Senior Payroll Specialist

The Organization

Search for Common Ground (SFCG) is an international non-profit organization that promotes peaceful resolution of conflict. With an annual budget of $35M, headquarters in Washington, DC and a European corporate office in Brussels, Belgium, SFCG’s mission is to transform how individuals, organizations, and governments deal with conflict – away from adversarial approaches and toward cooperative solutions. SFCG seeks to help conflicting parties understand their differences and act on their commonalities. With a total of approximately 615 staff worldwide, SFCG implements projects from 56 offices in 35 countries, including in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.    

Summary of Position

Search for Common Ground (SFCG) seeks a Senior Payroll Specialist to prepare and record the bi-weekly and monthly payrolls for its DC and Brussels-based offices and expatriate staff using ADP and SDWorx as applicable, and maintain accurate recordkeeping related thereto. Reporting to the Chief Accountant, s/he ensures payroll and related accounting procedures conform to the appropriate labor and tax laws, as well as to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and company personnel and accounting policy.  The ideal candidate will have experience in payroll and compensation matters in the nonprofit INGO sector, excels at account analysis, and can act as a backup to other Finance functions as may be required.   

Primary Responsibilities

• Utilize the SharePoint Finance Portal (and manual timesheets for remote employees as necessary) to capture labor reporting and distribution, in order to prepare respective payrolls for transmission to the 3rd party payroll processing company.
• Process payroll within company policy guidelines and in compliance with Federal, State and other laws and regulations.
• Understand employer and employee paid benefits and taxes regulations for DC office;
• Ensure compliance with regulatory standards, payroll laws and policies;
• Maintain accurate recordkeeping and reports related to the payroll functions, ensuring timesheets are received and appropriately maintained for every employee, following up with supervisors as may be necessary to ensure appropriate approvals are received.
• Generate various reports on taxes paid, employee withholdings and deductions taken, etc. in order to properly record and verify payroll-related account balances. Prepare entries to record monthly payroll activity and reconcile all withholding accounts including health insurance, 403(B) retirement and Metro transportation withholding, etc.
• Ensure that annual tax exemption information is updated for all expatriates by Feb 15^th of each year, as may be applicable.
• Complete annual reconciliations of the quarterly Form 941’s.
• Coordinate the preparation and distribution of annual W-2 statements.
• Coordinate preparation of state payroll tax returns as may be applicable for employees working outside of DC.
• Effectively and timely communicate compensation and accounting policies and procedures as needed in response to staff inquiries.
• Handle employee payroll questions and concerns, research any discrepancies reported, and handle appropriate corrections as needed.
• Communicate with Department Supervisors on any payroll discrepancies such as timesheet errors, or requested sick and vacation and other paid time off benefit reports (eg. “Lost Hours” reports), etc. 
• Prepare manual checks to correct errors with payroll and issues final checks for employee terminations.
• Coordinate direct deposit information with banks using pre-notifications, etc.
• Liaise with ADP and SDWorx service providers as necessary for maintaining software customizations.
• Maintain ongoing effective communication and collaborative relationship with all members of the Human Resources Department to insure accuracy of employee data and efficient processing of employee changes.
• New employees must be vetted through the appropriate Excluded Parties & OFAC SDN (Terrorist Watchlist) databases, and existing payees on a periodic basis.
• Appropriate record retention and maintenance of all electronic and paper payroll records in a neat and orderly manner.
• Gather timesheet and payroll supporting documentation for the annual audit process, as well as for any adhoc project reviews or audits requiring specific employee payroll information.
• Provide appropriate employee salary information for use in the annual budget process.
• Maintain the highest level of confidentiality regarding payroll and personal employee information.
• Keep up to date on new payroll-related tax law changes, and implement changes accordingly.
• Initiate improvement and simplification of accounting processes and procedures.

Additional Responsibilities

• Acts as backup to the Accounts Payable and Purchasing Specialist:
  • Urgent check and wire requests;
  • Ensure that W-9 forms are received for all Consultants; and
  • Management of employee advance balances.
• Deposits any checks / cash received physically in the DC office with the local banking partner.
• Manage Petty Cash transactions.

As job descriptions cannot be exhaustive, the position holder may be required to undertake other duties that are broadly in line with the above key duties.

Minimum Qualifications

Essential

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance, or equivalent experience
• A minimum of five (5) years in accounting and managing the payroll accounting function, with two (2) years or more working in an international organization providing payroll service to expatriates
• Working knowledge of 3^rd party electronic payroll processing company software and reports, as well as automated accounting systems
• Demonstrated working knowledge of payroll tax rules and regulations
• Strong attention to detail
• Solid spreadsheet and analytical skills; proficiency in Microsoft Office products required
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including courtesy, cooperativeness, and professionalism
• Effective communicator internally and externally
• Excellent written and oral English communication skills to effectively interact with staff regarding detailed financial information, and business-related inquiries into financial matters in a highly diverse multicultural environment
• Demonstrated commitment to teamwork in a fast-paced work environment
• Highly organized with ability to meet deadlines, both prescribed and self-imposed
• Ability to perform and prioritize multiple tasks
• Adaptable and flexible

Desired

• Experience with ADP payroll administration services
• Experience with Great Plains accounting software
• Fluency in French or another language

Salary:  Commensurate with experience and education, with excellent benefits

To Apply: Please submit a cover letter and resume through our application system at:https://sfcg.bamboohr.com/jobs/view.php?id=265. The application deadline is May 31, 2015. Please be sure to include salary requirements (in currency figures) or current salary, as well as projected start date and where you found this posting. No phone calls please. Only applicants invited for an interview will be contacted. Please see our web sitewww.sfcg.org for full details of our work.