European Compensation Lead — Maternity Cover (Fixed-Term)

Hunt; Cork; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Cognex is seeking an experienced Compensation Manager to lead Europe-wide compensation programs and partner with ES, Finance and the Global Total Rewards team to ensure equity, competitiveness, and scalability across the region.

Reporting to the Senior Director, Global Total Rewards, the role balances strategy with execution, overseeing benchmarking, market pricing, annual planning, and governance. This is a one-year fixed-term maternity cover with up to ~20% travel.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in HR, Business or equivalent.
• 8+ years of relevant regional/consulting experience desirable.
• Exposure to European compensation practices across multiple European countries.

Responsibilities

• Develop, implement, and administer compensation programs across Europe.
• Evaluate jobs, promotions, and offers for internal equity and market competitiveness.
• Lead benchmarking activities and participate in external salary surveys.
• Conduct market pricing analyses and advise on salary structures.
• Support annual compensation planning, merit increases, promotions, and bonuses.
• Analyze compensation data to identify trends, risks, and opportunities.
• Prepare compensation reports and present recommendations to leadership.

Skills

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Excel

PowerPoint

Project management

Stakeholder management

Travel readiness

Multilingual

HRIS (Workday)

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in HR or Business

Tools

Workday

Job description

Cognex is seeking an experienced Compensation Manager to lead Europe-wide compensation programs and partner with ES, Finance and the Global Total Rewards team to ensure equity, competitiveness, and scalability across the region.

Reporting to the Senior Director, Global Total Rewards, the role balances strategy with execution, overseeing benchmarking, market pricing, annual planning, and governance. This is a one-year fixed-term maternity cover with up to ~20% travel.