Payroll Specialist Resume: Free Templates & Essential Examples

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As a Payroll Specialist, you’re well versed in managing company budgets and expenses. But do you know how to increase the performance of your own resume? Our tailored resume templates can help you manage and calculate the progression of your career!

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The payroll specialist position is invaluable in the human resources (HR) department.

You’re not only responsible for making sure your colleagues all get paid on time, but you also need to be skilled in managing company budgets and expenses.

If these qualities apply to you, then it’s likely you’re already well on your way to a successful Payroll Specialist career.

But if you’re reading this page then it’s also likely that you haven’t quite mastered writing the ideal Payroll Specialist resume to land you the job you want and deserve.

A well-written resume increases your chances of employment as it correctly conveys your abilities to the hiring manager, making it more likely you’ll land an interview.

In this article, you’ll find:

• The correct format for a Payroll Specialist Resume
• How to write a resume summary or objective
• Resume examples alongside dos and don’ts
• Payroll specialist entry-level best practices

Of course, building a resume is tricky, especially when you’re unfamiliar with document creation.

You can ease the stress of creating a compelling Payroll Specialist resume by employing our free resume builder.

This platform has everything you need to convey your value as a potential hire to the employer, with tools including tips, guides, and multiple templates.

We’ve provided a complete Payroll Specialist resume example below to give you an idea of what you should be aiming for.

Resume Example

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[Alina Jane Moorhead]

[Payroll Specialist]
[ 693-436-7994 | 1801 Patton Lane, Austin, TX, 78723 | alinajmoorhead@gmail.com]

>> RESUME SUMMARY <<

Resourceful payroll specialist with 13+ years in several aspects of payroll processing. Functions perfectly in fast-paced environments with zero sacrifice on accuracy while processing high-volume, multistate payrolls. Detail-oriented and committed to compliance and efficiency. Adaptive to new technologies and proficient in ADP, Peoplesoft, and QuickBooks.

>> EXPERIENCE <<

Payroll Manager

2019-Current

Mark Solutions Inc. | Austin, TX 

• Created an $11 million semimonthly payroll for 1350 distributed employees, ensuring transmission, accurate data entry, and effective distribution
• Supervised and instructed a team of four payroll specialists to meet the company’s customer satisfaction goal
• Assessed reports for omissions and discrepancies and recommended additional audit processes, producing a 5% annual decline in payroll errors

Senior Payroll Administrator

2016 – 2019

William & Jane | Austin, TX

• Managed and instructed  a team consisting of four payroll specialists on processing a multistate payroll for 780 employees and independent contractors
• Increased employee satisfaction concerning payroll from 70% to 95% by implementing new communication methods to address concerns and questions quickly. 
• Collaborated with the human resources team to create a joint onboarding program for local and distributed contractors and employees. 

>> EDUCATION <<

B.S. Human Resources Management, Accounting

Texas A&M University |Mabank, TX

1998

Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration (Accounting)

University of Washington | Seattle, WA  

2009

>> CERTIFICATIONS <<

SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP), 2018

>> SKILLS <<

Hard Skills:

• Microsoft Office
• Customer Service
• Excel
• Sales
• Receptionist
• Retail Sales
• Powerpoint
• Management
• Data Entry
• Payroll administration
• New hire processing
• Timesheet review
• ADP

Soft Skills:

• Written communication
• Verbal communication
• Detail-oriented 
• Analytical skills 
• Time management 
• Collaboration skills
• Critical thinking
• Organization 

Official documents are useless and irrelevant without the correct formatting, and this also applies to your payroll specialist resume!

The right formatting allows hiring managers to browse through your document with little to no mental effort and keeps your resume off the trash pile.

Essentially, your resume has a higher chance of getting discarded when structured poorly as it’ll be difficult to read, thereby irritating the employer. Your document needs the proper heading, text size, font style, and keywords to make a good impression.

The most accepted format for a resume for a Payroll Specialist is the reverse-chronological method. This option arranges your professional details so that all your most recent work details appear, while the older ones come last.

