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Register Now! Incentives: Do You Get What You Pay For?

Sales commissions, executive LTI, and the annual bonus. Three plans, one word: "incentive." So why do they behave nothing alike?

Season 2 Wrap Up

The crew brings in the producer, Devin Wiseberg, and Chuck Leu of Obsidian, a total rewards veteran to celebrate the 50th episode.

Best Practices in HR and a New Age Employee

The conversation covers what it takes to build people programs from the ground up, and what happens to pay and job design when a digital employee joins the org chart.

Wisdom from a Leader and Performance Coach

Sean Luitjens and Paul Reiman are joined by Holly Benner, who leads a center of excellence for coaching and teaming effectiveness at Merck and is co-founder of Meta Performance, where she coaches high performers across work, sport, and life.

Perspective of a New Compensation Professional

Join the crew for a conversation around why comp people over-engineer programs, best ways for managers to partner with Comp, and how Dayne plans to scale a model by making HRBPs fluent in comp.

What Is Your Annual Incentive Plan Trying to Accomplish?

Write down what your annual plan is actually doing — not what the plan document says it does.

Managing a Large Global Program

A conversation about what it takes to design and run compensation programs across dozens of countries in the middle of a major M&A integration.

The TR Space From a Recruiter's Perspective

Josh shares what he's seeing in the total rewards job market from the recruiter's side of the table.

UK Perspective on HR Best Practices and EUPTD

The conversation covers pay gap reporting, the EU Pay Transparency Directive, and why comp strategy is never as simple as the framework suggests.

Sales Compensation is a Team Sport

Every organization wants its sales compensation program to be motivating, fair, and aligned with business priorities.

Annual Incentive Plans

We break down short-term incentives, covering why they're one of the hardest comp programs to design well, and what actually separates a working plan from a bonus pool everyone quietly resents.

Understanding Pay Mix vs. Pay at Risk in Sales Compensation

When structuring sales compensation plans, two critical terms often surface: pay mix and pay at risk.

Compensation Best Practices for Small Orgs

Learn about common compensation practices within small orgs. 

Hanging with a Technology Anthropologist

A Technology Anthropologist joins the crew to talk about what HR tech decisions reveal about organizational culture, and why the platform is rarely the real problem.

Syndio Acquires Embrace.ai: A Talent Play That Tells Us Something

A deal that says a lot about Syndio's path forward. 

Summer Hang with Paul & Sean

A mid-year check-in with Paul and Sean on what's actually shifted in compensation over the first half of 2026.

Webinar Replay: Making Copilot Work for Comp

As organizations use caution in adopting AI tools and look to use existing tools when possible, it's important to understand how Copilot can power your use of AI.

HR & Payroll 2.0 Special Episode

Paul and Sean sit down with HR and Payroll 2.0 hosts Pete Tiliakos and Julie Fernandez to chat all things total rewards, AI, work flexibility and the changing expectations shaping the workforce.

Is it an M or P? Traditional Career Steams Collide with Modern Realities

Read about the friction between typical career streams and what a cleaner path forward might be. 

The Debate over Geo Differentials

A discussion only comp nerds would appreciate... the mechanics, the internal debates, and the honest question of whether geo differentials make sense for every organization.

What Pay Costs - The Science of Pay

A deep dive into one of compensation's most debated questions: does pay for performance actually work?

Aon Connects the Pipeline: Direct HRIS Integration Comes to the Radford McLagan Database

Aon just made it easier to get your HRIS data into the Radford McLagan database - and that's likely only the beginning. 

Live from San Antonio with Sam Reeves

Hear about all about why point factor job evaluation is gaining renewed relevance, particularly for multinationals navigating EU Pay Transparency Directive compliance, and what "measurable" really means in that context.

Webinar Replay: Expanding the Impact of Your Job Architecture with AI

In this session, Paul and Jess use a built job architecture framework, sample employee data, and some additional tools to demonstrate how AI can bring your job architecture to life.

Buying Beyond the Buzzwords: Critical Questions for Using AI in Comp

Navigating AI in comptech isn't easy. This article aims to help you ask the right questions and understand what is being offered.

Market Based Pay vs Traditional Structures with Amanda Williamson

Learn from Amanda Williamson about market-based pay versus traditional salary structures.

TechPays Acquired by Levels.fyi

This is a deal many practitioners will scroll past - but it's time to pay attention.

Let's talk about AI - the Sessions at W@W and Beyond

Sean Luitjens and Paul Reiman are joined by Ryan Buhrke, a total rewards practitioner and AI builder known for turning compensation workflows into agentic systems, to talk about what it practically looks like to bring AI into comp work today.

