A NEW BREED OF ENTERTAINMENT

With almost 150 years of proud horseracing history, Woodbine Entertainment Group is the founding pioneer and largest operator of professional horseracing in Canada.

Building on our rich past, we are surging ahead to the future with an energized, new vision. Today we deliver the most thrilling and highest quality racing, dining and entertainment experiences to our visitors. In doing so, we remain a world-leader in horse-racing — and also among the most exciting and diverse entertainment facilities on the globe.

Job Purpose:

The position has a critical mandate to oversee annual corporate payroll and benefit expenditures and ensure employees are paid accurately, timely, and in accordance with both statutory requirements and collective agreements. With its high impact to the business and employees, this role is recognized for its sound judgment, discretion, and professionalism combined with excellent stakeholder relationship management and influencing skills.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead and mentor a team to ensure the accuracy & timeliness of weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, and annual payroll processes while upholding a high degree of customer service to stakeholders across the organization. This includes but is not necessarily limited to:
• Processing hourly and salary payrolls and facilitation of communications with external financial institutions.
• Ensuring complex legislative, regulatory, and collective agreement requirements are met (filings, submissions, and remittances).
• Year-end procedures including government & non-government filings and reconciliations (i.e. T4, T4a, CPP, EI, EHT, WSIB, T2200, T2200s) etc.
• Other annual processes including financial statement & pension audits, corporate budgeting, Workday system updates & upgrades etc.
• Ensure Kronos pay rules are adhered to as they relate to Woodbine policies and collective Agreements.
• Investigate and resolve payroll discrepancies & queries as they arise
• Month-end general ledger reconciliations and prompt resolution of all reconciling items.
• Using your advanced understanding of the Organization’s operations, policies, and practices, proactively identify issues and potential risks along with the innovative, creative, and timely roll out of required process improvement implementations.
• By staying current with legislative requirements, the candidate is the ‘Subject Matter Expert’ for all payroll related issues and questions. The role is solely responsible for ensuring all regulations changes are reviewed, analyzed, implemented, and communicated to key stakeholders.
• An innovative thinker and champion of best practices who continually assesses and reviews business processes impacting payroll to identify creative opportunities to support business transformation, automation, and/or streamline processes.
• Manage external relationships, expectations, requirements, service levels, and project manage independent consultants who provide technical software support (Workday).
• Lead corporate internal and external audits impacting payroll. This includes regularly liaising with all levels of government to address regular queries, issues, and investigations.
• Using your advanced interpersonal skills, work closely and collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to provide guidance and interpret applicable company policies, procedures, employment laws, and collective agreements to ensure that the corporate payroll processes & procedures are following current guidelines, agreements, and best practices.
• Ensure impeccable departmental record keeping and documentation is in place as well as the establishment of tightly controlled procedures and audit checks to ensure accounting, legal, and legislative requirements are met.
• Functional lead and strategic decision maker supporting all projects impacting payroll (examples: Workday optimizations, upgrades & enhancements, D365 integration, Kronos changes impacting payroll integration, benefits upgrades and changes, governmental tax updates, subsidy programs, corporate process changes etc.)
• Responsible for all other relevant special projects as they arise.

Job Specifications:

• Post-secondary education in Business Administration or related field.

• Payroll Compliance Practitioner (PCP) or Certified Payroll Manager (CPM) Designation.

• Minimum 8-10 years of full cycle payroll experience with 5 years of team lead or supervisory experience in a large organization running several payroll.

• Expert knowledge of payroll Acts & Regulations (Federal & Provincial) and a detailed knowledge of the Employment Standards Acts and its practical applications.

• Comprehensive knowledge of HRIS/payroll systems (Workday preferred), their operations, and integration with other software & ERP tools.

• Solid knowledge and understanding of Kronos time keeping system.

• A solid understanding of the functional operation of the finance department and accounting rules.

• Hands-on payroll experience in both non-union and union environments.

• Ability to multi-task and make decisions in a fast paced and changing environment with time-sensitive deadlines which have broad reaching impacts across the organization.

• Proven ability to analyse facts and development recommendations to address routine and frequently non-routine challenges.

• Highly effective at interpreting, implementing, and communicating highly complex tax legislative guidance.

• Highly competent in managing both direct and cross departmental priorities & objectives that impact payroll matters.

• Track record of developing a culture of collaboration, accountability and ownership while maintaining positive and consultative working relationships with all levels of employees and management.

• A proven track record of discretion in dealing with confidential matters.

• Project and/or change management experience including process automation.

• Excellent IT and data query skills.

• Comprehensive knowledge and experience with HRIS/Payroll system implementation for new business requirements including fact gathering requirements, making design recommendations, providing future state operational solutions, and supporting all testing and post implementation activities.

Working Conditions

• Hybrid work model that blends in-office and remote work
• Must be able to respond to emergency type situations when they arise.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging

Be Yourself.

We believe differences should be valued and celebrated. By building diverse and inclusive teams, we strive to provide a more authentic and empowering work experience that unlocks the potential of our people. Regardless of race, religion, colour, national origin, sex, gender, expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status, we believe everyone has the right to express their ideas, ambitions, and pursue their goals with confidence and integrity. Diversity breeds innovation. We want people to think differently. Our commitment is to build a culture that welcomes everyone and leverages their unique perspectives to be a great entertainment company that shares the thrill of horseracing experiences with the world.