Compensation Lead

Wwshemi; San Francisco, New York (CA, NY); Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

Perplexity is seeking a Compensation Lead to build and own our compensation function, shaping programs and processes for hiring, recognition, and retention. You’ll design salary ranges, equity guidelines, and decision rules, while driving consistency across teams and locations.

You’ll partner with Finance and People to run reviews, justify recommendations with market data, and ensure accurate implementation. A strong, independent executor ready to improve existing workflows is essential.

Qualifications

• Experience designing or rebuilding compensation frameworks with limited infra.
• Ability to price roles, cash and equity, and run reviews.
• Strong analytical reasoning and data reconciliation.

Responsibilities

• Build the compensation foundation, practices, and guidelines.
• Develop salary ranges and market benchmarks; align with job scope and leveling.
• Own day-to-day compensation decisions including offers and pay changes.
• Design and run compensation reviews with cross-functional partners.
• Model costs and impact of salary/equity changes for leadership decisions.
• Identify pay equity and compression issues and address them with leadership.

Skills

Compensation program design

Market pricing

Analytical judgment

Influence decisions

Independent execution

Job description

We're hiring a Compensation Lead to build Perplexity's compensation function and own its day-to-day execution. You'll build the programs and processes that support how we hire, recognize, and retain people.

You should be comfortable moving between program design and an individual offer, building longer-term structure while keeping today's decisions moving. The goal is a compensation approach that is competitive, financially sound, and clear enough for people to use, without adding unnecessary complexity.

What you'll own

• Build the compensation foundation. Assess existing practices, data, and tools; prioritize the gaps; and develop recommendations on compensation philosophy, market positioning, and cash and equity guidelines.
• Develop salary ranges and market benchmarks. Establish a consistent approach to pricing roles across functions and locations. Partner with People and business leaders on job scope and leveling, and explain where market data is useful or incomplete.
• Own day-to-day compensation decisions. Be the primary partner for offers, promotions, pay adjustments, and compensation questions. Evaluate recommendations against market data, internal equity, and budget, with clear approval paths for exceptions.
• Design and run compensation reviews. Build the calendar, planning models, manager guidance, and approval process. Coordinate with Finance, People Operations, Payroll, and equity partners to carry decisions through to accurate implementation.
• Inform leadership decisions. Model the cost and employee impact of proposed changes to salary and equity programs. Present a recommendation and its trade-offs, then own execution once approved.
• Identify and address inconsistencies. Assess pay compression and potential inequities across teams, levels, and locations. Partner with People leadership and Legal on appropriate reviews and recommend actions.
• Build processes people can use. Establish decision records, recruiter and manager guidance, and clear explanations of compensation programs. Improve recurring workflows so consistent decisions don't depend on individual knowledge or one-off conversations.
• Own the data and tools behind the work. Establish reliable compensation records, select and manage benchmarking resources, and improve reporting and quality checks. Use approved automation and AI tools where they help, with appropriate protection for employee information and verification of results.

What you bring

• Experience building compensation programs: You've established or substantially rebuilt compensation frameworks and processes with limited infrastructure, and stayed accountable for running them after launch.
• Technical compensation depth: Hands-on experience with market pricing, salary ranges, cash and equity programs, compensation reviews, and individual pay recommendations.
• Strong analytical judgment: You can build and audit models, reconcile imperfect data, and explain your assumptions. You know when a benchmark is a useful comparison and when it misses the role.
• Ability to influence decisions: You can turn analysis into a clear recommendation, discuss trade-offs with leadership, and constructively challenge an approach that isn't working.
• Independent, hands-on execution: You can set priorities, build a workable process, and manage urgent requests without losing progress on longer-term work. You're comfortable being both the person designing the program and the person checking the data.
• Discretion and clear communication: You handle sensitive information carefully and explain compensation decisions in language that recruiters, managers, and employees can understand.