Director of Payroll Services & Benefits Administration

Job Class: 0993

Salary Range: $148,215 - $198,901 annually

Appointment Type: Permanent Exempt (what does this mean?)

Length of Appointment: 3 Years

Calendar: Full Time / Full Year

Who We Are 

The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) is the seventh largest school district in California, serving more than 50,000 students who speak more than 44 documented languages across 121 schools in the city of San Francisco every year. We aim for every student who attends SFUSD schools to discover his or her spark, along with a strong sense of self and purpose, and that all students graduate from high school ready for college and career, and equipped with the skills, capacities and dispositions outlined in SFUSD’s Graduate Profile.  Every day in our quest to achieve this mission we provide each and every student the quality instruction and equitable support required to thrive in the 21st century.

What It Means to Work Here 

The SFUSD community is unified by our Core Values: 

● Student-centered: We put students’ needs first 

● Fearless: We persist through challenges 

● United: We celebrate and build on each other’s strengths 

● Social Justice: We stand with those most vulnerable in our community 

● Diversity-driven: We respect and seek to understand each person 

We are also inspired by Vision, Values and Guardrails which captures our aspirations and vision for the future of public education in San Francisco. Alongside the District’s strategic plan.SFUSD is reimagining how public education will change over the next decade to meet the dynamic future of San Francisco. As a CORE district, SFUSD is also a leader in critical systems change for more comprehensive school accountability and innovations that help strengthen the instructional core, which is the foundation of our strategic plan and goals.  

Who We Want 

We want talented people from diverse backgrounds and experiences, who are committed to and will champion our Core Values, are inspired by our mission steeped in equity, and who are motivated to unleash our children’s potential. We want people who are strong collaborators, skilled communicators, problem solvers and who are comfortable in a community of continuous learning. 

As the 0993 Director of Payroll Services & Benefits Administration, you will report to the Executive Director of Payroll Services & Benefits Administration and serve as the department’s principal deputy, second-in-command, and senior operating leader. You will provide strategic and operational leadership over Payroll Operations, Post-Pay Functions, Payroll Customer Service, and Benefits Administration through subordinate managers and supervisors. The Director helps translate executive strategy into operational execution, strengthens internal controls and service delivery, resolves cross-functional issues, and ensures accurate, timely, compliant, and employee-centered administration of pay and benefits.

The Director is expected to operate primarily at the leadership, governance, organizational-performance, and systems level rather than as a transactional payroll or benefits processor. When delegated, or during the Executive Director’s absence, the Director may act on behalf of the Executive Director in operational and administrative matters.

Essential Duties

• Serve as the principal deputy and senior operating leader to the Executive Director; represent the department and act on behalf of the Executive Director in operational and administrative matters as assigned.
• Lead and coordinate Payroll Operations, Post-Pay Functions, Payroll Customer Service, and Benefits Administration through subordinate managers and supervisors, establishing clear priorities, accountability, service standards, and performance expectations.
• Translate executive priorities into annual operating plans, measurable goals, implementation timelines, and corrective actions; monitor organizational performance and report significant risks, trends, and resource needs to the Executive Director.
• Provide senior oversight of payroll functions across SFUSD, inclusive of approximately 10,000 certificated and classified employees on varying pay schedules, ensuring timely and accurate monthly, biweekly, supplemental, manual, and off-cycle payroll processing.
• Provide leadership and supervision to Benefits Administration, including eligibility and enrollment, health and welfare benefits, qualifying life events, annual Open Enrollment, employee support, vendor coordination, benefit deductions, reconciliations, and compliance.
• Ensure timely and accurate post-payroll activities, including payroll taxes, W-2 and W-2C processing, CalSTRS and SFERS reporting, garnishments, child support, voluntary and mandatory deductions, retirement deductions, vendor remittances, reconciliations, and required reporting.
• Provide senior leadership for Payroll Customer Service, including intake and triage, employee assistance, complex case resolution, service-level standards, escalation management, employee communications, and knowledge management.
• Establish and maintain strong internal controls and appropriate segregation of duties across payroll and benefits processes; identify operational, financial, compliance, system, and employee-service risks and require timely corrective action.
• Oversee consistent processes for identifying, validating, communicating, correcting, and recovering payroll overpayments and for promptly resolving underpayments and missed-pay situations in accordance with applicable requirements.
• Use payroll errors, benefit discrepancies, customer-service trends, audit findings, and performance data to identify root causes and sponsor sustainable corrective actions rather than relying solely on transactional fixes.
• Work collaboratively with Human Resources, Leaves, Labor Relations, Legal, Position Control, Accounting, Budget, Technology, retirement systems, benefits vendors, and other internal and external partners to ensure accurate and timely employee pay and benefits administration.
• Partner with Process Improvement & Special Projects to redesign workflows, improve data quality, strengthen documentation, automate manual processes, develop performance dashboards, and implement cross-functional initiatives.
• Monitor compliance with applicable federal and California laws and regulations, Education Code provisions, collective bargaining agreements, Board policies, tax requirements, retirement-system requirements, benefit plan requirements, and other governing rules.
• Supervise, evaluate, coach, and develop assigned managers and supervisors; build leadership capacity, promote cross-training and succession planning, address single points of failure, and hold leaders accountable for short- and long-term results.
• Coordinate internal and external audits affecting Payroll or Benefits Administration, ensure timely responses to findings, and monitor completion of corrective-action plans.
• Develop and maintain clear operating procedures, calendars, checklists, escalation protocols, and service standards so critical functions are institutionalized and not dependent on individual knowledge.
• Communicate effectively with employees, managers, senior District leadership, bargaining-unit representatives, vendors, retirement systems, and external agencies regarding complex or sensitive payroll and benefits matters.
• Perform related duties as assigned.

