Payroll Analyst - Division of Finance - University of Pennsylvania

University Overview


The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.




Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.




The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.








Posted Job Title

Payroll Analyst - Division of Finance





Job Profile Title

Payroll Accountant





Job Description Summary

This role will utilize Workday in the Payroll Partner role that supports academic pay, monthly pay, and weekly pay processes and procedures.


Utilizing Workday and various Penn technologies, this role supports transnational processing as well as advances with future projects and enhancements with the payroll department.


Drawing on a strong understanding of all areas of compliance throughout the gross-to-net lifecycle, the Payroll Analyst is responsible for reviewing, analyzing, reconciling and interpreting payroll data as it relates to payroll taxation, garnishments, and regulatory compliance for payroll processing.


The role is also responsible for reporting, analysis and maintenance of payroll processes and systems. This role provides payroll processing support to employees, including, but not limited to, initiating and reviewing payroll related tasks, as well as identifying and resolving issues impacting payroll in an accurate and timely manner.





Job Description

+ Manage Workday business process and workflows to perform accurate and timely completion of business process for payroll, preparation of funding, payroll reconciliations, and reports distribution.

+ Identify and research issues/system defects using independent judgement and in consultation with payroll team members and manager to formulate resolutions/recommendations by analyzing fact patterns and applying/following SOP and best practices.

+ Process off cycle, on-demand and manual payments, outside of the standard pay cycles.

+ Identify and resolve payroll discrepancies by researching and understanding federal, state and local requirements; analyzing payroll and payroll tax data, including gross-to-net calculations; and evaluating and understanding the “down-stream” impact of the discrepancy and corrective actions.

+ Work cross-functionally with other teams in the Penn Benefits, Human Resources, and other key management areas including Penn School/Center staff members in the processing and analysis of weekly and monthly payroll.

+ Act as a subject matter expert for researching, troubleshooting and resolving integration and production issues, applying best practices and ensuring long-standing solutions.

+ Understand cross functional impacts of certain configuration decisions and touchpoints applying accuracy and efficiency in all requests and analyses.

+ Analyze account reconciliations of payroll-related data in the University general ledger and tax filing system; partner with the accounting lead to resolve reconciling items.

+ Identify and develop ideas for improving the Workday business specific processes and methodologies. Provides resolution in accordance with due dates and documents/maintains SOP documentation and processes. Escalates noncompliance issues related to processes/procedures as appropriate.

+ Manage Workday business process work flows to perform accurate and timely completion of business process for payroll processing tasks, preparation of funding, payroll reconciliations, report distribution.

+ Review, audit, analyze, interpret payroll data to ensure compliance with Penn policies and procedures, governmental regulations, wage tax laws, segregation of duties, DOL, and other federal and state legislation impacting payroll gross-to-net processes; adhere to control objectives established and ensure compliance and accuracy with all payroll work.

+ Act as SME to research, troubleshoot, resolve integration and production issues, applying best practices and ensuring long-standing solutions.

+ Understand cross functional impacts of configuration decisions and touchpoints. Identify and resolve payroll discrepancies by researching and understanding federal, state and local requirements; analyze payroll and payroll tax data, including gross-to-net calculations; evaluate and understand “down-stream” impact of discrepancies and corrective actions.

+ Identify and develop ideas for improving the Workday business specific processes and methodologies. Provide resolution in accordance with due dates, documents/maintains SOP documentation and processes. Escalate non-compliance issues related to processes/procedures as appropriate.

+ Identify and research issues/system defects, formulate resolutions/recommendations by analyzing fact patterns and applying/following SOP and best practices.

+ Work with manager and team to ensure current and accurate system documentation, coordinate and/or perform testing of system modifications, and develop, provide, or coordinate system training, educational tools and materials.

+ Generates ad hoc reports by running and or writing queries and analyze for accuracy.

+ Process accurate and timely year-end statements such as W-2, W-2C, 1042-S, and other related documents.

+ Process off cycle, on-demand and manual payments, outside of the standard pay cycles.

+ Manage garnishment processing according to state regulations, review gross-to-net calculations for accuracy, and ensure payment requests are made to disburse funds to appropriate agencies in a timely and accurate manner.






Qualifications

+ Bachelor’s Degree and a minimum of three years related experience and/or training or equivalent combination of education and experience in a payroll environment is required.

+ Demonstrated work experience with payroll reporting and analytical skills.

