This is intended to help anyone new to compensation but also to clarify some terms that can be confusing or that have multiple interpretations that we should be aware of. If I am missing anything or need to clarify further, please let me know in the comments below. For considerations on salary structure approaches, take... Continue Reading →
Hybrid approaches to salary structures
"One does not simply build a salary structure" Following up on my previous posts on the differences in globally graded vs traditional salary structures and job-based approaches vs salary structures, I'd like to add one more piece to make it a trilogy. But hopefully a good trilogy like the Before trilogy or Lord of the... Continue Reading →
Job-based Salary Ranges vs. Salary Structures
“Things are always happening to me. I’m that sort of bear” A while back I wrote a bit about the differences between traditional salary structures and global grading systems as a means to manage base pay. In this much-anticipated1 follow-up, I'd like to write a bit about how job-based ranges differ from salary structures, the... Continue Reading →
Let’s start embracing Pay Transparency
There are plenty of articles out there on how to prepare for pay transparency legislation, including this one by my colleague Gerry Murphy at Nua which sets out some tangible steps you can follow. I wanted to write a bit about, not how we can prepare for transparency, but why we should embrace it. It... Continue Reading →
What’s next? A preview of 2023 for HR leaders in the VC-backed community
From the Nua Blog: It’s been a wild ride for HR leaders over the past few years. From an abrupt COVID-shaped change in work culture, to some of the most aggressive rounds of funding we’ve seen by VCs, to a global economic downturn in 2022, it is fair to say, the challenges keep on coming.... Continue Reading →
Six initiatives to combat inflation in 2022
Originally posted on the Nua Blog: Inflation is the new hot topic among economists. Consumer Price Index (CPI) indicates the cost for all consumer goods rose by 0.8% in November and called into question the notion that 2021 price increases were only a temporary spike. While economists debate whether inflation will continue to rise and... Continue Reading →
Running low on market data? Here are a few tips
There are all kinds of reasons to generate benchmark data. It might be for a specific job that you are struggling to hire for, it may be for a new region or country where there are no structures in place, or for a hiring manager that wants to look more closely at a particular position.... Continue Reading →
Thresholds or: Why I learned to stop worrying and love first dollar
The debate around the use of thresholds is perennial and it's fair to say that it's one of the areas of sales comp where common practice varies a fair amount. The argument in favor of a threshold goes something like this - "why would I pay a salesperson to underachieve? We'll create a minimum level... Continue Reading →
“Match the role not the person”
Job matching is at the heart of successful compensation assessments and one of the most repeated mantras here is "match the role not the person". All too often when going through the job matching process or when viewing matches, I hear something like "well the job is a level 3 but the team really isn't... Continue Reading →
In the era of pay equity, will we see the death of the salary band?
A key decision point when establishing a compensation philosophy is the degree to which salary structures are oriented around market rates vs individual performance. At one end of the spectrum, we have broad salary ranges around a relatively limited number of pay grades throughout the organization. The arguments in favor are that while the market... Continue Reading →