Top 12 Payroll Coordinator Skills to Put on Your Resume
In today's job market, a strong payroll coordinator doesn’t just press buttons and hope. They juggle systems, reconcile the tiniest anomalies, and keep taxes, deadlines, and data privacy stitched tight. Showcase the 12 skills below on a resume and you’ll look like the person who can keep the pay cycle humming without a wobble.
Payroll Coordinator Skills
- QuickBooks
- ADP Workforce Now
- Excel
- Paychex Flex
- SAP SuccessFactors
- UKG Workforce (Kronos)
- Multi-state Payroll
- Ceridian Dayforce
- Oracle PeopleSoft
- Gusto Payroll
- Compliance Knowledge
- Tax Reporting
1. QuickBooks
QuickBooks offers payroll tools to calculate earnings and taxes, send direct deposits, remit and file payroll taxes, and keep clean ledgers that tie out every cycle.
Why It's Important
It speeds the pay run, reduces keying errors, and builds an auditable trail across wages, withholdings, and liabilities—vital for clean closes and painless audits.
How to Improve QuickBooks Skills
Keep payroll tables and the application updated. Lock down roles and two‑factor authentication. Standardize earning and deduction items so reports don’t splinter. Memorize core reports (payroll summary, payroll details, tax liability) and schedule them. Use automated e‑pay and e‑file where available. Reconcile payroll liability accounts every month and tie wage expense to registers. Maintain a test company file to trial changes before go‑live. Review GL mapping after any item change so costs land in the right accounts.
How to Display QuickBooks Skills on Your Resume
2. ADP Workforce Now
ADP Workforce Now is a cloud platform that centralizes payroll, time, benefits, and HR data so gross‑to‑net runs align cleanly with timekeeping and compliance rules.
Why It's Important
It cuts manual handoffs, keeps tax rules current, and delivers consistent payments with strong reporting and controls.
How to Improve ADP Workforce Now Skills
Enable automatic tax updates and deposit calendars. Use Preview Payroll and payroll comparison reports before committing. Map the general ledger and export on every cycle to catch drift early. Automate recurring earnings, deductions, and retro calculations. Build custom alerts for missing punches, expiring I‑9s, or benefit changes. Create scheduled reports for 941 tie‑outs, headcount, and labor cost. Document year‑end checklists (W‑2, 1095‑C, bonus supplemental rates) and test them in advance.
How to Display ADP Workforce Now Skills on Your Resume
3. Excel
Excel remains the utility belt for payroll—data cleanup, bulk calculations, reconciliations, and quick analyses when systems can’t flex.
Why It's Important
You can validate totals, chase anomalies, and build audit-ready checks without waiting on IT tickets.
How to Improve Excel Skills
Lean into modern functions: =XLOOKUP(), =INDEX()+=MATCH(), =SUMIFS(), =COUNTIFS(), =FILTER(), =EOMONTH(), =NETWORKDAYS(). PivotTables for quick summaries; PivotCharts for leadership snapshots. Power Query to ingest and normalize time files and GL extracts. Data Validation to restrict inputs. Conditional Formatting to flag outliers (negative net pay, odd tax ratios). Record simple macros or write lightweight VBA to automate report assembly; or use Office Scripts in web Excel. Protect sheets, encrypt workbooks, and remove PII when sharing.
How to Display Excel Skills on Your Resume
4. Paychex Flex
Paychex Flex streamlines payroll, taxes, and employee self‑service in one web hub with optional time and benefits add‑ons.
Why It's Important
Fast setup, integrated tax filing, and clear employee access shrink cycles and reduce help‑desk noise.
How to Improve Paychex Flex Skills
Set recurring pay schedules and templates for common earning codes. Configure multi‑jurisdiction tax profiles for remote and hybrid employees. Integrate time and attendance to remove imports. Use pre‑processing audits to catch missing hours or duplicate entries. Schedule payroll, tax liability, and variance reports. Confirm mobile features meet your on‑the‑go approvals and corrections needs. Document quarter‑end and year‑end procedures so nothing slips during peak season.
How to Display Paychex Flex Skills on Your Resume
5. SAP SuccessFactors
SAP SuccessFactors, paired with Employee Central Payroll, supports end‑to‑end HR and payroll with strong rules, integrations, and analytics.
Why It's Important
It standardizes data, automates complex calculations, and enforces compliance across regions and entities.
How to Improve SAP SuccessFactors Skills
Master configuration for pay groups, wage types, and schemas (or partner closely with your config team). Build Stories/People Analytics reports for gross‑to‑net and audit checks. Keep interfaces to time, benefits, and finance clean and monitored. Maintain an upgrade cadence with regression testing in a non‑prod tenant. Use workflows and role‑based permissions to tighten approvals and segregation of duties. Set feedback loops with HR and Accounting to catch edge cases quickly.
How to Display SAP SuccessFactors Skills on Your Resume
6. UKG Workforce (Kronos)
Formerly Kronos, UKG’s workforce management tools handle time capture, scheduling, and accruals—the raw inputs payroll needs to be right the first time.
Why It's Important
Clean punches and well‑built rules mean fewer manual fixes, tighter labor compliance, and accurate pay.
