Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. Trilliad is a Growth Services Provider that helps Growth Leaders across Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success optimize their strategies, processes, skills, and technology. The Associate Director, Global Payroll Accounting owns global payroll accounting, including close processes, reconciliations, GAAP-compliant reporting, payroll tax compliance, controls, and audit readiness. The role also leads the payroll accounting team, coordinates with Talent Operations and external providers, and drives standardization and automation across countries and acquired businesses.
Responsibilities
- Oversee the monthly, quarterly, and annual accounting close process for all compensation-related accounts globally — ensuring accurate accrual, recognition, and reporting of payroll, bonuses, commissions, equity, and benefits in compliance with US GAAP and local statutory requirements
- Manage the reconciliation and substantiation of compensation-related balance sheet accounts across all entities — ensuring audit readiness and resolving discrepancies between payroll systems, general ledger, and statutory filings
- Direct the accounting treatment of complex compensation structures including sales commissions, performance bonuses, equity-based compensation, and multi-country benefit programs — translating operational complexity into compliant financial reporting
- Manage the finance components of the global payroll process — coordinating with the Talent Team and external payroll providers to ensure payroll is delivered on time, accurately, and with complete accounting inputs across all jurisdictions
- Oversee the collection, validation, and accounting treatment of payroll inputs including commissions from internal and external sources, bonuses, equity vesting, and benefit deductions — ensuring data integrity and timely processing
- Ensure payroll tax registrations, filings, and regulatory communications are accurate and compliant — serving as the primary finance point of contact for payroll tax authorities and external advisors
- Standardize payroll accounting processes — harmonizing practices across acquired businesses and new country operations to ensure consistency, scalability, and control effectiveness
- Evaluate and strengthen internal controls over payroll accounting and reporting — identifying risks, implementing mitigating controls, and ensuring SOX compliance where applicable
- Drive process improvements and automation in payroll accounting workflows — reducing manual effort, improving data accuracy, and enabling faster close cycles as the organization scales
- Manage the payroll accounting team — setting priorities, allocating work, coaching team members, and conducting performance reviews to build capability and ensure delivery against close timelines and audit requirements
- Develop team expertise in multi-country payroll accounting, compensation structures, and regulatory compliance — ensuring the team can operate with increasing independence as Trilliad expands geographically
- Partner with external auditors during quarterly reviews and year-end audits — providing documentation, reconciliations, and explanations for all compensation-related accounts and ensuring timely resolution of audit inquiries
- Monitor changes in payroll tax regulations, accounting standards, and statutory reporting requirements across all jurisdictions — assessing impact and implementing necessary changes to accounting policies and processes
Skills
- All Difference-Makers are expected to meet the Trilliad Standard for Transferable Skills and Knowledge, which defines the core capabilities every teammate must bring—regardless of role, function, or level
- · Contextual Awareness · Critical Reasoning and Thinking · Data/Analytic Acumen · Empathy · Judgment and Discernment · Moral Courage · Pattern Recognition and Systems Thinking
- · AI Literacy · Responsible and Effective AI Use · Trilliad's Business and Commercial Context
- **Multi-country payroll accounting and reconciliation** — You manage the accounting treatment of payroll across multiple jurisdictions with different statutory requirements, tax regimes, and reporting standards, ensuring accurate consolidation and compliance in each location
- **Complex compensation accounting** — You translate operationally complex compensation structures including tiered sales commissions, performance bonuses, equity-based compensation, and multi-currency benefit programs into accurate accruals, journal entries, and financial statement disclosures
- **Balance sheet reconciliation and substantiation** — You prepare and review detailed reconciliations of compensation-related balance sheet accounts, identify and resolve discrepancies between source systems and the general ledger, and ensure accounts are audit-ready at all times
- **Internal controls design and assessment** — You identify control gaps in payroll accounting processes, design and implement mitigating controls, and ensure compliance with SOX requirements and internal control frameworks
- **Cross-functional coordination with non-finance stakeholders** — You work effectively with Talent Operations, payroll providers, and external tax advisors to ensure payroll processes meet both operational delivery requirements and financial reporting standards
- **US GAAP accounting for compensation and benefits** — You must understand the recognition, measurement, and disclosure requirements for payroll, bonuses, commissions, equity-based compensation, and employee benefits to ensure financial statements are compliant and audit-ready
- **Multi-country payroll tax and statutory reporting requirements** — You need working knowledge of payroll tax obligations, withholding requirements, and statutory reporting across the jurisdictions where Trilliad operates so that accounting entries reflect actual liabilities and compliance obligations
- **Payroll systems and data flows** — You must understand how payroll data moves from source systems through processing platforms to the general ledger so that you can identify data integrity issues, design effective controls, and troubleshoot discrepancies
- **Equity compensation accounting and administration** — You need to understand how equity grants, vesting schedules, and exercise activity translate into accounting entries and tax obligations so that equity-based compensation is accurately reflected in financial statements
- 7+ years in accounting roles with at least 3 years focused on payroll accounting, compensation accounting, or employee-related financial reporting in a multi-entity or multi-country environment
- 3+ years managing or leading a team responsible for payroll accounting, close processes, or balance sheet reconciliations — with direct accountability for team performance, development, and delivery against deadlines
- Experience managing payroll accounting for a company operating in at least 5 countries, including coordination with external payroll providers and navigation of differing statutory and tax requirements
- Demonstrated experience accounting for complex compensation structures including sales commissions with multiple tiers or accelerators, performance-based bonuses, and equity-based compensation programs
- Experience supporting external audits of compensation-related accounts — including preparation of audit documentation, reconciliations, and resolution of auditor inquiries
- Experience implementing or improving payroll accounting processes during periods of organizational growth, acquisition integration, or geographic expansion
Company Overview