Compensation analysts are experts in knowing what certain positions within various industries should pay. A compensation analyst will often be used to identify whether employees should acquire raises and what type of compensation should be offered to new employees.

What Is a Compensation Analyst?

A compensation analyst is a skilled professional that uses a variety of metrics, such as geographical location and industry, to determine how much someone should be getting paid for a specific position. Compensation analysis can be an extraordinarily complex industry, demanding quite a lot of skill and attention. Without a compensation analyst, many companies would not be able to determine when an employee merited a raise or what a good starting salary should be.

CNN Money ranked the position of compensation analyst as one of the best jobs available in America. Compensation analysts need to have very good people skills, and at times they may need to negotiate with individuals in regards to their potential employment. The compensation analyst will usually work directly under the executives within a company. Occasionally, an analyst may work directly for a company that specializes in this type of consulting rather than directly for a business.

What Does a Compensation Analyst Do?

The compensation analyst needs to find out the industry and geography standard compensation packages. They may also need to display some element of problem solving, as a company may be able to afford more in one area than another. As an example, a company may not have monetary compensation but may be able to offer stock options. Because of this, the compensation analyst needs to be very flexible and able to identify the intrinsic value of certain things.

As noted by the Society for Human Resource Management, a compensation analyst must concern themselves with other items rather than just monetary compensation. The analyst will also need to perform extensive amounts of research regarding other forms of compensation such as bonus programs, initiatives, health care plans, retirement funds and more. All of this together needs to create a single compensation package which can be quite complex.

How Do You become a Compensation Analyst?

Those interested in becoming a compensation analyst will first need to get their Bachelor’s Degree in either the field of Human Resources or the field of Business. Those that may be interested in a different option later on may want to get a broader Business degree, as it is often considered applicable to this field.

Compensation analysis is not an entry-level field. Instead, most of those who enter into it will have at least three to five years of experience in the human resources industry, if not more.

To be promoted into the field of compensation analysis, a human resources candidate needs to have displayed the ability to think logically about very complex topics and to be extraordinarily accurate about their research and calculations. Many thousands of dollars may hinge upon the human resources specialist successfully fulfilling their role and determining the proper compensation package.

How Do You Advance as Compensation Analyst?

Advancement as a compensation analysis will usually be based on seniority, and those that perform well may eventually head their own departments. A very skilled and driven compensation analyst may eventually become an individual consultant that can work on a contract basis for large companies.

Other compensation analysts may wish to move into related fields, such as human resources management or human resources generalist. Overall, those with experience with human resources management may be able to enter into many resource related fields, such as sales resources and negotiations.