Global Compensation Strategy Lead

Grant Thornton (US); Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 187,500 - 312,500; Full time

Job summary

Grant Thornton is seeking a Director, Global Compensation to lead the strategy, design, and governance of compensation across our global footprint — harmonizing pay practices across countries while respecting local markets and regulatory requirements. You’ll own our global compensation philosophy, build scalable pay structures, and serve as a key architect of our global job framework.

This role focuses on leading compensation integration for M&A activity — bringing newly acquired firms onto

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in HR, Business, Finance, or related field; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive compensation experience, including 3+ years leading global compensation strategy, design, and governance.
• Direct experience supporting M&A compensation integration and harmonization.
• Familiarity with EU Pay Transparency and pay equity.
• Strong command of compensation systems and tools (e.g., Oracle HCM, Payfactors, Syndio) and advanced Excel/analytics.
• Excellent verbal and written communication; ability to influence across geographies.
• Professional certifications (e.g., CCP, GRP) preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own and evolve the global compensation strategy and pay philosophy.
• Design scalable, market-based pay structures across geographies.
• Advise senior leaders on pay decisions, market positioning, and total cash.
• Develop and govern the global job architecture with levels, progression, and taxonomy.
• Oversee job mapping, leveling, and validation across HRIS systems and compensation components.
• Lead benchmarking with Mercer, WTW, and Payfactors; interpret market data for salary ranges and bonus tables.
• Ensure compliance with local and global regulations including pay transparency and reporting.
• Manage annual compensation cycles across geographies and drive process improvements.
• Lead and develop a team of compensation professionals.

Skills

Global compensation strategy

Pay architecture

M&A integration

Benchmarking

Regulatory compliance

HRIS

Excel analytics

Communication

Leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree in HR, Business, Finance, or related field

MBA or advanced degree preferred

Tools

Oracle HCM

Payfactors

Syndio

Job description

Grant Thornton is seeking a Director, Global Compensation to lead the strategy, design, and governance of compensation across our global footprint — harmonizing pay practices across countries while respecting local markets and regulatory requirements. You’ll own our global compensation philosophy, build scalable pay structures, and serve as a key architect of our global job framework.

This role focuses on leading compensation integration for M&A activity — bringing newly acquired firms onto