Compensation Specialist

We are hiring a Compensation Specialist! Come join a high-performing, dynamic Compensation Lateral Consulting team that operates as Microsoft's global hub for first-tier compensation consulting — delivering consulting services on high-volume compensation cases across organizations globally. We are seeking a motivated, customer-oriented Compensation Specialist who is comfortable navigating the delicate balance between operating with agility and flexibility while honoring and upholding the intent of processes, policies, and guidelines.

In this role, you will act as a trusted advisor — weaving together data, policy, and competitive insight in a way that is easy to consume and digest, to influence and enable HR partners to make well-informed decisions within defined SLAs. You will also help scale the model by contributing to compensation toolkits, embedded in-tool guidance, CRM analytics, and AI-powered automations that take volume out of the system and accelerate cycle time.

Data security is foundational to this work. In alignment with Microsoft's Secure Future Initiative (SFI), you will treat compensation information as Highly Confidential by default — applying correct sensitivity labels, using approved tools, respecting access boundaries, and proactively identifying risks in processes and AI workflows.

This role:

• Identifies new compensation needs and opportunities, process breakdowns, and program design issues.
• Analyzes business needs, compliance requirements, and competitive market data.
• Assists in the creation of materials to socialize proposed changes associated with a specific compensation program.
• Contributes to compensation programs by conducting analyses.
• Develops implementation and readiness materials for multiple components of a compensation program.
• Partners with internal teams before and during the implementation of a compensation program to execute project plans and share materials.
• Runs multiple components or elements of compensation programs by conducting compensation analyses.
• Solves escalations and answers questions related to policy, tools and/or Web content from clients and internal partners.
• Advises clients and partners on compensation policies.
• Analyzes market data and adheres to company policies and procedures to execute compensation processes and practices and report information.
• Contributes to the development and evolution of compensation toolkits, embedded guidance, and AI-assisted automations that reduce avoidable consultation volume.
• Applies SFI principles to safeguard compensation data — including secure handling, correct sensitivity labeling, and responsible use of AI on confidential information.
• Monitors the employee experience and identifies trends. Contributes to the development of onboarding and training materials.
• Provides answers to compensation questions of varying complexity.
• Provides information to internal partners on organizational compensation practices.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond. 

Program Design & Adaptation

· Identifies new compensation needs and opportunities, process break downs, and program design issues. Begins to create principles that guide the design and adaption of compensation programs, with guidance.

· Analyzes business needs, compliance requirements, and competitive market data (e.g., benchmarking) for multiple components of a compensation program.

· Assists in the creation of materials to socialize proposed changes associated with a specific new or existing compensation program (e.g., Total Rewards).

· Contributes to compensation programs by conducting analyses (e.g., job evaluations, job classifications/job matching, total compensation analysis, modeling anticipated impacts) following established procedures using market data and internal/external measures such as surveys and polls.

Program Implementation

· Develops implementation and readiness materials for multiple components of a compensation program.

· Partners with internal teams before and during the implementation of a compensation program to execute project plans and share materials.

Program Management

· Runs multiple components or elements of compensation programs by conducting compensation analyses. Prepares and validates reports. Develops compensation models for assessing impact. Communicates recommendations and results within the team to support business and HR plans.

· Solves escalations and answers questions related to policy, tools and/or Web content from clients and internal partners. Acts as the voice of the clients and partners for their own area, and identifies opportunities for improvement.

· Advises clients and partners on compensation policies. Follows up on concerns and challenges by providing specific compensation support.

· Analyzes market data and adheres to company policies and procedures to execute compensation processes and practices and report information.

Compensation Education & Consultation

· Contributes to the development of onboarding and training materials to educate employees and managers on compensation programs.

· Provides answers to compensation questions of varying complexity from internal partners (e.g., HR Business Partner [HRBP], Global Talent Acquisition). Makes recommendations on handling compensation-related queries.

· Provides information to internal partners on organizational compensation practices. Identifies situations where customized solutions (e.g., retention, competitive offers) or consulting may be necessary and escalate to next level team member.

· Rotates CRM queue management responsibilities with the team — triaging cases, assigning categories accurately and consistently, balancing case load across peers, and routing cases to client-aligned compensation consultants as appropriate to meet team SLAs.

· Applies and reinforces standard compensation toolkits, templates, and guidelines (e.g., Compensation Toolkit PowerApp, internal transfer consistency guidance, retention offer modeling) to drive consistent, defensible outcomes across regions.

AI & Operational Leverage

· Identifies process breakdowns and high-volume consultation patterns; recommends improvements that take volume out of the system through tool enhancements, embedded in-tool guidance, FAQs, and onboarding/training materials.

· Contributes to the design, testing, and deployment of AI-assisted automations and agents that scale compensation consulting (e.g., classification, routing, drafting, guidance retrieval), with appropriate human review.

· Uses Microsoft Copilot and other approved AI tools to improve personal and team productivity (e.g., case drafting, data summarization, knowledge lookup), while validating outputs against authoritative policy and toolkit guidance.

· Analyzes CRM and dashboard data to surface trends, measure SLA performance, and identify the largest avoidable case types for targeted simplification.

Data Security & Secure Future Initiative (SFI)

· Treats compensation information as Highly Confidential by default; applies the correct Microsoft Information Protection sensitivity label to all documents, files, and communications.

· Adheres to least-privilege access principles — only accesses, shares, or stores compensation data within approved tools, channels, and audiences; does not retain confidential data in personal locations or send it externally.

· Uses Microsoft-approved AI services for any work involving compensation data; does not input confidential information into unapproved AI tools or external services.

· Identifies and escalates potential data risks in processes, tools, trackers, and AI workflows; contributes to remediation aligned with SFI principles (secure by design, secure by default, secure operations).

· Maintains accurate audit trails in CRM and approved trackers to support compliance, transparency, and continuous improvement.

• Embody our culture and values

Required/Minimum Qualifications

• Master's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 1+ year(s) experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field
  • OR Bachelor's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 2+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field
  • OR equivalent experience. 

Additional or Preferred Qualifications

• Master's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 2+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field
• OR Bachelor's Degree in Human Resources, Business, or related field AND 4+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field
• OR equivalent experience.
• 1+ year(s) project management experience.
• 1+ year(s) compensation program design experience.
• Advanced in Microsoft Excel, high proficiency in Microsoft PowerBI

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.