How to Improve UKG/Kronos Skills
Harden pay rules, rounding, and work rules to match policy and law. Audit punch exceptions daily and resolve before export. Align accrual policies with employment classes and proration logic. Use Genies/dashboards for real‑time oversight. Integrate exports to payroll and reconcile counts and hours every run. Keep the system on a supported version and review release notes for fixes that affect overtime, holidays, or premiums.
How to Display UKG/Kronos Skills on Your Resume
7. Multi-state Payroll
When employees live here, work there, or move mid‑year, payroll must obey multiple states’ tax, wage, and notice rules—sometimes even local city taxes.
Why It's Important
Mishandling state registrations, SUI rates, or local withholdings can trigger penalties and messy corrections that snowball into year‑end.
How to Improve Multi-state Payroll Skills
Register promptly for withholding and unemployment in each work state; monitor reciprocity agreements. Apply “work state” rules first, then resident state credit logic; watch “convenience of employer” states. Track locals (NYC, Philly, Ohio municipalities, PSD codes) with geocoding where possible. Separate supplemental tax handling by state. Respect state wage statements, sick leave, and overtime nuances (daily OT in CA, meal penalties). Maintain a living matrix of state deposit schedules, filing frequencies, and e‑file mandates. Reconcile gross and taxable wages by state quarterly to the penny.
How to Display Multi-state Payroll Skills on Your Resume
8. Ceridian Dayforce
Dayforce brings HR, time, and payroll together with continuous calculation so changes update pay in near real time.
Why It's Important
Fewer surprises on payday, better compliance, and cleaner audits thanks to unified data and real‑time recalcs.
How to Improve Ceridian Dayforce Skills
Leverage continuous calculation to test mid‑cycle changes before finalizing. Build audit views for garnishments, retro pay, and tax variances. Automate recurring earnings and benefit deductions with eligibility rules. Create standard report packs for finance tie‑outs and quarter‑end. Use workflows and approvals to control sensitive changes. Keep release notes on your radar and regression test during updates.
How to Display Ceridian Dayforce Skills on Your Resume
9. Oracle PeopleSoft
PeopleSoft HCM, including North American or Global Payroll, offers deep payroll rules, strong GL interfaces, and robust batch processing.
Why It's Important
It handles complex union rules, retro triggers, and compliance updates while feeding finance with precise costs.
How to Improve Oracle PeopleSoft Skills
Stay current with Tax Update patches and apply them on schedule. Tune pay calendars, pay groups, and element definitions to match policy. Use PSQuery and nVision for reconciliation and analytics. Automate GL integration and validate balancing segments after each run. Monitor Process Scheduler and batch jobs; set alerts for abends. Document retro triggers and off‑cycle processing so corrections don’t derail close.
How to Display Oracle PeopleSoft Skills on Your Resume
10. Gusto Payroll
Gusto focuses on small to midsize businesses with simplified payroll, automated filings, and approachable employee self‑service.
Why It's Important
It trims admin time, reduces filing mistakes, and gives employees quick access to pay info and tax forms.
How to Improve Gusto Payroll Skills
Connect time tracking and accounting integrations to cut manual entry. Use onboarding checklists so tax forms and direct deposit are complete before the first run. Schedule recurring payrolls and reminders. Build custom reports for wages, taxes, and department costs. Keep an eye on compliance notices and adjust state/local setup promptly. Communicate through employee self‑service—clear pay stub notes quell confusion fast.
How to Display Gusto Payroll Skills on Your Resume
11. Compliance Knowledge
Compliance means knowing and applying wage and hour laws, tax rules, leaves, garnishments, sick leave mandates, and notice requirements—federal, state, and local.
Why It's Important
Miss a rule and the penalties bite. Get it right and payroll stays boring—in the best way.
How to Improve Compliance Knowledge Skills
Track changes to FLSA, state overtime and minimum wage, paid sick leave, and meal/rest rules. Keep a calendar for deposits and returns by jurisdiction. Build SOPs with dual controls for rate changes, garnishments, and off‑cycles. Run quarterly self‑audits: taxable wage checks, SUI rate application, locals, and reciprocity. Maintain retention schedules for payroll records and forms. Debrief after year‑end to fix process gaps before the next cycle.
How to Display Compliance Knowledge Skills on Your Resume
12. Tax Reporting
Payroll tax reporting covers filings and deposits for federal, state, and local taxes, plus year‑end forms for employees and contractors.
Why It's Important
Accurate, on‑time filings protect the company’s wallet and reputation—and make audits far less dramatic.
How to Improve Tax Reporting Skills
Know your cadence: 941 quarterly, 940 annually, state withholding and SUI on their schedules, locals as required. Set deposit schedules (monthly or semiweekly) and monitor lookback rules. Reconcile every quarter: payroll registers to GL, returns to liabilities, and YTD taxable wages to W‑2 boxes. E‑file and e‑pay wherever allowed. Validate SSNs and TINs, track SUI rate changes, and apply state disability or paid family leave taxes where applicable. Close year‑end early: W‑2 and 1099‑NEC due by January 31 in most cases—no surprises.
How to Display Tax Reporting Skills on Your Resume
