Process engineer Jobs in Orange, CA

Payroll Global Process Owner

This position reports to the Sr. Director, Finance GPO & Delivery and can be based either in our Prague (Czech Republic) or Brea, CA (USA) sites. The Payroll Global Process Owner is the enterprise owner of the end-to-end global payroll process. This role ensures payroll accuracy, compliance, governance, systems integrity, and standardization across all regions and operating companies. The Payroll GPO shapes the global payroll strategy, drives operational excellence, and leads harmonization and automation initiatives across multiple vendors, countries, and platforms.

This role partners closely with HR, Finance, Total Rewards, HRIS/IT, regional payroll teams, and external vendors to deliver a compliant, efficient, and employee centric payroll operation globally.

Primary Duties And Responsibilities:

• Own the global end-to-end payroll process, including data inputs, processing, validation, disbursements, compliance, reporting, and audit control
• Establish, document, and maintain global payroll standards, policies, SLAs, controls, and operational frameworks.
• Drive global consistency while enabling necessary local regulatory requirements
• Maintain strong governance, including SOX compliance, internal audits, and data privacy standards
• Oversee performance of external payroll vendors and ensure alignment with enterprise standards
• Ensure adherence to statutory and regulatory requirements across all geographies, including tax, social security, labor regulations, pay transparency, and reporting mandates
• Design and enforce the global control environment, including reconciliation processes and preventative/detective controls
• Proactively identify compliance risks and lead mitigation actions across regions
• Develop and maintain a standardized global payroll operating model supported by best practice workflows
• Lead global transformation initiatives to digitize, simplify, standardize, and automate payroll processes aligned with enterprise GPO expectations observed across functional GPO roles
• Drive root cause analysis and implement corrective actions to increase payroll accuracy, timeliness, and efficiency
• Build and maintain KPIs and dashboards for payroll performance, compliance, and service delivery
• Champion a culture of continuous improvement across payroll teams globally
• Partner with HRIS/IT to optimize and harmonize payroll related technology (Workday, SAP, ADP, Oracle, or local systems)
• Identify opportunities for AI, automation, RPA, workflow tools, integrations, and analytics to enhance payroll processing
• Ensure data integrity and seamless integrations with HR, Finance, and Time & Attendance systems
• Define the future global payroll delivery model (shared services, BPO, hybrid), drawing on global best practices
• Provide direction to regional payroll leaders, ensuring capability building, knowledge sharing, and performance excellence
• Serve as escalation point for complex payroll issues
• Support audit activities through ownership of standardized controls and documentation
• Manage relationships with multicounty payroll vendors and regional/local payroll partners
• Serve as escalation point for complex payroll issues globally
• Partner with HR, Total Rewards, Finance, and regional leadership to ensure aligned execution and ongoing improvements
• Drive change management including training, communication, adoption, and documentation across regions

Job Requirements:

Experience & Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or related discipline required
• Certifications in payroll or HR (CPP, GPHR, etc.) preferred
• 10+ years of experience in Global Payroll, Payroll Operations, HR Operations, or a similar process-heavy leadership role
• Experience with large?scale global payroll implementations or transitions
• Familiarity with shared services or GBS operating models
• Experience with Workday, SAP, ADP, Oracle, or similar payroll/HRIS platforms

Skills & Competencies:

• Strong analytical problem-solving, decision-making, and data-driven thinking
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate across cultures and time zones
• Proven capability in leading change and managing cross-functional initiatives
• High level of integrity, accountability, and business partnership

Key Leadership Attributes:

• Strategic mindset with ability to translate vision into actionable roadmaps
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to engage effectively with stakeholders at all levels
• Results oriented, disciplined, and able to operate in a fast-paced, global environment
• Passion for operational excellence and continuous improvement