Kate Zielinski: Payroll Manager

Can you share a bit about your background and what motivated/inspired you to join the Leafguard team?

When I first heard about the job for LeafGuard, I'd been working for an office service company, and they had a really small corporate team, just 13 people in the office running HR, payroll, accounting, the whole thing. And because they had been in business for 30 years, everything ran like clockwork. And smooth sailing is great, but it's not challenging. I'm the kind of person that wants to pull up their sleeves and make a mark. And no matter how much I liked the company, because the people were great, the company was great, but [making a mark] wasn't going to happen. Their processes were perfect. So, I knew I had to find something else that was a little more challenging.

How would you explain to your friends and family what working here is like?

I would tell people that for the payroll department, it's like an assembly line. It starts out in the field, it moves through management, gets to the OA department, everybody's touching the data on the way, doing their processes. And when it gets to us, it's a product that's waiting to be refined and packaged. So, our goal is to put out the best possible product we can every week and if that assembly line breaks down anywhere, we're calling in maintenance to get it fixed. And we're part of that process.

Tell us about a professional success story that you’re proud of.

My biggest success is being in payroll. When I found my first payroll job, it was on Facebook. There was a listing in one of our local news Facebook pages. And I said, well, I mean, why not? I'll interview. It's always good to interview, right? I had zero payroll experience. I had zero HR experience. But I had worked in banks before so working with money didn't scare me. And I said, well, I'll give it a try. We'll see what happens. I got the interview and after making my potential boss laugh, like the entire time, they offered me the job the same day. I'm incredibly proud that I was able to dive into payroll and into a multi-payroll company and not only be successful but find something that I love to do because I really do love payroll.

What are some important lessons you’ve learned throughout your career?

There have been so many lessons. I think one of the best ones I’ve learned and always think about is something an incredibly smart individual said to me once: there's no crying in payroll. I think about it all the time and it's so true. It means that payroll has to go out no matter what. People are relying on us to help them pay bills, buy food, buy gas. And even if there are issues that impact us or one of the other departments helping us with payroll, it's necessary not to cry and keep calm and get that payroll out the door because they need us. They need us to pay them. And that is always the priority. There’s no crying in payroll: that is my mantra from now on.

Any advice for colleagues or individuals aspiring to advance their careers within the organization?

Personally, I’m always looking to always advance my career. I think some advice is no one can read your mind. If you want more responsibility, ask for it. If you want that promotion, go for it. The worst that can happen is that it doesn't work out and you continue growing and moving on and finding something else. And always advocate for yourself. It's great to have team members do it. It's great to have managers do it. But always advocate for yourself and remember that you're valuable to the company and your team because of your unique voice and perspective. Never let anybody tell you that you're less than.