
Compensation Programs Director
Redmond, WAJob$131–277K/yrSeen 5 days agoSeen in employer's feed 5 days ago
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At a glance
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Job overview
Microsoft’s Total Rewards organization seeks a Compensation Director to lead compensation strategy and programs across the business. The role focuses on designing competitive, understandable programs aligned with business needs and pay priorities, using AI to improve insights, processes, and employee and manager experiences. The director will build a high-performing team and partner across HR to attract and retain talent.
Skills & qualifications
Skills
Qualifications
Full job description
Overview
Microsoft's Total Rewards organization is looking for a strategic, highly motivated and collaborative Compensation Director to lead compensation design and drive high-impact outcomes across the broader Microsoft business. You'll join a team that designs, delivers and evolves compensation programs. These programs need to be competitive, support business needs and reflect Microsoft's pay priorities, while being easy to understand and built around how managers and employees work.
In this role, you will lead Microsoft’s compensation strategy and programs, using AI to rethink how we work, sharpen insights, simplify processes, and improve the manager and employee experience. You’ll build a high-performing team and partner across HR to ensure our broad-based compensation programs are designed to attract and retain the talent Microsoft needs to succeed.
Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond
Responsibilities
Program Design & Adaptation
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Drives and oversees broad program design and adaptation by guiding teams to build and communicate business cases for new or changing compensation programs (e.g., promotions, stock awards, base pay, recognition, in-business programs). Leads the acceptance of the overall costs, principles, and impact of proposed changes with senior executives in partnership with HR Business Partner (HRBP), and creating company-wide communication strategies.
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Holds their team accountable for conducting analyses (e.g., job evaluations, job classifications/job matching, total compensation analysis) using market data and internal/external measures such as surveys and polls. Partners with Finance and other relevant stakeholders to explain, drive recommendations for, and/or collaboratively iterate on complex financial compensation models. Acts as a subject matter expert for others on issues of compensation reporting and modeling. Leads their team to design internal compensation analysis tools using knowledge of business needs and industry trends.
Program Implementation
- Acts as a company-wide expert and thought leader across an entire domain in compensation program implementation. Advises leadership on unusually complex, risky, and critical issues. Leads or participates in key phases of the process (e.g., annual salary planning).
Program Management
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Evaluates the effectiveness and business impact of compensation programs and processes. Oversees the development and management of complex, high-risk projects by collaborating with internal and external partners and providing compensation consulting to leadership to inform major decisions and planning.
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Leads the implementation of short- and long-term compensation solutions leveraging understanding of business objectives and challenges. Presents solutions to executive leadership to gain buy-in in partnership with HR Business Partner (HRBP).
People Management
- Managers deliver success through empowerment and accountability by modeling, coaching, and caring. Model: Live our culture. Embody our values. Practice our leadership principles. Coach: Define team objectives and outcomes. Enable success across boundaries. Help the team adapt and learn. Care: Attract and retain great people. Know each individual’s capabilities and aspirations. Invest in the growth of others.
Qualifications
Required/Minimum Qualifications
- Master's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 6+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field OR Bachelor's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 8+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field OR equivalent experience
Preferred Qualifications
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Master's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 12+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field OR Bachelor's Degree in Human Resources, Business, Data Analytics, Mathematics, or related field AND 15+ years experience in compensation, data analytics, human resources, finance, business, or related field OR equivalent experience.
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4+ years project management experience.
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4+ years compensation program design experience.
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3+ years people management experience.
Compensation M6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $130,900 - $277,200 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $165,600 - $303,600 per year.
Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations. (https://careers.microsoft.com/v2/global/en/accessibility.html)
How this job compares
Set against the 5,294 open Human Resources jobs on Olive Jobs, counted October 27, 2026.
- Pay
- This posting$131–277K/yr
- Washington median$116–168K/yr82 salary ranges
- US median$97–140K/yr2,464 salary ranges
This range's midpoint, $204K, is 40% above the Washington median midpoint ($146K) — in the top quarter of Human Resources salary ranges in Washington.
- Openings
- Olive Jobs lists 104 open Human Resources jobs in Washington and 5,294 across the US. 4% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
- Hiring the most in Washington
- Amazon11 open
- Microsoft Corporation (this employer)5 open
- University of Washington5 open
- Experience
- This posting asks for at least 6 years of experience; Human Resources postings that state a minimum ask for 5 years at the median (3,689 postings).
- Education
- 1,526 of the 5,294 open Human Resources jobs (29%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.
Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on October 27, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.
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