Our Founder & Story

Our Story

PayrollEdge Learning Academy LLC (PayEdge Academy) was created to give payroll professionals access to training that is flexible, affordable and designed to fit real-life schedules. PayEdge Academy firmly believes that payroll professionals deserve a strong learning environment where they can connect, collaborate and learn from one another. 

Our goal with PayEdge Academy is to connect payroll professionals across all industries and backgrounds all over the United States. By bringing payroll practitioners together from different industries and locations, we can share best practices, support one another, and ultimately better serve the employees who rely on us to be accurate, timely, and compliant. 

Meet the Founder

Hi, I’m Andrew Berding, founder of PayrollEdge Learning Academy LLC (PayEdge Academy).

I’ve spent the last 18 years working in payroll, growing from early roles as a payroll analyst to my current position as a payroll manager. Along the way, I’ve processed payroll for employees in both the manufacturing and transportation industries, handling the details that keep pay accurate, compliant, and on time.

In 2017, I earned my Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) designation. That achievement deepened both my technical expertise and my appreciation for how complex payroll truly is. After becoming certified, I experienced firsthand how difficult it can be to find flexible, meaningful training to meet recertification requirements. That challenge planted the seed for what would eventually become PayEdge Academy.

My Payroll Journey

I’ve worked in fast-paced payroll environments where change is constant. From learning new systems to navigating multistate rules and ever-evolving regulations, I’ve seen firsthand the pressure payroll professionals carry and how often they’re expected to simply figure things out on their own.

Those experiences taught me two important lessons:

PayEdge Academy is my way of creating the kind of support and training I believe payroll professionals truly need.

Why Teaching and Training Matter to Me

Teaching is one of the most rewarding parts of this profession for me.

I volunteer with my local payroll chapter in Cincinnati, Ohio, where I originally joined a CPP study group to earn continuing RCH credits. Over time, I’ve had the opportunity to speak at monthly chapter meetings, helping share payroll knowledge and drive meaningful discussion. I’m also a member of PayrollOrg, which allows me to stay connected to the broader payroll community nationwide.

Over the years, I’ve noticed that much of the available training focuses heavily on compliance updates or changes handled by HRIS and payroll systems. While those topics are important, they don’t always address the real, day-to-day challenges payroll professionals face—especially those newer to the field. It can be difficult to find training that supports both long-term career growth and the practical demands of daily payroll work.

Through PayEdge Academy, I’m building a learning environment that:

Serving the Payroll Community

I live in Cincinnati, Ohio, with my wife and our three children. Outside of payroll and teaching, I enjoy staying active and cheering on my hometown teams. I love coaching my kids in their sports and recreational activities, and you’ll usually find me rooting for FC Cincinnati, the Reds, the Bengals, or the Cincinnati Bearcats.

I also enjoy volunteering with my local payroll chapter, meeting new people at conferences and seminars, and continually looking for ways to grow—both as a payroll professional and as an educator.