Syndio and Mercer: Another Signal in the Pattern

The CompTech + Advisory alliance trend keeps rolling.  Here's what to make of it. 

Trusaic and Decusoft: Another Bet on Technical Excellence

A new partnership signals two specialists staying in their lanes, and a market continuing to reward depth over breadth.

Kawel's 2026 Conference Recap & Nashville 2027 Preview

Kawel shares what's driving WorldatWork's evolution and what comp and HR professionals can expect from the association going forward.

Live from W@W Day 3

Live conversation as Day 3 of the WorldatWork Total Rewards Conference in San Antonio gets started

Make an Impact with AI in Compensation

Three white papers for compensation professionals who want a clear-eyed view of what AI actually changes, and how to act on it.

Day 1 Recap and Looking at Day 2

Day 1 recap and Day 2 preview from the WorldatWork Total Rewards Conference.

Executive Comp with Liz Neville

Unpack the unique complexity of executive compensation and what it takes to design and deliver effective programs at the C-Suite level.

Webinar Replay: Comp Cycle Showdown: Debating the Design Decisions that Define Your Program

Paul Reiman and Artila Metaliaj recently discussed the history of pay transparency and offered insights into the challenges companies are facing as they prepare for the EUPTD.

AI in Comp from the Practitioner Lens

Sean Luitjens and Paul Reiman are joined by Josh Lemon, a Total Rewards leader at Resideo, to discuss how AI is being adopted in the Total Rewards space from a practitioner's lens.

When the Job Benchmark Doesn't Fit: What's the Source of Friction?

The instinct, when a benchmark doesn't feel right, is to pull more data. The better move is to ask why it doesn't fit in the first place.

Pay Transparency Doesn't Live in a Silo. The Market Just Proved It.

Pay equity and transparency require a holistic ecosystem of job design, analytics, and systems integration for compliance. Recent partnerships underline the need for comprehensive strategies ahead of the EUPTD deadline.

Webinar Replay: Pay Transparency - Planning For Now and Looking Ahead

Paul Reiman and Artila Metaliaj recently discussed the history of pay transparency and offered insights into the challenges companies are facing as they prepare for the EUPTD.

Rewards From the CPO Seat - Roasting Paul Edition

Sean Luitjens and Paul Reiman are joined by Jesper Helt, Head of People for Europe and India at Samsara, to explore what CHROs actually need from their rewards partners and where that relationship tends to succeed or fall short.

CompTech Consolidation: What's Occurring? What Does it Mean for You?

The CompTech market is consolidating fast. Here's what's driving it and what it means for buyers navigating their options.

The Story of Levels.fyi and Creating a Great Data Source

The founder of Levels.fyi share how they built one of the most-referenced comp data sources in tech from the ground up.

Pay Equity Best Practices from the Market with Nancy Romanyshyn

Nancy Romanyshyn shares what leading organizations are doing to make pay equity a durable, ongoing practice rather than a one-time fix.

Pay Equity with Tom Heys

Sean Luitjens and Paul Reiman are joined by Tom Heys, a lawyer specializing in the EU Pay Transparency Directive, for a practitioner-focused deep dive into what the EUPTD actually means in practice, not just on paper.

Pay Transparency Has Changed. Technology is Catching Up

Discover how evolving regulations and rising expectations are transforming pay transparency from a periodic task into a continuous operation, and how modern technology is stepping in to meet these new demands.

The EU Pay Transparency Directive: The Reporting Isn't the Hard Part

Complying with the EU Pay Transparency Directive goes far deeper than reports. The real work is in the comp foundation underneath.

Discussions Around AI in Comp

A candid conversation about how AI is showing up in compensation work and what practitioners should actually pay attention to.

Global TR Leader for Campari

Campari's global Total Rewards leader shares the challenges and lessons of managing comp across a complex international organization.

What's Up with WorldAtWork and This Years Conference

A conversation covering what comp professionals can expect from this year's WorldAtWork Total Rewards Conference in San Antonio from April 19-22, 2026. Keep an eye out on socials for where to find Novo Insights on stage and in the Exhibit Hall!

Pay Equity and Transparency with Anitta Lettink

Anitta Lettink breaks down the intersection of pay equity and transparency and what organizations need to get right.

Unpacking the WTW and Bettercomp Partnership: What it Really Signals

Exploring the strategic partnership between WTW and Bettercomp, its implications for the CompTech landscape, and what this alliance signals about industry focus and investment priorities.

