The Compensation Manager plays a key role in designing, implementing, and managing the company’s compensation programs to ensure they remain competitive, equitable, and strategically aligned with business objectives. This position is ideal for a forward-thinking professional with a strong background in developing, transitioning, and optimizing innovative incentive structures. The ideal candidate possesses deep expertise in incentive plan design and system implementation, with a focus on driving business performance and employee engagement.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and implement new performance-based incentive compensation plans, ensuring alignment with business strategy, market trends, and best practices.
- Lead the transition from existing incentive plans to new structures that enhances employee motivation and retention.
- Partner with HRIS, IT, and external vendors to select, implement, and optimize compensation management systems to improve efficiency, automation, and reporting.
- Ensure compensation structures align with business goals, industry benchmarks, and internal equity.
- Design and implement salary structures, job evaluations, and pay bands.
- Lead the annual compensation review cycle, including merit increases, promotions, and bonus payouts.
- Partner with HR leadership and Finance to budget and forecast compensation expenses.
- Conduct salary surveys and analyze compensation trends to ensure market competitiveness.
- Make recommendations on salary adjustments based on market data, industry standards, and internal equity.
- Work with external vendors and consulting firms to benchmark compensation practices.
- Support audits and reporting requirements related to compensation.
- Partner with HR Advisors, Talent Acquisition, and leadership to provide compensation guidance.
- Develop communication materials to enhance employee understanding of compensation programs.
Qualifications & Skills:
- Bachelor’s degree in HR, Finance, Business, or related field.
- 5+ years of compensation experience, preferably in a HR and/or financial services setting.
- Strong analytical skills with experience using compensation survey tools (e.g., McLagan, Mercer, Salary.com or Radford).
- Proficiency in HRIS and compensation software (e.g., ADP, Workday, SAP, or PeopleSoft).
- Advanced Excel skills, including pivot tables and data analysis.
- Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and problem-solving skills.
The base salary range for this position is $120K-150K. Actual salaries will vary and will be based on various factors, such as skills, experience, and qualification for the role.
About Bessemer Trust
Bessemer Trust is a family office, overseeing more than $200 billion in assets for over 3,100 individuals and families of substantial wealth. Its more than 1,200 employees are singularly focused on private wealth management — disciplined investment management, sophisticated wealth planning, comprehensive family office services, and highly personalized client service.
Established in 1907 as the family office for Annie and Henry Phipps, Bessemer Trust is in its seventh generation of ownership by the Phipps family. As a self-made entrepreneur, Henry Phipps was a founding partner and chief financial officer of Carnegie Steel.
Bessemer Trust retains its original focus as a privately owned and independent wealth manager deeply committed to its mission of providing peace of mind to its clients. Bessemer’s adherence to putting clients’ interests first, fiduciary mindset, and highly collaborative culture are at the heart of everything the firm does.
Key Facts:
- For 118 years, Bessemer Trust has operated continuously in a single line of business, independently owned by one family.
- Headquartered in New York’s Rockefeller Center, Bessemer Trust has 22 offices in total. Woodbridge, NJ, is one of the firm’s largest offices, which hosts a wide range of technology and operations professionals. In addition to its sizable presence in New York and Woodbridge, the firm provides client service through offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Delaware, Denver, Garden City, Grand Cayman, Greenwich, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Naples, Nevada, Palm Beach, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Stuart, and Washington, D.C.
- To watch a video about Bessemer Trust’s history, click here.
- To learn more about Bessemer Trust, click here.
About Our Employee Rewards and Benefits:
We provide exceptional rewards and benefits that are among the best in the industry, giving our people access to a wide range of options, including:
- Competitive base salary plus discretionary annual bonus for select positions
- A 401(k) plan with a generous annual profit-sharing contribution
- Personalized development and career opportunities, including tuition reimbursement support
- Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans with zero contributions for employee coverage
- Employee assistance (EAP) and wellness programs
- Hybrid work environment: 60% in office, 40% remote for most positions
- Paid time off and paid parental leave
- Employer-paid life insurance and short- and long-term disability coverage
- Legal services and financial wellness plans at no cost to employees
Bessemer Trust is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We encourage candidates of diverse backgrounds to apply.
Top Skills
What We Do
Privately owned and independent, Bessemer Trust is a multifamily office that has served individuals and families of substantial wealth for more than 110 years. Through comprehensive investment management, wealth planning, and family office services, we help clients achieve peace of mind for generations.
