Salary Information for Compensation Managers
Career News November 13, 2013Compensation managers are sometimes grouped together with benefits managers, though these are two fields with different aims. Your job will be in planning, directing, and coordinating compensation packages for a company’s employees. You don’t represent them but work as the liaison between management and the workers, helping to discover new programs and ensure protection for retirement, health insurance and other benefits.
Wages and Salary Expectations
The median wage of compensation managers was just over $89,000 in 2010. However, some earners exceeded the median and earned over $151,000. The lowest ten percent earned $52,000. The overall growth of the profession was about three percent, slightly less than the average of all occupations. The cause for this was in recession, not to mention the alternative of outsourcing. This doesn’t mean that the position is nonexistent. Every company needs this position, and can find benefits in not keeping an internal compensation manager on staff.
The more experience and education an applicant has, the more he or she is expected to perform, and in this profession that means analysis, managerial support, department organization, and effective system planning for salary resources. This is a managing position that requires the discovering of new organizational techniques.
You are finding new ways to improve workflow, as well as bringing on technological advances. Sometimes a company determines pay by more job duties, such as evaluating jobs for grade and value, and eventually making decisions regarding salaries.
You may work with a benefits manager or assume that position, and spend more time developing salary increases, bonus awards, and ensure that the company’s practices are in compliance with federal wages and laws.
Different positions in the field have different salary ranges. Restaurant shift supervisors, for instance, only make $13,000 per year, and might be considered part time workers or independent consultants. Even a branch manager for a company can earn only $41,000. However, sales associate managers and regional sales executives can earn closer to $100,000.
Why a University Education Matters
Top brand companies require this level of expertise because they want to improve employee retention. The more companies invest in developing creative and modern packages for their valued workers, the fewer problems they have in “turnover”, or employees leaving the company for greener pastures.
A bachelor’s degree course, from a university such as UMCP, UCLA, University of Miami, and many others can provide you with the skills that companies are looking for. Taking a course in finance or business administration can prepare you for the job; however, staying the course and earning an MBA can open new doors. Statistically, more MBA graduates go on to find higher-paying salaries than bachelor’s degree graduates.
The larger the company, the higher the pay rate goes. Some of the most generous employers include NVIDIA, Morgan Stanley, Texas Instruments, and Equifax, who compensate their compensation managers quite well, starting a cycle of goodwill that spreads and builds a foundation of trust.
In the end, this creates a stronger company with a greater culture and employee loyalty. Be part of this solid company building by proving your educational background!
