Sales Compensation Manager

NextGenEnergyJobs; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 107,000 - 144,000; Full time

Job summary

Samsara is seeking a detail-focused professional to own the sales compensation policy strategy, including master policy creation and governance. You will design frameworks for complex deals and ensure policy consistency across renewals, new business, and team changes.

You will build and maintain governance artifacts, manage exception processes, and partner with executives and cross-functional teams to scale incentive programs globally.

Qualifications

• 5 years of analytical experience in incentive compensation or related roles.
• Bachelor’s degree from a 4-year university.
• Experience writing or owning policy, process documentation, or governance.
• Experience with incentive compensation systems and programs.
• Strong analytical reasoning and judgment in complex cases.
• Collaborative orientation and ability to work with diverse teams.
• Fluency in English and comfort with governance structures.
• Experience in governance or committee environments is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Own Samsara's sales compensation policy strategy and master policy set.
• Define crediting framework for complex, non-standard deals.
• Publish policy changes for renewals, nets, and splits with clear rules.
• Ensure policy accuracy across comp and quota change lifecycles and deployments.
• Build governance artifacts: case logs, precedent library, audit materials.
• Run exception processes and translate exceptions into policy updates.
• Manage the sales compensation hub and field-facing enablement content.
• Model and promote Samsara’s cultural principles while scaling globally.

Skills

Incentive compensation

Policy documentation

Analytical skills

Cross-functional collaboration

English fluency

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Salesforce

Tableau

BigQuery

Google Sheets

Claude

Job description

At Samsara, we embrace a flexible working model that caters to the diverse needs of our teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Samsara's Sales Compensation Strategy team is looking for a curious, motivated and high-impact team player to join the team. Our team’s mandate is to design, implement, and manage the Go-to-Market organization’s incentive compensation program. We are a highly collaborative team that partners with sales leaders and cross-functionally to realize growing revenue targets, to scale the organization sustainably, and to address GTM challenges and opportunities as it relates to incentive compensation.
• At a high level, this role focuses on compensation policy strategy, the crediting framework for complex and non-standard deals, and exception governance.
• We are a team that seeks to have an outsized impact on Samsara and we achieve that ambition through rigorous and ongoing skill development.
• This is a remote position open to candidates residing in the US except Alaska, Austin Metro, Boulder Metro, California, Chicago Metro, Connecticut, Dallas Metro, Denver Metro, Houston Metro, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Seattle Metro, and Washington, D.C.
• Own Samsara's sales compensation policy strategy including the master policy set covering draws, leaves of absence, transfers, promotions, terminations, clawbacks, windfall thresholds, etc., driving an annual policy roadmap and the evolution of the compensation Terms & Conditions, and identifying where policy is missing, ambiguous, or producing the wrong selling behavior
• Define and publish the crediting framework for complex and non-standard deals, including renewals versus net new ACV, overlay and specialist involvement, and split and pod scenarios, converting recurring case-by-case judgment into documented rules the field and the team can apply consistently
• Own correct application of policy across the comp and quota change lifecycle, and design the controls and audit approach that keep it accurate through system implementations and releases
• Build and manage the governance layer: precedent library, case decision log, exception committee materials, and audits of adjudication consistency across quarters and GTM functions
• Run the exception process and translate recurring exceptions into policy and plan design changes
• Own the sales compensation hub and field-facing enablement content
• Champion, role model, and embed Samsara’s cultural principles (Focus on Customer Success, Build for the Long Term, Adopt a Growth Mindset, Be Inclusive, Win as a Team) as we scale globally and across new offices

Requirements

• 5 years of experience in analytical roles (e.g., Incentive Compensation, Consulting, Business Operations, Sales Operations) or a comparable policy and process role
• Bachelor’s degree from a 4-year accredited university
• Experience writing or owning policy, process documentation, or governance frameworks that other people rely on
• Experience with incentive compensation
• Strong analytical and logical reasoning skills, with sound judgment on ambiguous, precedent-setting cases
• Kind and collaborative orientation who is energized by working with a lot of different types of people from many teams (sense of humor is a big plus)
• Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple projects on a tight deadline alone
• Deep comfort with AI and analytical tools (e.g., Claude, Tableau, Salesforce, Google Sheets, BigQuery) and/or willingness to expand skill set to tackle new problems
• Comfortable with ambiguity and enthusiastic about improving efficiencies to increase sales
• Fully fluent in English
• Insatiable drive and commitment to personal growth
• Experience operating inside a governance or committee structure (e.g., incentive compensation committee, or similar)
• Ability to build strong relationships with executives (SVP of Sales, Sales VPs, Sales Directors) and cross-functional partners
• High level of intellectual curiosity and honesty because we love to debate ideas. Losing a debate to a good argument is as exciting as winning one with a good argument
• Xactly experience is a plus!
• The range of annual base salary for full-time employees for this position is below. Please note that base pay offered may vary depending on factors including your city of residence, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
• $106,802.50
• —
• $143,600 USD
• At Samsara, we build for the people who keep the global economy moving. We want owners, not passengers, which is why our rewards are designed to fuel high-impact builders. Our compensation program delivers above-market total compensation through a combination of base salary, performance-based bonus/variable pay, and equity (for eligible roles) in a high-growth public company. We meaningfully differentiate pay for our top performers, who have the opportunity to earn above-market compensation that can outpace the broader market over time.
• Beyond compensation, we provide the foundations that enable long‑term success: a flexible, employee‑led remote model, a professional development stipend, comprehensive health and parental leave plans, and more.