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Compensation Design
Using pay to reinforce what you actually want the company to become.
Compensation is one of the loudest cultural statements a company makes. What you pay people to do, and how you pay them, tells them more about what you value than any all-hands speech.
The Operating Lens
How exceptional operators approach compensation design.
Questions worth sitting with
- 01What behavior does our current comp plan actually reward?
- 02Where does our pay structure conflict with what we say we value?
- 03Are we paying for inputs (hours, activity) or outcomes (results, impact)?
- 04What would we change if we started from scratch?
Signals you may be here
- 01Your top performers are paid the same as average performers.
- 02Bonuses feel arbitrary to the people receiving them.
- 03You are having the same pay conversation every year.
- 04People stay for the base and disengage from the mission.
Practical starting points
- 01Map every compensation lever (base, variable, equity, benefits) to a specific behavior it should reinforce.
- 02Publish the pay range for each role internally, even if only within a small band.
- 03Redesign one plan (sales comp, GM bonus, technician pay) with the outcome you actually want.
