Compensation Strategy & Program Lead Bay Area, CA, US

Block, Inc.; California, Northern (MO, KY); Hybrid; USD 164,000 - 245,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work

Medical insurance

Flexible time off

Retirement savings plans

Modern family planning

Job summary

Block, Inc. is seeking a Compensation Strategy & Program Lead to drive our AI-first compensation model. You will own major program pillars, design scalable governance, and partner across business areas to implement self-service workflows.

As a primary compensation archetype, you will advise leadership on pay equity, market positioning, and organizational design while building automation that reduces manual triage and supports global delivery.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of designing, iterating, and scaling enterprise compensation programs end-to-end.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration to align teams.

Responsibilities

• Own & deliver core compensation program pillars (focal cycles, equity architecture, salary structures, geo-pay, promotions).
• Collaborate within the Program Lead cohort to ensure global philosophy and unified delivery.
• Build scalable, self-serve tooling with automation and centralized reporting.
• Establish policy as code and governance frameworks for autonomous pay decisions.
• Advise senior leadership on market positioning, pay equity, and organizational design.

Skills

Program / Product orientation

Cohort collaboration

AI-first mindset

Analytical & data rigor

Experience & tools

Tools

HRIS

Data analytics tooling

Compensation planning tooling

Job description

Block is one company built from many blocks, all united by the same purpose of economic empowerment. The blocks that form our foundational teams — People, Finance, Counsel, Hardware, Information Security, Platform Infrastructure Engineering, and more — provide support and guidance at the corporate level. They work across business groups and around the globe, spanning time zones and disciplines to develop inclusive People policies, forecast finances, give legal counsel, safeguard systems, nurture new initiatives, and more. Every challenge creates possibilities, and we need different perspectives to see them all. Bring yours to Block.

The Role

We are looking for a Compensation Strategy & Program Lead to join our team in an AI-first operating model—one where compensation rules, decisions, and reporting are increasingly encoded into automated workflows and self-service tools rather than handled case by case. As our primary compensation archetype, our Program Leads operate as internal product owners. Beyond hands‑on partnership, they architect scalable frameworks, build self‑service governance, and drive strategic total rewards programs across the company.

Working as part of a lean pod of peer Program Leads, you will take full ownership of major program pillars while collaborating closely on overarching compensation philosophy, automation initiatives, and data‑driven tooling.

You Will

• Own & Deliver Core Program Portfolios: Take strategic and operational ownership of assigned program pillars (e.g., focal cycles, equity architecture, salary structures, geo-pay, promotions, or specialized incentive frameworks), with the agility to evolve and rotate portfolio ownership over time.
• Collaborate within the Program Lead Cohort: Partner with peers to ensure strategic alignment, a cohesive global philosophy, and unified program delivery across different business areas and lifecycles.
• Build for Scalability & Self‑Service: Work with Comp Ops and Data/Tooling to reduce manual triage by translating compensation rules into automated workflows, AI‑assisted self‑serve resources, and centralized reporting.
• Establish Policy as Code & Governance: Design transparent guardrails and delegation‑of‑authority frameworks that empower managers and People partners to make confident pay decisions autonomously.
• Serve as a Macro‑Level Strategic Advisor: Advise senior leadership on talent market positioning, pay equity, and organizational design, prioritizing systemic improvements alongside the day‑to‑day

You Have

• Program / Product Orientation: 6+ years of proven experience designing, iterating, and scaling enterprise compensation programs end-to-end, in addition to strong frontline consulting instincts.
• Cohort Collaboration & Autonomy: A high degree of independence in driving your portfolios, paired with strong cross‑functional collaboration to maintain alignment across the team.
• Systems & AI‑First Mindset: A strong instinct to solve edge cases through policy redesign, automation, and self‑service tooling rather than repeated manual intervention.
• Analytical & Data Rigor: High proficiency in quantitative modeling and evaluating macro compensation metrics, with comfort partnering alongside data and operations teams.
• Experience & Tools: Substantial compensation experience (level to be calibrated to the role) and fluency with modern comp planning, HRIS, and data/analytics tooling

We’re working to build a more inclusive economy where our customers have equal access to opportunity, and we strive to live by these same values in building our workplace. Block is an equal opportunity employer evaluating all employees and job applicants without regard to identity or any legally protected class. We will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.

We believe in being fair, and are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including providing reasonable accommodations to disabled applicants throughout the recruitment process. We encourage applicants to share any needed accommodations with their recruiter, who will treat these requests as confidentially as possible. Want to learn more about what we’re doing to build a workplace that is fair and square? Check out our I+D page .

While there is no specific deadline to apply for this role, U.S. roles are typically open for an average of 55 days before being filled by a successful candidate. Please refer to the date listed at the top of this job page for when this role was first posted.

Block takes a market-based approach to pay, and pay may vary depending on your location. U.S. locations are categorized into one of four zones based on a cost of labor index for that geographic area. The successful candidate’s starting pay will be determined based on job‑related skills, experience, qualifications, work location, and market conditions. These ranges may be modified in the future.

To find a location’s zone designation, please refer to thisresource . If a location of interest is not listed, please speak with a recruiter for additional information.

Zone A:

$163,600 — $245,400 USD

Zone B:

$152,200 — $228,200 USD

Zone C:

$144,000 — $216,000 USD

Zone D:

$135,800 — $203,600 USD

Application Guidelines

Candidates may submit up to 9 active applications within a 60-day period. Reapplications to the same role are accepted 90 days after a previous application has been reviewed.

Use of AI in Our Hiring Process

We may use automated AI tools to evaluate job applications for efficiency and consistency. These tools comply with local regulations, including bias audits, and we handle all personal data in accordance with state and local privacy laws.

Contact us here with hiring practice or data usage questions.

Every benefit we offer is designed with one goal: empowering you to do the best work of your career while building the life you want. Remote work, medical insurance, flexible time off, retirement savings plans, and modern family planning are just some of our offering.

• Remote work
• medical insurance
• flexible time off
• retirement savings plans
• modern family planning

Check out our other benefits at Block.

Block, Inc. (NYSE: XYZ) builds technology to increase access to the global economy. Each of our brands unlocks different aspects of the economy for more people.Squaremakes commerce and financial services accessible to sellers.Cash Appis the easy way to spend, send, and store money.Afterpayis transforming the way customers manage their spending over time.TIDALis a music platform that empowers artists to thrive as entrepreneurs.Bitkeyis a simple self‑custody wallet built for bitcoin.Protois a suite of bitcoin mining products and services. Together, we’re helping build a financial system that is open to everyone.