Payroll Coordinator

ACU is affiliated with the fellowship of the Church of Christ. This position requires the employee to be a professing Christian and to be willing to support the Christian mission of ACU. ‌ The Payroll Coordinator serves as Abilene Christian University’s primary day-to-day payroll processor and is responsible for the accurate and timely execution of payroll operations across the ACU system. The position coordinates payroll-cycle activities, reviews payroll and timekeeping exceptions, processes approved employee changes affecting pay, completes operational reconciliations and control reviews, resolves employee payroll concerns, maintains payroll documentation, and supports payroll reporting and audit readiness. The Payroll Coordinator will work closely with the Tax and Payroll Compliance Accountant to maintain effective payroll controls, cross-training, documentation, and business continuity. Essential Duties and Responsibilities 1. Payroll Processing Serve as the primary processor for ACU’s scheduled payroll cycles and authorized off-cycle payroll activity. Maintain and follow payroll calendars, processing schedules, control checklists, and established deadlines. Collect, review, and validate authorized payroll inputs from Workday and other approved sources. Initiate and monitor payroll calculations and review preliminary results for completeness, accuracy, and reasonableness. Validate earnings, deductions, benefit withholdings, tax elections, direct-deposit information, and other payroll elements within the position’s assigned authority. Process approved regular earnings, retroactive adjustments, supplemental payments, overloads, stipends, one-time payments, corrections, and other authorized compensation. Identify incomplete, inconsistent, unusual, or unsupported transactions and obtain clarification or corrected documentation before payroll finalization. Coordinate resolution of payroll errors and exceptions with the appropriate HR, Finance, Benefits, HRIS, department, or manager representative. Complete required payroll close, settlement, transmission, and post-processing activities within established security and approval requirements. Maintain complete payroll cycle records, checklists, evidence of approval, reports, and supporting documentation. 2. Timekeeping and Payroll Exception Management Monitor time-entry, time-approval, absence, overtime, and payroll exception reports. Identify missing or unapproved time, unusual hours, potential underpayments or overpayments, and other timekeeping discrepancies. Communicate payroll deadlines and outstanding exceptions to employees, supervisors, departmental administrators, and designated approvers. Follow up on unresolved timekeeping items while maintaining the manager’s responsibility for reviewing and approving employee time. Process authorized corrections and adjustments in accordance with ACU procedures. Escalate recurring, high-risk, or unresolved…