Professionals recommend using the reverse-chronological method when you have multiple noteworthy recent work histories and educational achievements. You’ll also be presenting recruiters with an easier way to understand your current capacity as a potential hire.

Ultimately, the reverse-chronological format gives your resume for a Payroll Specialist a professional look, raising your chances of convincing the hiring manager to give you an interview.

Include the elements below in your resume:

• Ensure your text font size is between 10 and 12 points.
• Use popular fonts like Times New Roman, Arial, or Helvetica.
• Do not use custom, flashy, or stylized fonts since they often appear poorly on regular word processing programs.
• Set your margins to 1 to 1.5 inches.
• Bold or capitalize your headers and name to draw more attention to them.
• Use bullet points to display information in list format like skills and experience.

Imagine crafting a perfect Payroll Specialist resume example but forgetting to include your contact details. Disaster, right?

The hiring manager wouldn’t be able to reach you for an interview or ask questions about your qualifications. You might as well not even have bothered working on your resume at all!

That’s why we recommend paying close attention to including your contact information. Fortunately, this section is easy to fill out as all you need is your name, email, mailing address, and maybe some additional info depending on the role.

Here is our recommendation below:

• Name (full name)
• Profession
• Physical mailing address (optional except requested)
• Active cell phone number
• Professional email address
• Links to a professional profile or portfolio (optional)

Note: Write your name in capital letters and ensure your address and email have no errors.

A resume summary or objective are two effective tools that appear at the beginning of your resume to make it appear more professional. These additions are short paragraphs that either summarise your resume or outline your goals assuming you get the job.

Professionals recommend including either option on a resume for a Payroll Specialist. These concepts function as an elevator pitch for your resume, showing the employer that reading the remaining document is worthwhile.

However, to successfully capitalize on a summary or objective, it’s essential to understand both concepts and how to use each one.

Resume Summary

A resume summary is a short paragraph at the top of your document that summarises your skills, experience, education, and other qualifications. Essentially, it’s a quick description of what the reader should expect from reading a Senior Payroll Specialist resume.

To apply this effective tool to your professional resume, begin with a heading on top of your document after your contact information. The heading should be titled “Resume Summary” in capital or bold letters.

Below, include your most relevant experience, skills, achievements, and other essential elements.

These elements will constitute the body of your resume summary and an adjective that best describes your mindset when tackling tasks. Here’s an example:

Resume Objective

A resume objective is a short paragraph dictating what you wish to achieve upon getting the job. It’s a recommended tactic to impress a hiring manager because employers want candidates that can fit easily with their company’s culture and objectives.

It’s worth mentioning that professionals recommend using a Payroll Specialist resume objective when you have less work experience but have the skill and training to handle the job. Essentially, it’s a must-have for an entry-level payroll specialist resume.

Like a resume summary, you can include this resume feature by placing it at the beginning of your document after your contact information. This section should be titled “Resume Objective” in bold or capital letters.

Afterward, include your skills, education, and other necessary attributes, which occupy the bulk of the paragraph. Then, as expected, begin with an adjective describing your mindset as a professional.

The next important section of your Payroll Specialist resume is the experience section. This area conveys your efficacy as a professional and shows that you have the necessary skills to perform the job and have succeeded in another establishment.

However, crafting a Payroll Specialist job description for a resume outlining your experience can be tricky since there’s a right and wrong way. Many candidates fail to present their career history in a readable manner.

Fortunately, our recommendations ensure the hiring manager has no problem deciphering your past career choices.

You should always include two or more descriptions from previous positions on a Senior Payroll Specialist resume. We recommend this amount because it gives the hiring manager a better glimpse into your efficacy as a professional.

Afterward, continue with additional information about your activities in human resources, like how you managed the company budget and expenses or raised customer payroll satisfaction with better communication.

🌟Featured content: Complement job descriptions with statistics and data measuring your performance as a former employee. Numbers are a more accurate metric for estimating your efficacy as a payroll specialist.

We also recommend avoiding elements that aren’t relevant to the job description. For example, don’t talk about the time you helped fix a leak in the building as a testament to your problem-solving skills. Instead, ensure it’s consistent with the job description.