Nobody Cares About How Many Grades You Have

Average compa-ratios mask real pay issues. Focus on variances and employee experiences for a fairer, more competitive pay strategy. Summarizing the main point of the blog text: The blog emphasizes that average compa-ratios can be misleading, advocating instead for a focus on pay distribution, variances, and how employees experience their pay to ensure fairness and competitiveness.

Why Traditional Job Architectures Fall Apart for the Hourly Workforce

Standard job architecture frameworks weren't built with hourly workers in mind, and the gaps show when you try to apply them.

History and Future of Compa With Charlie Franklin

Charlie Franklin traces the origin of Compa and shares where he sees comp technology heading next.

LATAM comp and Ben

A focused conversation on the unique dynamics of compensation and benefits in the Latin American market.

The New Year Predictions Show With Briscoe

A lighthearted but informed look at what the comp and rewards world might expect in the year ahead.

Tackling Global Pay Equity - a Euro View

A European perspective on the growing pressure to address pay equity across borders, cultures, and regulatory environments.

From Charts to Clarity: Why Payscale Compass Is a Meaningful Step Forward

Discover how Payscale Compass advances compensation strategy by providing curated, comparative insights beyond static data, enhancing decision-making for compensation leaders. === Generated Summary of Blog Text: Payscale Compass marks a significant advancement in Compensation Technology by moving beyond static data reports to provide curated, comparative insights. It offers a comprehensive view of compensation strategy through four focused lenses: workforce investment, architecture, health, and competitiveness. By emphasizing cohort-based comparisons and functional views, Compass enables compensation leaders to make more informed decisions. This launch is a step towards connecting pay decisions with business outcomes, setting higher expectations in the CompTech market.

Holiday Hang Episode

A casual end-of-year conversation reflecting on the state of comp and what's on practitioners' minds heading into the new year.

Payroll and Rewards

A discussion on the often-overlooked relationship between payroll and total rewards and why closer alignment matters.

Working to Global Pay Equity

A practical conversation on the steps organizations are taking to close pay gaps and build more equitable global comp programs.

Nobody Cares About Your Average Compa-Ratio

Average compa-ratios mask real pay issues. Focus on variances and employee experiences for a fairer, more competitive pay strategy. Summarizing the main point of the blog text: The blog emphasizes that average compa-ratios can be misleading, advocating instead for a focus on pay distribution, variances, and how employees experience their pay to ensure fairness and competitiveness.

Five Tips for Communicating Compensation in a Tight Budget Year

When budgets are lean, clear and honest, comp communication becomes more critical than ever. Here are five ways to do it well.

Alternative Data Sources: Pros and Cons

A balanced look at non-traditional comp data sources and what they offer, where they fall short, and when to use them.

Rewards and TA Partnership

A conversation on how Total Rewards and Talent Acquisition can work better together to attract and retain top talent.

You're a Legend. What Have You Seen?

A veteran comp professional shares career lessons and candid observations about what has changed and what hasn't in the field.

Building a Successful Comp Program in a Sales Driven Org

Sales driven organizations have unique comp pressures and this episode breaks down how to build a program that serves both the business and the workforce.

ADP Acquires Pequity: Proof of the Pattern and a Test of What Comes Next

ADP's acquisition of Pequity highlights the rapid consolidation in the compensation tech space, aiming to enhance strategic compensation planning and decision-making capabilities.

Nobody Cares When You Say Compensation Is “An Art and a Science” (and that’s not true anyway)

Debunking the "art and science" myth in compensation, this blog emphasizes the importance of rigorous analysis, blending multiple disciplines, and avoiding vague justifications in pay design.

Intelligent Pay Gets a New Name: Syndi

Syndio rebrands Intelligent Pay to Syndi, aiming to revolutionize compensation with adaptive decision intelligence and contextual pay guidance. Read how Syndi positions itself as the future of pay decision-making.

Nobody Cares About Cost of Living vs Cost of Labor

The difference between the cost of labor and the cost of living, and why honest communication about pay matters more than jargon.

Sales Compensation is a Team Sport: Define Team Roles to Maximize Impact

Maximize your sales compensation impact through clear team roles and collaboration. Learn how structured stewardship drives better plans, stronger partnerships, and greater business growth.

Structure, Definition, Clarity: The Business Case for Job Architecture

Clear job architecture isn't just an HR nicety. It delivers real business value through better structure and decision-making.

Should the Merit Increase Be Dead?

