Payroll Operations Manager
Designer Fund is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage tech companies using design to improve health, sustainability, or prosperity for people. It backs founding teams, particularly those with design backgrounds, across sectors like fintech, healthcare, climate tech, and developer tools.
About Designer Fund
Designer Fund is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in tech companies leveraging design to drive positive outcomes in health, sustainability, and financial prosperity. Its portfolio spans a wide range of sectors including financial infrastructure (Stripe), preventative health (Omada), collaborative tools (Notion), developer tools (Netlify), product management (Linear), payroll and benefits (Gusto), design tools (Framer), and healthcare infrastructure (Commure), among dozens of other companies across fintech, climate tech, healthcare, EdTech, and AI. The firm also runs 'Designer Founders,' a community and platform highlighting designers who have gone on to found and lead companies, reflecting its focus on backing design-driven founders and design-centric startups from early stages through growth and acquisition.
Skills
About the Role
You will manage the full payroll function for a growing workforce across the United States, including both corporate employees and frontline operations employees. You'll oversee payroll processing, records maintenance, compliance, and financial reporting while helping shape and scale payroll operations in a rapidly expanding organization.
Requirements
- 5+ years of payroll experience, including managing complex, multi-state payrolls
- Experience supporting unionized workforces and California payroll strongly preferred
- Proficiency with payroll and HRIS systems such as Workday, ADP, or similar platforms
- Advanced Microsoft Excel skills
- Strong knowledge of federal, state, and local wage and hour laws, payroll tax regulations, and payroll compliance requirements
- Familiarity with collective bargaining agreement (CBA) administration and payroll-related union requirements is a plus
- Exceptional attention to detail and accuracy
- Strong problem-solving and analytical skills
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with professionalism and discretion
- Proven ability to manage multiple priorities, meet deadlines, and partner effectively with cross-functional stakeholders
Responsibilities
- Oversee end-to-end bi-weekly and semi-monthly payroll processing for employees across multiple states, entities, and employee populations
- Collaborate closely with Operations, People Operations, and Finance teams to ensure accurate inputs and timely processing
- Administer payroll-related provisions of employee agreements and collective bargaining agreements, including union dues, pay differentials, and seniority-based pay adjustments
- Partner with Finance to allocate payroll costs accurately across cost centers and locations
- Collaborate with People Operations to gather, validate, and maintain employee data required for payroll processing
- Ensure payroll practices comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations
- Serve as a primary point of contact for payroll-related questions from employees, managers, and operational teams
- Exercise the highest degree of confidentiality regarding all payroll information and employee privacy initiatives
Benefits
- Free medical plans
- 401K matching