Entry-level Payroll Specialist Resume: Experience Section

The experience section is infinitely important for a resume for a Payroll Specialist because it indicates that you have the necessary skill to perform financial tasks and other professional duties.

However, if you’re a college graduate yet to occupy a corporate position, you might not have a lot of experience to show off in this section.

Fortunately, other options exist to rectify this problem. One common recommendation is volunteer work. If you don’t yet have past volunteer positions to outline, find an establishment that can accept financial assistance or aid in the human resources section.

You don’t have to work there for weeks since a few hours or a day may provide sufficient details to proudly include in your resume. You can also get some freelance jobs online related to your field and build your portfolio.

Here’s an example of an entry-level Payroll Specialist job description for a resume:

As previously mentioned, skills are essential in becoming a respected Payroll Specialist as the duties require training and strong attention to detail.

To maximize your chances of landing an interview, your professional resume must convey the skills desired by the hiring company.

You can find this information with a quick look at the Payroll Specialist job description. Be sure to include any keywords that pop out as skills in your document.

Alternatively, you can search for Payroll Specialist resume samples and pick the skills you identify with to include in your section.

However, before you rush to include your abilities in your professional resume, it’s worth mentioning that corporate skills are divided into two categories, soft and hard skills.

Hiring managers know this fact and expect to see it on your document. Here’s more information to ensure you meet their expectations.

Payroll Specialist Hard and Soft Skills

Hard skills are complex abilities unique to the professions. They’re developed through rigorous training, tutoring, and need dedicated practice to acquire and master.

Alternatively, Soft Skills are abilities commonly referred to as people skills, which aren’t unique to the profession. Essentially, they guide how you interact with the workplace, handle tasks, solve problems, and fit in with the environment.

It’s worth mentioning that Soft Skills don’t need rigorous tutoring and practice to acquire. They’re often gained naturally throughout your journey in the profession and into adulthood.

The Payroll Specialist position is vital to the company’s smooth operation, and for this reason, candidates are required to have specific certifications to qualify.

Therefore, you need to showcase you have undergone the necessary education and training on your professional resume for a Payroll Specialist.

However, like all parts of a resume, there’s a right and wrong way to outline these points, and falling short can ruin your chances of employment.

Writing out your education on a resume for a Payroll Specialist isn’t tricky. It’s as simple as writing out the institution’s name, degree type, and graduation year.

Here’s our recommended format and Payroll Specialist resume example education section:

• School name and location
• Years in school
• Degree type

Sometimes, you and other candidates can be on the same level; equally experienced and educated, and with the same skills and well-written resume.

In such a scenario, you can either leave everything to luck or gain a competitive advantage with another heading.

This “other section” conveys your personality professionally and personally, showing that you are an enthusiastic payroll specialist but also much more. We recommend including factors like any projects, awards, volunteering, internships, and publications.

You can find some right and wrong Payroll Specialist resume sample additional headings below.

This section should contain important facts about you and showcase your character.

It’s an area to flaunt your achievements and other factors that makes you an amazing candidate. It can give you the competitive edge you need.

Acquiring a professional Payroll Specialist role in a reputable establishment starts with creating an effective resume that displays your skills, experience, education, and other qualifications.

Hopefully, the tips and recommendations in this guide are sufficient to help you create a resume that lands you that coveted interview.

For maximum results, your Payroll Specialist resume should contain:

• The reverse-chronological format
• A well-written contact section.
• A resume summary or objective
• Details that are consistent with the job requirements and description.
• Soft and hard skills separated into two different categories

If you’re still struggling to fully showcase your skills and experience, remember that a Payroll Specialist resume is difficult to craft, especially if you aren’t familiar with document creation.

For this reason, we recommend taking a look at our free resume templates. All you need to do is transfer your professional details into a template, proofread, and submit.

All of our templates are expertly tailored to specific jobs, formatted according to industry standards, and contain the ideal structure expected of a corporate document. Don’t leave your key details and information out of your document. Easily make the ideal resume using a ResumeGiants template!