Senior Analytics Manager, Incentive Compensation

Vanguard; Charlotte (NC); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Vanguard is seeking a Senior Manager, Incentive Compensation Strategy to lead analytics and governance for incentive programs, partnering with HR Compensation, Compliance and Finance to deliver actionable insights affecting crew effectiveness and client outcomes.

This role focuses on building scalable data pipelines, reducing defects, and standardizing definitions while influencing decision-making and ensuring audit-ready outputs across the organization.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in analytics, with direct experience supporting incentive or sales compensation programs.
• Strong understanding of how compensation performance is measured and reported.
• Experience building or improving analytics pipelines and data processes.
• Track record of reducing defects, improving data quality, and scaling analytics solutions.
• Ability to translate business questions into structured analytical approaches.
• Strong stakeholder management across business, HR, and compliance.

Responsibilities

• Lead analytics that measure performance of incentive compensation programs
• Define and maintain key performance indicators tied to compensation outcomes
• Deliver clear insights on plan effectiveness, risks, and tradeoffs
• Build and oversee scalable data pipelines supporting compensation reporting and analytics
• Identify and eliminate defects, inconsistencies, and manual processes
• Standardize data definitions and logic across incentive compensation workflows
• Partner with tech and data teams to productionalize solutions
• Identify key points of failure in compensation analytics and reporting
• Implement controls, validation checks, and governance processes
• Ensure outputs are audit-ready and meet compliance standards
• Partner with distribution leadership to translate performance into actionable insights
• Work with HR compensation to ensure alignment between plan design and measurement
• Collaborate with compliance to ensure analytics and reporting meet regulatory expectations
• Simplify reporting frameworks and eliminate redundant metrics
• Reduce fragmentation across tools, datasets, and processes
• Drive clarity in how performance is measured and communicated
• Lead and develop a team of analysts
• Set standards for analytical rigor, data quality, and communication
• Balance hands-on involvement with team oversight

Skills

Analytics leadership

Incentive compensation analytics

Data-driven insights

Stakeholder management

Process improvement

Job description

The Senior Manager, Incentive Compensation Strategy is responsible for advancing Vanguard's mission of taking a stand for all investors by supporting the development and execution of incentive compensation strategy and governance, and delivers actionable insights that improve crew effectiveness, client outcomes, and business performance. Serving as a strategic thought partner to senior leaders, HR Compensation, compliance and finance, the Senior Manager leverages data, analytics, and financial insights to influence decision-making, evaluate how incentive plans perform and ensure analytics pipelines are accurate, repeatable, and production-ready.

Primary Responsibilities Include

Incentive Compensation Analytics & Measurement

• Lead analytics that measure performance of incentive compensation programs
• Define and maintain key performance indicators tied to compensation outcomes
• Deliver clear insights on plan effectiveness, risks, and tradeoffs

Analytics Pipeline Quality & Scalability

• Build and oversee scalable data pipelines supporting compensation reporting and analytics
• Identify and eliminate defects, inconsistencies, and manual processes
• Standardize data definitions and logic across incentive compensation workflows
• Partner with tech and data teams to productionalize solutions

Operational Risk Reduction

• Identify key points of failure in compensation analytics and reporting
• Implement controls, validation checks, and governance processes
• Ensure outputs are audit-ready and meet compliance standards

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Partner with distribution leadership to translate performance into actionable insights
• Work with HR compensation to ensure alignment between plan design and measurement
• Collaborate with compliance to ensure analytics and reporting meet regulatory expectations

Complexity Reduction & Simplification

• Simplify reporting frameworks and eliminate redundant metrics
• Reduce fragmentation across tools, datasets, and processes
• Drive clarity in how performance is measured and communicated

Team Leadership

• Lead and develop a team of analysts
• Set standards for analytical rigor, data quality, and communication
• Balance hands-on involvement with team oversight

Qualifications, Education, Certifications And/or Other Professional Credentials

• 8+ years in analytics, with direct experience supporting incentive or sales compensation programs
• Strong understanding of how compensation performance is measured and reported
• Experience building or improving analytics pipelines and data processes
• Track record of reducing defects, improving data quality, and scaling analytics solutions
• Ability to translate business questions into structured analytical approaches
• Strong stakeholder management across business, HR, and compliance

Special Factors

Sponsorship

Vanguard is not offering visa sponsorship for this position.

About Vanguard

At Vanguard, we don't just have a mission-we're on a mission.

To work for the long-term financial wellbeing of our clients. To lead through product and services that transform our clients' lives. To learn and develop our skills as individuals and as a team. From Malvern to Melbourne, our mission drives us forward and inspires us to be our best.

How We Work

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.