CAREER OPPORTUNITY

PAYROLL DIVISION CHIEF

The County of Santa Barbara is seeking an experienced professional to serve as the Payroll Division Chief

with the Office of the Auditor-Controller. The role of the Payroll Division Chief is to manage the County’s

centralized payroll functions. The chief accomplishes the County’s payroll processing objectives through

planning, coordinating, and monitoring the functions within the payroll division. The ideal candidate will

possess payroll processing expertise and knowledge of human resources management. The chief is a key

member of the Auditor-Controller’s management team, who serves as a catalyst for improving both the

division and the department as a whole.

The Payroll Division Chief is an at will position and will report directly to the Assistant Auditor-Controller,

while working closely with Human Resources, Santa Barbara County Employees’ Retirement System

(SBCERS), Risk Management, and County Counsel.

CLOSING DATE – Friday September 11, 2020 at 5p.m.

www.countyofsb.org/csd/

COUNTY

GOVERNMENT

Santa Barbara County is a

service-oriented organization

that functions with a workforce

of approximately 4,000

employees and an annual budget

of nearly $900 million. Covering

2,737 square miles, and bordered

on the west and south by the

Pacific Ocean, the County is

well- known for its mild climate,

picturesque coastline, and scenic

mountains. County employees

span 23 departments and strive to

improve the lives of a diverse

population of 425,840. Under

the Council-Executive form of

government, Santa Barbara

County is governed by the

County Executive Officer (CEO)

who is appointed by an elected

five-member Board of

Supervisors.

Please visit our website for

more information:

www.countyofsb.org

ABOUT THE AUDITOR-CONTROLLER

The Auditor-Controller is the chief fiscal officer of the County and is elected by Santa

Barbara County voters to provide property tax allocation, accounting, budgeting, and

financial services to county departments, school districts, special districts, cities, and

others. The department is dedicated to act in a way that will serve the public interest,

honor the public trust, and demonstrate a commitment to professionalism.

JOB SUMMARY

Under the general direction of the County Auditor-Controller, the Payroll Division

Chief is expected to uphold the values of Accountability, Customer-focus, and

Efficiency (ACE). Incumbents will lead other managers by modeling behaviors that

exemplify quality customer service. The Payroll Division Chief will also provide

effective and ethical leadership; help plan, develop, and implement programs that

effectively and efficiently use human and financial resources to achieve desired

results; and formulate goals and strategies that are consistent with the county's

mission and key business objectives.

IMPORTANT JOB FUNCTIONS:

Identify risks for the division and set goals/objectives to reduce those risks.

Develop project management plans to meet defined goals and objectives.

Maintain strong relationships and aid in ongoing participation with

interdepartmental projects and goals with the following key

departments and organizations:

o HR/CEO

o SBCERS

o Risk Management

o County Counsel

Provides advice to Human Resources/CEO on the design and implementation of employee benefit plans.

Affect change within the organization to streamline payroll processing at

the departmental level.

Create a reputation of aptitude, cooperation and innovation within

the organization.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

Supervises others, including leaders and professional staff.

Leads project teams with members from various departments.

Assumes full leadership responsibility for assignments.

Designs and implements countywide standards, practices, and goals.

Leads significant countywide programs, projects, and/or initiatives from

inception to execution and may manage those programs once implemented.

Potentially managing the program after implementation.

Establishes project outcomes and measurements.

Assumes accountability for producing countywide results.

Formulates and influences County policy.

Interacts with and makes recommendations to policy makers at the CEO

and/or Board of Supervisors level.

Santa Barbara County is a land

of beautiful beaches and rolling

hills covered with oaks and

vineyards. Community

celebrations as diverse as Old

Spanish Days, Danish Days,

Rodeos, Flower, Avocado and

Lemon Festivals and an

International Film Festival

ensure that there is something

here for everyone, and with an

average temperature near 70, you

can enjoy the scenery year-

round.

With an area just over 2,700

miles, and a population of

425,840, there are a variety of

communities to choose from,

whether you are looking for a

small town or midsize city.

Santa Barbara County has a

number of institutions of higher

learning including University of

California Santa Barbara,

Westmont College, Fielding

Graduate Institute, Allan

Hancock College and Santa

Barbara City College. All

institutions participate in

cultural, academic and sporting

events.

LOCATION

EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS:

Possession of a bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Business,

Finance, Human Resources Management, or a related field of study

is required.