+ Demonstrated proficiency with Microsoft Word and Excel tools and other payroll programs used in education settings/environments.

+ Excellent interpersonal, communication and presentation skills.

+ Demonstrated ability to be detail-oriented and accurate.

+ Able to handle multiple tasks simultaneously.

+ Demonstrated organizational and prioritization skills, along with the ability to work within tight and often conflicting deadlines.

+ Must be flexible, show effective judgement, discretion and have the ability to handle confidential financial matters.

+ Work effectively in a highly matrixed and decentralized environment with the ability to navigate through ambiguity and demonstrate appreciation and support for diversity, inclusion and belonging in a constantly evolving academic/higher education environment.










Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania





Department / School

Division of Finance





Pay Range

$43,919.00 - $60,000.00 Annual Rate

Salary offers are made based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, as well as internal and market factors and grade profile.




Affirmative Action Statement Penn adheres to a policy that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.




Special Requirements Background check required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.




University Benefits

+ Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts : Penn offers comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits to protect you and your family’s health and welfare. You can also use flexible spending accounts to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars.

+ Tuition : Take advantage of Penn's exceptional tuition benefits . You, your spouse, and your dependent children can get tuition assistance here at Penn. Your dependent children are also eligible for tuition assistance at other institutions.

+ Retirement: Penn offers generous retirement plans to help you save for your future. Penn’s Basic, Matching, and Supplemental retirement plans allow you to save for retirement on a pre-tax or Roth basis. Choose from a wide variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.

+ Time Away from Work: Penn provides you with a substantial amount of time away from work during the course of the year. This allows you to relax, take vacations, attend to personal affairs, recover from illness or injury, spend time with family—whatever your personal needs may be.

+ Long-Term Care Insurance: In partnership with Genworth Financial, Penn offers faculty and staff (and your eligible family members) long-term care insurance to help you cover some of the costs of long-term care services received at home, in the community or in a nursing facility. If you apply when you’re newly hired, you won’t have to provide proof of good health or be subject to underwriting requirements. Eligible family members must always provide proof of good health and are subject to underwriting.

+ Wellness and Work-life Resources : Penn is committed to supporting our faculty and staff as they balance the competing demands of work and personal life. That’s why we offer a wide variety of programs and resources to help you care for your health, your family, and your work-life balance.

+ Professional and Personal Development: Penn provides an array of resources to help you advance yourself personally and professionally.

+ University Resources: As a member of the Penn community, you have access to a wide range of University resources as well as cultural and recreational activities. Take advantage of the University’s libraries and athletic facilities, or visit our arboretum and art galleries. There’s always something going on at Penn, whether it’s a new exhibit at the Penn Museum, the latest music or theater presentation at the Annenberg Center, or the Penn Relays at Franklin Field to name just a few examples. As a member of the Penn community, you’re right in the middle of the excitement—and you and your family can enjoy many of these activities for free.

+ Discounts and Special Services : From arts and entertainment to transportation and mortgages, you'll find great deals for University faculty and staff. Not only do Penn arts and cultural centers and museums offer free and discounted admission and memberships to faculty and staff. You can also enjoy substantial savings on other goods and services such as new cars from Ford and General Motors, cellular phone service plans, movie tickets, and admission to theme parks.

+ Flexible Work Hours: Flexible work options offer creative approaches for completing work while promoting balance between work and personal commitments. These approaches involve use of non-traditional work hours, locations, and/or job structures.

+ Penn Home Ownership Services: Penn offers a forgivable loan for eligible employees interested in buying a home or currently residing in West Philadelphia, which can be used for closing costs or home improvements.

+ Adoption Assistance: Penn will reimburse eligible employees on qualified expenses in connection with the legal adoption of an eligible child, such as travel or court fees, for up to two adoptions in your household.




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To learn more, please visit: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/PennHR/benefits-pay



The University of Pennsylvania's special character is reflected in the diversity of the Penn community. We seek talented faculty and staff who will constitute a vibrant community that draws on the strength that comes with a substantive institutional commitment to diversity along dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, disability, veteran status, interests, perspectives, and socioeconomic status. Grounded in equal opportunity, nondiscrimination, and affirmative action, Penn's robust commitment to diversity is fundamental to the University's mission of advancing knowledge, educating leaders for all sectors of society, and public service. The University of Pennsylvania prohibits unlawful discrimination based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.