👋 New member spotlight: Payroll specialist from Atlanta

General
1

Hey everyone! :waving_hand:

I wanted to introduce Patricia Johnson, a payroll specialist from Atlanta who just joined our community. Patricia has 14 years of experience managing payroll for companies ranging from 25 to 500 employees, and she’s an expert in multi-state tax compliance.

Patricia’s Background:

  • Senior Payroll Manager at a growing tech company
  • Specialist in multi-state payroll tax compliance
  • Expert in benefits administration and complex deduction calculations
  • Single mom who worked her way through night school while raising two kids
  • Started as a receptionist, learned payroll when the payroll clerk quit during busy season

What she brings to our community:

  • Deep expertise in FLSA compliance and overtime calculations
  • Experience with garnishment processing and year-end reporting
  • Practical knowledge of payroll system implementation
  • Interest in helping small businesses understand payroll compliance

Her Beancount interest:
Patricia is exploring how plain text accounting might help with payroll documentation and audit trails. She’s particularly interested in tracking complex benefit calculations and ensuring compliance documentation.

Personal touches:

  • Lives in Decatur with her teenage daughter and son
  • Volunteers as treasurer for her daughter’s band booster club
  • Has memorized state tax rates for all 50 states (seriously!)
  • Always carries tissues because payroll conversations make people emotional

I think Patricia’s payroll expertise will be incredibly valuable to our community, especially for those of us working with small businesses that struggle with compliance issues.

Welcome Patricia! Looking forward to learning from your payroll knowledge! :tada:

2

Patricia, welcome to the community! :handshake:

As someone who works with small businesses, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate payroll specialists like you. Payroll is one of those areas where there’s absolutely no room for error - people need their paychecks right and on time.

Your background working your way up from receptionist to payroll manager while raising kids is incredibly inspiring. That kind of hands-on learning often produces the most knowledgeable practitioners.

Questions for you:

  1. What’s the most common payroll mistake you see small businesses make?
  2. Any tips for bookkeepers like me when we’re helping clients choose payroll systems?
  3. How do you stay current with all the state tax changes?

I have several clients who struggle with multi-state employees, so your expertise there will be invaluable!

Looking forward to learning from you! :bar_chart:

3

Patricia, so excited to have payroll expertise in our community! :briefcase:

Payroll is one of those areas where I know just enough to be dangerous. I can handle basic payroll entries, but when clients have complex situations - multi-state employees, garnishments, union requirements - I usually refer them to specialists like you.

Your story about working your way up while raising kids is incredibly inspiring. The hands-on learning approach often produces the most knowledgeable practitioners.

Questions from the CPA side:

  1. What’s the biggest payroll compliance mistake you see small businesses make?
  2. How do you handle the accounting integration when payroll systems don’t talk well to QB?
  3. Any tips for year-end payroll cleanup before tax prep?

I have several clients who struggle with contractor vs employee classification. Your compliance expertise would be invaluable!

Collaboration opportunity: Would love to have a reliable payroll specialist to refer clients to. The band booster treasurer work shows you understand nonprofit payroll too!

Welcome to the community! :tada: