If you have an interest in math, an eye for detail and a natural knack for problem-solving, you may be the ideal fit for a career in payroll. As a payroll professional, you make sure employee paychecks are accurate and follow tax and labor laws. Payroll professionals ultimately ensure that all employees get paid accurately and on time, keeping the entire workplace in motion.
At UCPath, joining the payroll team means more than just crunching numbers. You’ll have the opportunity to explore the full scope of a centralized payroll system that works closely with every University of California location to serve more than 230,000 UC employees.
Exploring Payroll Careers at UCPath
By joining the payroll team at UCPath, you become a member of a collaborative organization that supports the entire University of California. As a human resources, payroll and benefits administration and shared services provider, UCPath offers full-cycle payroll management, which includes every aspect of calculating, distributing and recording employee pay. You can expect to work on key functions such as:
- Payroll processing
- Data collection
- Wage calculations
- Payroll adjustments
- Deductions and withholdings
- Payroll reporting
- Recordkeeping
- Compliance and regulations
UCPath’s cross-functional teams deliver payroll services for more than 20 UC locations, including all UC campuses and medical centers. The UCPath team provides thorough, accurate payroll services at scale, and each payroll professional plays an important role in the process.
Benefits of Working at UCPath
If you’re looking for a place to expand your payroll knowledge and your career, UCPath offers a supportive environment where you can make an impact. Every payroll team member understands how their role supports UCPath’s visionof being the premiere shared services provider for payroll, benefits and HR services in US higher education.
Along with offering competitive benefits and a vibrant, collaborative workplace community, UCPath gives you the opportunity to truly invest in your professional goals.
Because UCPath provides full-cycle services, you have the opportunity to learn all aspects of payroll management, so your career growth can begin as soon as you join the team. You can also take advantage of mentorship and cross-training opportunities to learn more about other human resources functions and explore other departments.
Qualifications for a Career in Payroll
The payroll sector offers a wide array of roles, catering to varying levels of expertise and specialization for seasoned payroll professionals.
While a specific degree isn’t necessary for a payroll role, one of these specialties is helpful:
- Accounting
- Finance
- Human resources management
- Business
In addition, earning certifications through The American Payroll Association can help your resume stand out to employers. The Fundamental Payroll certification is ideal for people seeking to break into the world of payroll, while the Certified Payroll Professional qualification is designed for candidates with at least three years of payroll experience.
Skills for Success in Payroll
To thrive in a payroll position, you need a blend of soft skills and payroll-specific technical skills. When you first start your payroll career, you’ll likely rely on your personal attributes and interpersonal skills to successfully navigate payroll systems. Some of the top soft skills for payroll positions include:
- Communication: Payroll professionals are often the first resource for answering questions about employee pay, so being a skilled communicator and collaborator is important
- Integrity: Processing payroll involves working with sensitive employee data and upholding strict compliance requirements, so you must be committed to ethics and integrity
- Problem-solving: When errors occur, payroll professionals must use creative and analytical problem-solving skills to identify these errors and implement solutions
Research, education and on-the-job training can help you build technical knowledge and skills for your payroll career. Key areas of focus include:
- Data entry: Working with a centralized payroll system involves managing large data sets, so it’s important to efficiently and accurately enter this information into company systems
- Math: While you may be able to automate many of your payroll calculations, having keen math skills can help you recognize errors and operate more efficiently. The ability to process manual calculations is also an ideal skill to have
- Payroll knowledge: Working in payroll involves mastering concepts such as retroactive pay, tax withholding and deductions, pay garnishments, overtime law and resolving overpayments
- Software proficiency: Payroll professionals regularly use software tools, such as the PeopleSoft platform and spreadsheet tools like Excel
By cultivating a balanced set of payroll skills, you can become a more attractive candidate to employers and be more successful in your role once hired. As you gain experience, your skill set will help you prepare to advance into specialized roles.
Build a Payroll Career with UCPath
When you join the payroll team at UCPath, you become part of a valuable transactional hub that delivers pay for a 230,000-employee workforce. You also have the opportunity to learn about the full lifecycle of payroll management and unlimited opportunities to advance in your career.
Whether you’re an experienced payroll professional or just starting out, visit the UCPath job board to find the right payroll position for you.