Compensation Principal

The Principal Compensation Consultant serves as an enterprise level advisor and strategist for Total Rewards. This role sets direction for market pricing methodology, pay structures, and pay equity practices; leads high stakes, cross functional initiatives end to end; and counsels executives and people leaders to ensure decisions are consistent, equitable, and market competitive. The Principal operates with a high degree of independence and influence, driving solutions that balance external competitiveness, internal equity, and fiscal stewardship across the Association.

Key Responsibilities

• Establishes and continuously refines enterprise standards for market pricing, job leveling application, ranges, and pay equity analytics to ensure consistency and transparency.
• Creates governance mechanisms (playbooks, decision rights, audit protocols) that operationalize policy into scalable, repeatable processes across HR and the business.
• Serves as a consultant to executives and senior HR leaders on complex or sensitive compensation matters—articulating options, trade‑offs, and risk implications to steer decisions within policy and market guidance.
• Translates advanced analytics and external trends into clear recommendations that inform enterprise talent and pay strategies; presents to officer audiences with strong narrative and data storytelling.
• Governs data integrity for Total Rewards systems—overseeing complex audits, testing protocols, and remediation plans; anticipates upstream defects and designs systemic fixes that reduce rework.
• Designs leader‑ready materials, training, and communications that build pay fluency, support change adoption, and improve employee experience through clarity and transparency.
• Mentors other compensation team members; sets quality bars, reviews complex work, and elevates team capability through coaching and standards.

Qualifications

Education

• Required: Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business, Finance, Economics, Data Analytics, or related field—or equivalent experience.
• Preferred: MBA or Master’s in Human Resources.

Experience

• Required: 10+ years of progressive HR/Compensation experience with demonstrable ownership of enterprise or multi‑function compensation programs; prior experience advising executives on complex topics (market movement, equity, governance, risk).

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Expert‑level proficiency in market pricing and job leveling; deep familiarity with job architecture frameworks and level criteria; able to guide consistent application across diverse functions.
• Demonstrated ability to own strategy, define governance, and convert policy into scalable processes, tooling, and training; proven record leading cross‑functional change.
• Advanced analytics (Excel, BI tools) with capability to design pay equity studies, build forecasting models, and translate findings into executive decisions.
• Exceptional communication and executive presence; skilled at framing options, implications, and recommendations succinctly for C‑suite audiences.
• Strong systems orientation (e.g., HRIS/comp planning tools); establishes testing protocols, data quality standards, and remediation playbooks.
• Proven ability to safeguard confidentiality and ensure compliance; sound judgment under ambiguity with a balanced, principle‑based approach to risk.
• Project/Program leadership of large, complex initiatives with measurable outcomes across multiple stakeholder groups.

The posted salary range is the lowest to highest salary we, in good faith, believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the hiring range and this hiring range may also be modified in the future. A candidate’s position within the hiring range may be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, relevant experience, skills, seniority, performance, shift, travel requirements, and business or organizational needs. This job is also eligible for annual bonus incentive pay. We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, 11 holidays, medical/dental/vision insurance, generous 401(k) matching, lifestyle spending account and many other benefits to eligible employees. Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, or any other form of compensation that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law. Apply tot his job Apply To this Job