Job Description:

The Director of People Operations/Benefits & Payroll serves as the strategic and operational leader for the core functions that enable Self-Help’s mission: Benefits, Payroll, Compensation, and Wellness. Reporting to the Executive Vice President for HR and Administration, this role ensures that over 900 staff members across 10 states and Washington, DC have the compensation, comprehensive benefits support, and the resources they need to thrive professionally and personally. This leader will partner closely with the Accounting & Finance, Talent Management and Learning & Development teams, and Benefits and Retirement committees to deliver integrated HR solutions that support Self-Help’s continued growth through organic expansion and credit union mergers.

This is an opportunity to lead with both precision and vision.

You’ll guide a dedicated operations team through a period of significant transformationimplementing new systems, refining processes, and building capacity to support Self-Help’s expanding footprint. The role requires both depthdeep expertise in benefits design, retirement plan administration, and payroll complianceand breadth, with opportunities to shape wellness strategy, drive process innovation through technology and automation, and contribute to broader people strategy conversations. If you’re energized by building high-performing teams, designing benefits that reflect organizational values, and ensuring HR operations are both excellent and scalable, this role offers meaningful work at the heart of Self-Help’s mission.

The ideal candidate brings technical mastery, an orientation towards collaboration and continuous improvement, and a player-coach approach, leading with both steadiness and agility. You’ll thrive in environments where influence matters as much as authority, find creative solutions to complex operational challenges, and ensure that Self-Help’s people infrastructure grows alongside its impact.

WHAT YOULL DO:

Strategic HR Leadership

• Collaborate with Talent Management and Learning & Development teams to deliver cohesive, integrated HR solutions; ensure seamless information sharing around leave administration, onboarding, and employee lifecycle events
• Support integration of credit unions acquired via mergers; quickly learn new systems, translate processes, and manage payroll/benefits for acquired entities until system conversion
• Serve as a strategic advisor to executive leadership on benefits strategy, retirement plan management, and compliance considerations, aligning strategies with organizational goals and values
• Drive policy development, implementation, and updates in alignment with legal requirements and organizational best practices
• Lead change management initiatives, fostering cross-functional collaboration and continuous improvement in HR operations
• Direct Workday implementation of benefits/payroll business processes and optimization, ensuring data integrity across all employee records and HR systems
• Champion economic inclusion initiatives by promoting supplier diversity and supporting vendors owned by women and people of color

Payroll Operations & Compliance

• Ensure payroll accuracy, consistency, and compliance across multiple states and geographies; document processes and create unified national payroll standards
• Partner closely with Accounting & Finance team on payroll accounting, reconciliations, and vendor documentation; proactively address compliance exposures and audit requirements
• Build contingency plans and cross-training protocols to ensure operational stability; ant…