You may also be known as… a reward manager, compensation and benefits specialist, reward and benefits manager or HR manager (reward).
What you need… You will be a graduate with full Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and/or Institute of Payroll and Pensions Management qualification. Sometimes part-CIPD will be acceptable.
You should also have three to five years’ compensation and benefits or reward experience, but some posts require upwards of six to eight years’ experience.
Two years’ generalist HR experience would also be an advantage, although it is possible for junior tax administrators or even accountants to move into the field at more junior levels, bypassing the generalist HR route.
Requirements will vary from role to role, but you will need excellent numerical, analytical, verbal and written communication skills, and experience of job evaluation and grading.
What is involved… You will be responsible for managing all reward and benefits strategies for the organisation – developing, implementing and administering policies and programmes in support of company objectives.
You will also be responsible for establishing internal communications to support reward initiatives.
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Your duties will include: researching, proposing and implementing new pay structures and developing benefits programmes, undertaking analysis and statistical reporting on reward issues, monitoring progress of benefits programmes to ensure their effectiveness and relevance to organisational objectives, and delivering annual salary and bonus reviews.
Prospects… The market for compensation and benefits specialists is buoyant, particularly at senior levels. Suitable specialists are hard to source and competition for candidates is fierce, making it very much a candidate-led market.
