Manager, Payroll & Stock Administration

Location: This position may be performed remotely, but requires the flexibility and willingness to travel as needed.

The Opportunity

Praxis is hiring a Manager, Payroll & Stock Plan Administration, to own and evolve the systems that ensure our people are paid accurately and understand the value of their equity. This role sits at the center of employee trust and company compliance.

You will operate as a hands-on individual contributor, fully accountable for U.S. payroll and stock plan administration in a public company environment. Beyond execution, you will design and scale processes that enable speed while maintaining strong internal controls.

This role is responsible for building and continuously strengthening SOX-compliant, audit-ready infrastructure. Success means not just passing audits, but creating systems that are durable, efficient, and built to scale with the company. You will challenge existing processes, identify gaps, and proactively improve systems rather than simply maintain them. The ideal candidate brings deep payroll expertise, strong judgment, and a track record of improving controlled environments without slowing them down. Success in this role means delivering near-zero payroll errors, maintaining audit-ready systems at all times, and continuously improving processes as the company scales.

Primary Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end U.S. multi-state payroll processing, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and full regulatory compliance
• Administer equity programs including stock options, RSUs, and ESPP across the full lifecycle
• Partner with Fidelity or similar platforms to manage equity operations and maintain data integrity
• Design and maintain SOX-compliant payroll and equity controls, including documentation, reconciliations, and audit support
• Build and continuously strengthen audit-ready infrastructure that scales with company growth
• Improve payroll and equity workflows to increase efficiency while maintaining strong controls
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local payroll tax regulations, filings, and reporting
• Maintain and reconcile data across payroll, equity, HRIS, and finance systems
• Serve as a trusted resource for employees, resolving payroll and equity questions clearly and quickly
• Partner with Finance, People, Legal, and external auditors to ensure alignment and audit readiness

Qualifications and Key Success Factors

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 6–10+ years of relevant payroll experience, including significant exposure to stock plan administration.
• Strong knowledge of U.S. payroll regulations, tax compliance, and reporting requirements.
• Proven experience identifying control gaps and implementing improvements in a SOX-regulated environment
• Experience supporting external audits and interacting directly with auditors
• Experience with equity administration platforms—Fidelity strongly preferred.
• Experience with payroll systems such as Paycom (preferred) or similar platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to independently own and improve critical processes in a high-accountability environment.
• The physical and mental requirements of our roles include but are not limited to regular use of a computer, devices or other office equipment, clear communication, and occasional movement. You'll need comfort with screen work, basic hand coordination, and focus. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these functions.