Compensation & Benefits Specialist

CMC Markets UK Plc; Greater London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading financial services company is seeking a Compensation and Benefits Specialist to lead the global reward strategy. This role will provide strategic leadership on compensation and benefits programmes while ensuring compliance with regulations. Ideal candidates will have proven experience in compensation benchmarking and employee benefits design, along with strong analytical skills. The position requires working onsite for five days a week in Greater London.

Qualifications

• Proven experience of working within a Reward and benefits function.
• Experience managing benefit providers and annual review processes.
• Proven expertise in compensation benchmarking, job evaluations, salary structures, equity programs, and employee benefits design.

Responsibilities

• Develop and drive a global compensation & benefits strategy aligned to organisational goals.
• Lead administration and governance of global share plans.
• Ensure all programmes comply with global, regional, and local regulations.
• Provide strategic oversight for global mobility compensation structures.

Skills

Compensation benchmarking

Benefits design

Data analytics

Leadership

Risk management

Job description

We are looking for a Compensation and Benefits Specialist to join the team here at CMC Markets.

The Vice President, Compensation & Benefits (C&B) is a senior HR leader responsible for defining, leading, and executing the organisations global reward strategy. This role oversees all compensation, benefits, and global share plan initiatives, ensuring they are competitive, compliant, and aligned with business objectives. This position partners closely with executive leadership, HR, Finance, Legal, and business unit leaders across all regions globally to design programmes that attract, motivate, and retain talent at scale.

This position requires deep subject matter expertise in global reward governance, strong analytical skills, leadership capability, and experience managing global equity or share plan schemes.

CMC offers an award winning online and mobile trading platform, enabling clients to trade up to 10,000 financial instruments across shares, indices, foreign currencies, commodities and treasuries through contracts for difference. In Australia, the Group also offers stockbroking services.

• This will require 5 days working onsite*

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

Develop and drive a global compensation & benefits strategy aligned to organisational goals, talent priorities, and global market conditions.

Serve as the senior advisor on reward matters to HR leadership and support requirements for Board, and Remuneration Committees.

Lead effective delivery of all programmes, policies, and annual cycles.

Provide thought leadership on emerging trends in global reward, benefits innovation, and pay governance.

Compensation Strategy & Governance

Co-ordinate design and governance of global salary structures, job architecture, grading frameworks, and internal pay equity.

Lead global benchmarking and market intelligence activities for competitive pay positioning.

Ensure consistent implementation of reward policies and decision-making frameworks across regions.

Global Share Plan & Equity Management

Owner of global share scheme platform and vendor relationship.

Co-ordinate design, implementation, and review of incentive plans, including CSOPs, STIPs, LTIPs where applicable.

Lead administration, and governance of global share plans, including performance shares, restricted stock, options, and employee equity schemes where applicable.

Manage global share plan cycles, including grants, vesting, taxation considerations, communication, and regulatory compliance.

Partner with internal stakeholders, and external administrators to ensure accurate and compliant operation of plans.

Develop communications and education programmes to increase employee understanding and engagement with equity plans.

Support Board-level reporting and RemCo documentation for equity proposals and approvals.

Benefits Programme Leadership

Oversee the global benefits strategy, balancing cost optimisation, competitiveness, and employee wellbeing.

Lead global benefits harmonisation, vendor selection, contract negotiation, and governance processes.

Evaluate emerging benefits, wellbeing initiatives, and regional differences to ensure programmes meet diverse workforce needs.

Compensation Cycles & Reward Operations

Lead annual global compensation cycles, including merit, bonus, and long-term incentive cycles in conjunction with relevant stakeholders.

Partner with Finance on budgeting, accruals, and financial modelling.

Ensure data integrity, systems readiness, and operational excellence across all reward processes.

Drive continuous improvement and automation of reward operations.

Regulatory Compliance & Risk Management

Ensure all compensation, benefits, and share plan programmes comply with global, regional, and local regulations.

Oversee pay governance frameworks, audit processes, risk controls, and reporting.

Monitor legislation affecting compensation, equity, and benefits across jurisdictions and implement necessary policy adjustments.

Global Mobility

Provide strategic oversight for global mobility compensation structures, expatriate policies, and relocation frameworks.

Partner with tax advisors on compliance for mobile employees, equity taxation, and reporting requirements.

Data Analytics, Insights & Reporting

Lead pay equity audits, gender pay reporting, and reward risk assessments.

Use data-driven insights to influence compensation strategy and workforce planning.

Stakeholder & Leadership Partnership

Act as the strategic reward partner to senior executives, HRBPs, business leaders, and regional HR teams.

Provide coaching and guidance to leaders on complex compensation decisions and structures.

Represent the organisation externally in compensation and benefits forums and surveys.

Qualifications

• Proven experience of working within a Reward and benefits function.
• Experience managing benefit providers and annual review processes.
• Proven expertise in compensation benchmarking, job evaluations, salary structures, equity programs, and employee benefits design.

CMC Markets is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of gender, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status, gender reassignment, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability or age.