Possession of one of the following professional designations is

preferred: Certified Payroll Professional (CPP), Certified Public

Accountant (CPA), and Professional in Human Resources (PHR).

IDEAL CANDIDATE CHARACTERISTICS:

Experience in managing a comprehensive

automated payroll processing system; including

collaboration with IT personnel to develop

improvements and implement design changes and

provide necessary training for user community

Human resource management experience:

benefits and compensation, employee

development, and evaluating performance

measurements

Supervisorial experience to include: hiring, work

assignment, training, and performance evaluation

Proven abilities to gather, organize and present

financial and technical data in written and verbal

form

Strong interpersonal communication and

presentation skills to a variety of audiences

Ability to read, analyze, and interpret complex

technical resources and government laws and

regulations

Problem solving: recognition, data collection,

establishment of facts, and determination of valid

conclusions

TASKS

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Implements class and

compensation changes

initiate by Human

Resources Dept.

Conduct recurring training

for departmental payroll

administrators

Assists in gathering data

for labor negotiations

Determine and track

performance measurement

standards for division

Prepares quarterly payroll

newsletter

Provides effective and

ethical leadership

Creatively and strategically

plans, develops, and

implements programs that

use human and financial

resources to achieve results

Partners for strategy and

goal formation consistent

with the County’s mission

and key business objectives

Communicates and

collaborates effectively at

multiple levels Employee development of

payroll division team

Analyze issues and data

Manage bi-weekly payroll process for approximately 5000 full

and part-time employees

Manage job classes, earning & deduction codes and ed its

Oversee calculation and transmission of pay to employees

Ensure proper computation of required and elective

deductions from pay

Resolve edits/errors/adjustments/changes occurring in

every payroll

Oversee processing of Flexible Spending Plan,

Commuter Benefits Plan, wage garnishments, and other

miscellaneous voluntary deductions

Maintain extensive knowledge of:

o Federal and state payroll laws and regulations

o Mandatory programs, such as:

• Workers compensation

• State disability

• Unemployment

• FMLA

• Taxable and Nontaxable Compensation

• County benefit plans and programs

• Retirement plans: defined benefit &

defined contribution

• Flex benefit: health, dental, dependent

care, life/accident

• Social Security Section 218 plan

• Basic life and long-term disability

insurance

• Miscellaneous benefit plans

• MOU’s and other union agreements

Supervise a staff of five employees

Manage preparation and filing of payroll tax reports:

quarterly and annually

Address inquiries from internal and external parties

APPLICATION &

SELECTION PROCESS

Application Deadline:

September 11, 2020 5pm

Please apply online at:

www.sbcountyjobs.com

Review Applications to

determine those applicants who

meet the employment standards

Recruiters will communicate with

applicants by e-mail during each

step in the recruitment process.

Applicants are reminded to check

spam filters continuously during

the application & selection process.

Reasonable Accommodations

The County of Santa Barbara is

committed to providing reasonable

accommodation to applicants.

Qualified individuals with

disabilities who need reasonable

accommodation during the

application or selection process

should contact the recruiter listed

on the job posting. We require

verification of needed

accommodation from a

professional source, such a Medical

Provider or a learning institution.

Conditional Job Offer

Once a conditional offer of

employment has been made,

candidate will be required to

successfully complete a

background check, which includes

a conviction history check, and

satisfactory reference checks.

Appointee will be subject to a post-

offer medical evaluation or

examination.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

SALARY $114,084-$140,625.

Vacation: 12 to 25 days per year depending on length of public

employment.

Holidays: 11 days per year.

Sick Leave: 12 days sick leave per year. Unlimited accumulation,

one year of which can be converted to service credit upon

retirement.

Health Plan: Choice of medical (with vision care) and dental

plans. County contributes $316.50 twice monthly toward the

employee’s premium.

Retirement: The County offers a Defined Benefit Plan. For more

information, please visit:

http://www.countyofsb.org/hr/MOU.aspx?id=10988

Other Benefits: Term-life insurance policy; long-term disability

insurance; Flexible Spending Plan, choices include: pre-tax health,

life and accident insurance premiums, and health care and

dependent care spending accounts.

New Hire Expenses: The County may provide reimbursement for

reasonable relocation expenses (governed by Board policy).

For more information on County benefits, click HERE.

The County of Santa Barbara respects and values a diverse workforce and

strongly promotes strategies and activities to recruit, develop and retain

qualified men and women of varied backgrounds, lifestyles, experiences

and races.