Senior payroll specialist vs specialist

The differences between senior payroll specialists and specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a senior payroll specialist, becoming a specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a senior payroll specialist has an average salary of $59,503, which is higher than the $58,013 average annual salary of a specialist.

The top three skills for a senior payroll specialist include peoplesoft, payroll data and reconciliations. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.

Senior payroll specialist vs specialist overview

	Senior Payroll Specialist	Specialist
Yearly salary	$59,503	$58,013
Hourly rate	$28.61	$27.89
Growth rate	-3%	10%
Number of jobs	6,310	358,433
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	48	42
Years of experience	4	2

What does a senior payroll specialist do?

Senior payroll specialists are professionals who are responsible for calculating the wages of employees of an organization accurately. These specialists are required to analyze and verify payroll reports and documents for accuracy while making the necessary corrections through journal entries or other established procedures. They must authorize and review payroll transactions as well as complete appropriate forms to adjust salary account funds. Senior payroll specialists must also conduct training sessions for other payroll professionals to explain information regarding payroll policies and procedures.

What does a specialist do?

Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.

Senior payroll specialist vs specialist salary

Senior payroll specialists and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Payroll Specialist	Specialist
Average salary	$59,503	$58,013
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $82,000	Between $32,000 And $104,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Jersey City, NJ
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New Jersey
Best paying company	MongoDB	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Technology	-

Differences between senior payroll specialist and specialist education

There are a few differences between a senior payroll specialist and a specialist in terms of educational background:

	Senior Payroll Specialist	Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

Senior payroll specialist vs specialist demographics

Here are the differences between senior payroll specialists' and specialists' demographics:

	Senior Payroll Specialist	Specialist
Average age	48	42
Gender ratio	Male, 23.2% Female, 76.8%	Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 6.0% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%	Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	10%	11%

Differences between senior payroll specialist and specialist duties and responsibilities

Senior payroll specialist example responsibilities.

Manage payroll imports into and out of HRIS, including master file and pay data additions and changes.
Update the maintenance of all job-relate records in the KRONOS timekeeping system, for all employees.
Perform thorough analysis of UltiPro timekeeping system prior to uploading to the payroll system on a biweekly basis.
Process payroll using ADP/ KRONOS for multiple companies.
Load pay changes for pay period into UltiPro.
Process regular wages, overtime wages, PTO, tips and toke incomes, etc.

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Specialist example responsibilities.

Create, manage, and assist users with SharePoint sites.
Manage an on-site IRB and company good clinical practice (GCP) inspection.
Manage SharePoint sites by creating, editing, and customizing company sites, libraries and security.
Manage the building of accounts, assigning of static IP's, and scheduling of business class installations.
Convert servers from UNIX to Linux, all hardware diagnostics and repair including printers/plotters/desktops etc.
Follow safety procedures such as maintenance of all equipment (Telxon scanners, terminals and ladders).

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Senior payroll specialist vs specialist skills

Common senior payroll specialist skills

PeopleSoft, 15%
Payroll Data, 5%
Reconciliations, 4%
HRIS, 4%
ADP Workforce, 3%
Data Entry, 3%

Common specialist skills

Patients, 15%
Customer Service, 11%
Work Ethic, 5%
Patient Care, 4%
Exceptional Client, 4%
Troubleshoot, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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