HR Operations Specialist I

Title: HR Operations Specialist I
Location: Houston TX
Contract: 6 Months and Possibility of Extension

JOB DESCRIPTION
Must be very professional and poised.
Agile mindset
Exercises professional judgement without escalation ( can work effective & efficiently with minimal supervison)
Previous experience in a similair role in Oil & gas, Energy or Manufacturing Industries ( Companies with 10,000 + employees)
Comfortable in a fast pace corporate environment
Self starter

As Client accelerates its HR transformation to maintain market leadership, The HR Associate supports payroll accuracy and compliance by administering, validating, and preparing HR and payroll-impacting data in advance of payroll execution.

Job Summary
The HR Associate (Tier2) supports payroll accuracy and compliance by administering, validating, and preparing HR and payroll-impacting data in advance of payroll execution. This role focuses on data quality, payroll readiness, and issue prevention rather than payroll processing, ensuring all inputs are accurate, compliant, and complete before being handed off to Payroll.

Duties and Responsibilities
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each duty satisfactorily. Other ancillary duties may be assigned.
Administer payroll-impacting HR transactions (pay changes, job changes, LOAs, terminations, transfers) prior to payroll cutoff.
Validate data for payroll readiness, including effective dates, earnings, deductions, work locations, and tax setups.
Identify and resolve discrepancies before payroll close; escalate unresolved risks
Administer and validate work location and tax-related data to support accurate taxation.
Partner with Payroll Tax teams or vendors to resolve pre-payroll tax discrepancies.
Support corrections and data clean-up prior to payroll processing.
Manage Tier 2 cases related to payroll readiness, escalations, and complex HR data changes
Partner with Tier 1 to ensure accurate intake and escalation of payroll-impacting requests.
Contribute to SOPs, checklists, and job aids for pre-payroll administration.
Participate in continuous improvement efforts focused on upstream data quality.

Supervisory Responsibilities
Will coach and mentor less experienced team members and act as team leader on more complicated systems projects.

Qualifications
Education and Experience
Education: Bachelor's Degree (accredited) in Computer Science, MIS, Business Administration, or similar area of study or in lieu of degree, High School Diploma or GED (accredited) and four years of relevant work experience.
Experience: 24 years of experience in HR operations, payroll support, or HRIS administration.
Advanced knowledge or skills in one or more of the following required:
Understanding of how HR transactions impact payroll and payroll tax.
Experience working with HRIS and payroll systems (Excel, Oracle HCM, UKG-Timekeeper, ADP).
Strong attention to detail and data validation skills.
Strong analytical, documentation, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to work independently, prioritize effectively, and operate in a fast-paced, service-oriented environment.
Excellent communication skills and a collaborative mindset.
May require advanced skills in one or more of the following:
Written and verbal communication skills as well as listening skills.
Successfully leading a project team reach its business objectives within set timeframes.
Attention to detail.
Analytical and qualitative abilities.

Work Environment
Listed below are key points regarding environmental demands and work environment of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.
Normal setting for this job is: office setting (Houston, TX)