Compensation manager

Watershed; United States; Presencial; USD 167 000 - 200 000; Tempo integral

Resumo da oferta

Watershed is seeking a dedicated compensation lead to own the global compensation program. You will be the sole compensation expert, partnering with Finance, People Operations, Recruiting, and leaders to shape strategy and run end-to-end processes across the US, EMEA, Australia, and Latin America.

You will build models, validate benchmarks, manage budgeting, and educate employees and managers about pay and equity.

Qualificações

• 7+ years in compensation, owning programs and cycles.
• Experience at technology/SaaS companies with cash and equity considerations.
• Strong fundamentals: market pricing, survey participation, job matching, salary ranges, budgeting.
• Experience implementing planning tools and translating rules into workflows.
• Advanced spreadsheet skills and complex model auditing.
• Knowledge of US practices and at least one other country (Mexico a plus).
• Ability to explain complex concepts clearly and collaborate cross‑functionally.
• Proficiency with AI tools for analysis, documentation, and automated workflows.

Responsabilidades

• Own and evolve global compensation planning tools, models, and workflows.
• Run compensation cycles end to end with budgeting, approvals, and data validation.
• Lead benchmarking, market data validation, and job matching across geographies.
• Educate employees, managers, and recruiters about compensation and equity.
• Advise partners on offers, promotions, and compensation questions with data-led recommendations.
• Maintain accurate records, rules, and access controls; improve reporting with automation.
• Execute executive compensation analyses and align with Legal, Finance, and Leadership.
• Coordinate with global partners on local requirements and rollout; define incentives elsewhere.

Conhecimentos

Compensation programs

SaaS experience

Market pricing

Job matching

Budget modeling

Advanced spreadsheets

US compensation practices

Cross-country knowledge

Descrição da oferta de emprego

About Watershed

Watershed is the enterprise sustainability platform. Companies like Airbnb, Carlyle Group, FedEx, Visa, and Dr. Martens use Watershed to manage climate and ESG data, produce audit-ready metrics for voluntary and regulatory reporting including CSRD, and drive real decarbonization. We are looking for team members who love product-building, want to work hard at a mission-oriented startup, and will collaborate with us in shaping the culture of a growing team.

About Watershed

Watershed is the enterprise sustainability platform. Companies like Airbnb, Carlyle Group, FedEx, Visa, and Dr. Martens use Watershed to manage climate and ESG data, produce audit-ready metrics for voluntary and regulatory reporting including CSRD, and drive real decarbonization. We have offices in San Francisco, New York, Denver, London, Paris, Berlin, Sydney, Mexico City, and remote team members across the US and Europe. We hope that you'll be interested in joining us!

The role

You’ll lead Watershed’s global compensation program. You’ll be our sole dedicated compensation team member, taking ownership of an established, increasingly complex program across the U.S., EMEA, Australia, and Mexico City. This is a hands-on individual contributor role reporting to our Head of People: you’ll build and check the models, validate market benchmarks, run compensation planning, and help employees understand their pay. You’ll bring sound judgment to decisions that balance competitiveness, performance, and financial discipline.

Reporting to the Head of People, you’ll partner closely with Finance, People Business Partners, Recruiting, People Operations, and business leaders. You’ll help shape compensation strategy through analysis and recommendations to the Head of People and founders. You’ll independently own execution of our programs including budgeting, planning, education and rollout.

A major focus will be our compensation tools and planning workflows. You’ll help us move away from manual work toward reliable data, well-tested systems, and a better experience for employees as well as the people making and communicating compensation outcomes.

You will

• Own and evolve compensation planning and tools. Lead the development and continuous improvement of planning tools, models, and workflows to strengthen reliability, usability, and efficiency. Identify opportunities to build new capabilities, reduce manual work, and recommend tools and process improvements that support the company’s evolving compensation needs.
• Run compensation cycles end to end. Manage timelines, eligibility, cash and equity modeling, budget tracking, approvals, data validation, and final handoffs. Partner with Finance and People Operations to ensure approved decisions are implemented accurately and on time.
• Lead global benchmarking. Validate market data and job matches, manage survey participation, and maintain compensation ranges across functions and geographies. Bring judgment to imperfect data, document assumptions, and flag where our benchmarks no longer reflect the talent markets we compete in.
• Build compensation understanding. Help employees understand their compensation and equity, equip managers to communicate decisions, and enable recruiters to explain our programs to candidates. Develop practical guides, FAQs, training, and cycle communications, and help deliver education across time zones.
• Be the compensation expert for business partners. Advise Recruiting, People Business Partners, and leaders on offers, promotions, role changes, and compensation questions. Make clear, data-backed recommendations and explain the trade-offs.
• Keep data and processes dependable. Maintain accurate compensation records, documented decision rules, and appropriate checks and access controls. Improve reporting and reduce recurring manual work using approved automation and AI, with careful protection of employee information and verification of outputs.
• Execute executive compensation programs. Prepare analyses and models, coordinate approvals, and carry approved executive compensation decisions through implementation in partnership with the Head of People, founders, Finance, and Legal.
• Coordinate across global and functional partners. Work with Finance, Legal, People Operations, and Revenue Operations on local requirements, compensation data, and implementation. Benefits and sales incentive design are owned elsewhere.

You have

• 7+ years of experience in compensation, or equivalent depth of expertise, including hands-on ownership of compensation programs and cycles.
• Experience managing compensation programs at technology companies, including SaaS businesses, with an understanding of how cash and equity support hiring, performance, and retention.
• Strong compensation fundamentals: market pricing, survey participation, job matching, salary ranges, cash and equity compensation, and budget modeling.
• Experience implementing or materially improving compensation planning tools, including configuration, testing, rollout, and adoption. You can translate compensation rules into workflows.
• Advanced spreadsheet skills. You can build and audit complex models.
• Hands-on experience with U.S. compensation practices and experience supporting compensation in at least one other country. You can learn unfamiliar local requirements and work effectively with regional experts. Experience in Mexico is a strong plus!
• The ability to turn complex compensation concepts into clear employee education, manager guidance, and leadership recommendations.
• Practical fluency with AI tools and prompt engineering and a willingness to use them to improve analysis, documentation, and recurring workflows. You know how to validate outputs and protect sensitive compensation data.
• Strong project management, attention to detail, and discretion. You can prioritize independently, follow through, and deliver work that people trust.
• Comfort with ambiguity and a genuine interest in being a hands-on, sole compensation specialist with strong cross-functional partners.

Must be willing to work from an office 4 days per week (except for remote roles)

Watershed has hub offices in San Francisco, New York, London, and Mexico City and satellite offices in Denver, Sydney, Paris, and Berlin. Where we have offices, employees are expected to be in office for 4 days per week. Certain jobs are open to being remote and will be specifically noted on the jobs page and in the job description if so.

What’s the interview process like?

It starts the same for every candidate: getting to know the team members through 1 to 2 conversations about Watershed, your experience, and your interests. Next steps can vary by role, but usual next steps are a skill or experience interview (e.g. a coding interview for an engineer, a portfolio review for a designer, deeper experience call for other roles) which leads to a virtual or in person interview panel. We prioritize transparency and lack of surprise throughout the process.

What if I need accommodations for my interview?

At Watershed, we are dedicated to ensuring an inclusive recruitment process. We provide reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities, long-term conditions, mental health needs, religious observances, neurodivergence, or pregnancy-related support requirements. If you need assistance during your process, please contact your recruiter.

Compensation Range: $166.5K - $200K