optimization between payroll and HRIS platforms (e.g., ADP, Workday)

Qualifications

• 8–10+ years of progressive payroll experience, including team leadership
• Deep expertise in multi-state U.S. payroll operations and regulatory compliance
• Hands-on experience with ADP (Workforce Now or similar platform) required
• Experience with Workday or other HRIS systems strongly preferred
• Demonstrated ability to manage sensitive data with a high level of accuracy, integrity, and confidentiality
• Strong cross-functional partnership skills with HR, Finance, and external providers
• Experience driving system implementations, integrations, and process improvements

Preferred Profile

• Strategic, hands-on leader who can balance operational execution with process transformation
• Detail-oriented with strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, multi-entity, and largely remote environment
• Proven ability to build scalable processes and enhance controls in a growing organization

Success in This Role Looks Like

• Payroll is consistently accurate, on time, and audit-ready
• Strong partnership with HR and Finance enabling seamless employee lifecycle processing
• Reduced manual processes through automation and system optimization
• Scalable payroll infrastructure that supports organizational growth

Pay Range: $135,000-$155,000

This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting.  Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on job-related, non-discriminatory factors including but not limited to work experience, skills, certifications, and geographical location. The Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time

Real Chemistry is proud to be Great Place to Work® certified; check out what our people shared about our culture and workplace on our Great Places to Work Profile here.

We believe we can do our best when feeling our best, which is why we’ve put together a benefits program designed to give you the support you and your family need at every stage of life. Real Chemistry offers a comprehensive benefit program and perks, tailored to your region. Globally, this includes offices in our key markets with free snacks to keep you running all day long, generous holiday and paid time off, options for private medical, dental, and vison plans, and support in saving for the future. Other perks include mental wellness coaching and support and access to more than 13,000 online classes with LinkedIn Learning.  Learn more about our great benefits and perks and search specific offerings in your region at: www.realchemistrybenefits.com.

Working with Real HART: Since the pandemic, we have adapted to how our people told us they want to work. We have office locations in cities in the US, UK, and Europe with many employees and clients that serve as hubs where and when they need us. For employees who are within an hour of one of our offices, we expect attendance in the office two days per week, either at a Real Chemistry office or onsite with clients. We are also actively opening new office locations, so if one opens near you, our Real HART policy will apply. We are not looking for attendance for the sake of attendance but believe that the opportunity to coordinate in-office team meetings, 1:1 meetings with managers, taking advantage of on-site learning, and connecting with client partners is a critical to delivering on our purpose of making healthcare what it should be. Outside of these offices, we have regions, where people work remotely but come together quarterly for collaboration, culture and learning opportunities. We call this our Real Hybrid and Regional Teams (Real HART) approach. Real Chemistry believes we are best together – and our workplace strategy fosters connection and collaboration in person – but also supports flexibility for our people.

Real Chemistry is an Equal Opportunity employer. We continually strive to build and sustain an inclusive and equitable work environment where our employees feel empowered to leverage all they bring from their personal lived experience and professional expertise, to make our team the best in the industry. We encourage motivated and qualified applicants to apply without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, ethnic or national origin, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, marital information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local employment discrimination laws where Real Chemistry operates. Should you require accommodations throughout the interview process please let your recruiter know.

*Notice: Real Chemistry and its affiliates' names are being misused by scammers through messaging services, fake websites, and apps. Do not share personal or financial information or make payments to any unverified sources claiming to be connected to Real Chemistry. We are working to stop these unauthorized activities and protect our community. Read more here.