Issue #108

Trisha here, Bright + Early’s resident compensation lead, here to talk to you about paying people. When organizations first start making salary bands, they often think it’s a simple matter of getting the data. Once you know what your competition is paying, it should be smooth sailing, right? Not quite. Here are the ways it can go wrong:

• Raw salary data doesn’t give the whole picture, or a view into what other rewards (equity, benefits) your competitors are offering.

• It doesn’t connect to your values. Your pay structure, including bonuses, equity, commissions, benefits and more, all come together to paint a picture of the behaviours you want to reward. Do you value transparency? A competitive sales culture? Collaboration? Without defining that, and connecting it to pay, you’re in unknown waters.

• You try to hire globally, and between different market rates, laws, and healthcare systems, things don’t feel equitable. At all.

If you want a solid compensation system that scales, simple data won’t do; you need a philosophy. A compensation philosophy outlines what you’ll pay in the market, why, how it aligns with your values and organizational goals, and how managers (and employees) can navigate it. You can learn more about building a compensation philosophy in The Bright + Early Guide to Paying People.

But what if you’re hiring globally? As the world has shifted more and more towards remote work, I’ve been working with many more organizations who are struggling to figure out pay in an ethical way. Your compensation strategy needs to go global.

Should you adjust by cost of living and localized pay rates? Try to make it equal? Design some sort of multiplier? A few weeks ago, we covered the pros and cons of different approaches to international salary bands in our Guide To Designing Ethical Global Pay.

Next up, we’ll be tackling total rewards on international teams: equity, benefits, perks, and every other part of compensation beyond an employee’s base salary. As we mentioned, this can be tricky to scale (and make equitable) across different hiring markets.

If you’re hiring globally, join me and my teammate Gillian Jose-Riz on August 15 (1pm ET) for our next Early Session: Designing Total Rewards for Global Teams (The Ethical Way). Early Sessions are free midday virtual sessions where Bright + Early experts guide you hands-on through modern approaches to tough people issues. Anyone can join, though they are generally geared at founders and HR people.

Interested in joining us?

Stay Bright,

Trisha

Bright Reads

• Milk freezing, night nannies, bassinet rentals: Employers step up working parent benefits.

• Going from a big company to a startup? How to Scale Yourself Down — Not Up — as a Leader.

• Way more women were (proportionally) laid off than men in most big tech layoffs.

• Is DEI taking another hit since the US ruling on affirmative action? Actually, many companies are staying the course.

Coming Up

• 🇨🇦 August 7 is a Civic Holiday (not a statutory holiday, but widely treated as one in Ontario)

• 🏳️‍🌈 On August 16, catch Bright + Early’s Clea Arrieta in virtual conversation with Jennifer McPherson about being “out” as a queer person in the workplace. Get your tickets here!

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