The strongest candidates will have:

• Demonstrated project and program management experience leading complex, cross-functional initiatives, including development of project plans, timelines, milestones, risk and issue management, stakeholder engagement, change management, and successful implementation.
• Demonstrated success leading complex administrative functions through subordinate managers and supervisors, establishing clear accountability, developing leadership capacity, and improving organizational performance.
• Experience supervising or leading a large-scale payroll operation, preferably in a public school district or other complex public-sector environment, with responsibility for certificated and classified employee pay through a computerized payroll system.
• Experience with employee benefits administration, including eligibility, enrollment, health and welfare programs, vendor coordination, reconciliation, employee service, and compliance.
• Knowledge of California Education Code employment provisions applicable to certificated and classified staff and experience operationalizing collective bargaining agreements.
• Knowledge of practices and procedures of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) and San Francisco City and County Employees’ Retirement System (SFERS).
• Experience with payroll taxes, W-2/W-2C administration, deductions, garnishments, retirement reporting, reconciliations, audit support, and internal controls.
• Strong customer-service and case-management orientation, with demonstrated ability to resolve complex and sensitive employee pay or benefits issues.
• Experience leading business-process improvement, organizational change, system implementation, data-quality improvement, automation, or related transformation efforts.
• Ability to work effectively across multiple functions and roles within a complex, unionized organization and build strong working relationships with senior leaders and operational partners.
• Strong analytical, communication, judgment, and problem-solving skills, including the ability to work effectively in difficult situations involving confidential and sensitive matters.
• Strong computer and systems skills, including Google Suite and Microsoft Office Suite; experience with enterprise HR, payroll, benefits, timekeeping, or case-management systems is highly desirable.
• Strategic leadership and management experience; experience in a K-12 public educational setting is preferred.

Minimum Qualifications 

Bachelor’s degree (B.A. / B.S) from an accredited college or university; advanced degree preferred AND

Four (4) years of professional- level experience in business or financial operations at a large, urban school district, or payroll department, or other relevant setting

Substitution: Up to 4 years of education requirement may be substituted for additional experience on a year-for-year basis

What We Offer 

SFUSD offers a competitive salary of $148,215 - $198,901 annually commensurate with experience in a similar position. We offer a comprehensive benefits plan including dental and vision plans, a defined benefit pension plan, disability, life insurance, flexible spending account options and vacation time. We also offer an inclusive and equity-centered environment where we encourage staff to bring their whole selves to work.

How to Apply 

• Visit https://jobs.sfusd.edu/ and create a new account to begin your application.
• You will be prompted to electronically attach a letter of interest, resume, list of professional references

and any applicable credentials or licenses

• Our Human Resources team will then review your entire application to determine your eligibility status

and contact you directly should you move forward in the process

• Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from SFUSD and CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept SFUSD and CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfusd.edu, @sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com). 

Verification

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at http://sfdhr.org/how-verify-education-requirements.

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification from this and future job opportunities with the San Francisco Unified School District.

Nondiscrimination Statement and Grievance Procedures:

San Francisco Unified School District prohibits discrimination, harassment, intimidation, sexual harassment and bullying based on actual or perceived  race, color,  ancestry, nationality, national origin, immigration status, ethnic group identification, ethnicity, age, religion, pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or lactation, including medical conditions or recovery, parental, marital, and family status, reproductive health decision making, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sex, sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military or veteran status, or genetic information, or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics, or any other basis protected by law or regulation, in its educational program(s) or employment. 

Any person may report discrimination, including sex discrimination, sexual harassment, or discrimination on the basis of a physical or mental disability (whether or not the reporting person is alleged to be the victim of the discriminatory conduct) in person, by mail, by telephone, or by email, using the contact information for the District's Title IX Coordinator.

District Title IX Coordinator:

Eva Kellogg

Office of Equity

555 Franklin Street, 3rd Floor

San Francisco, CA, 94102

415-355-7334 or equity@sfusd.edu

For more information and the District's nondiscrimination policy, please review Board Policy 4030.  For more information about the District's Sexual Harassment policy, please review Board Policy 4034.