A spirited debate on whether the traditional merit increase still has a place in modern compensation, or if it's past its prime.

Comp Management Best Practices and the Story of BetterComp

The team behind Bettercomp shares the comp management best practices that shaped their product and philosophy.

Navigating the Challenge of Global Teams and Practices

A practical discussion on how comp and rewards teams manage consistency and fairness across geographically dispersed workforces.

The World of Global Mobility

An exploration of global mobility's role in total rewards and the complexity it adds to comp strategy.

The Art of Market Pricing

Market pricing is part process, part judgment. This conversation digs into how to do it well beyond just matching titles.

Extending Compensation’s Reach: Introducing the “Offer Guidance” Category in CompTech

New AI-powered Offer Guidance tools ensure fairness and equity in job offers, enhancing compensation teams' influence and decision-making processes.

Payscale Acquires Datapeople: Compensation Meets Talent Acquisition

Payscale's acquisition of Datapeople aims to streamline compensation and talent acquisition workflows, enhancing job management, pay transparency, and market benchmarking accuracy.

Keys to Creating a Great Comp Program

A high-level conversation covering the foundational principles and practical moves behind building a comp program that holds up.

HR Tech Review

A review and discussion of the latest developments and trends shaping the HR technology landscape.

Kicking Off the New Season of Totally Rewarding Chats

The season premier sets the stage for the conversations, themes, and guests ahead on Totally Rewarding Chats.

A Framework for Fair and Consistent Pay Decisions

Pay decisions made without a clear framework lead to inequity. Here's a structured approach to keeping them fair and consistent.

Compa Frontline: Needed Innovation for Location-Sensitive Roles

Discover how Compa Frontline provides real-time compensation insights for location-sensitive roles, addressing dynamic labor market needs with hyper-localized data.

Why More Consolidation is Coming to the Cycle Management Category

Discover why the compensation and cycle management tech sector is set for more consolidation and what it means for HR teams.

BetterComp Raising New Capital

BetterComp secures new funding, indicating strong momentum and investor confidence, likely aimed at market expansion and strategic growth within the CompTech landscape.

Introducing the Novo Insights CompTech Category Assessments: Your Shortcut to Smarter CompTech Decisions

Discover our Novo Insights CompTech Category Assessment reports to streamline your tech decisions with in-depth vendor analysis and practical planning advice. Ideal for compensation professionals.

Benchmark Gaps: Staying Market-Driven When Comp Data Is Missing

When survey data comes up short, you need a strategy to stay competitive. Here's how to navigate the gaps in market pricing.

The Five Goals of a Strong Compensation Structure

A well-designed pay structure should do more than organize salaries. Here are the five goals it needs to accomplish.

Pay Transparency: A Means to an End

Discover how strategic pay transparency can build trust and drive business performance without sacrificing employee comfort or creating unintended consequences.

How to Measure the Success of Your Annual Compensation Cycle

A practical guide to defining and tracking the right metrics to know if your annual comp cycle is actually working.

Understanding Pay Mix vs. Pay at Risk in Sales Compensation

Learn the key differences between pay mix and pay at risk in sales compensation to optimize motivation and performance in your sales team.

Navigating the Architecture and Benchmarking Challenges of Hybrid Jobs

Hybrid roles that blend functions don't fit neatly into standard frameworks. Here's how to benchmark and architect them effectively.

Architect the Comp Team by Considering Size, Structure, Roles

An article exploring the key drivers of compensation team size and how organizations can structure and resource their compensation functions to maximize strategic impact.

Asking for More: Tips for Getting More Heads and Dollars

Tips for compensation leaders on securing additional resources by framing needs strategically, showcasing ROI, and exploring alternatives to headcount for enhanced team effectiveness.

Traditional Job Architecture Career Streams Collide with Modern Work

As work evolves, rigid career stream models are increasingly out of step with how organizations and roles actually function.

Pave Partners with Greenhouse to Provide Offer-Based Insights

Discover how Pave's new Offer Insights product, in partnership with Greenhouse, revolutionizes offer-based compensation market intelligence. Explore the impact on compensation management and market trends.

Compa Expands From Offer Intelligence to Real-Time Benchmarks

Compa expands into real-time benchmarks with Compa Benchmarks and Compa Stock Intelligence, revolutionizing compensation market intelligence for enterprise technology companies. Discover the future of compensation data.

Benchmarking Your Benchmarks: A Guide to Evaluating Compensation Market Data

Guide to evaluating compensation market data, focusing on metrics, samples, methods, tools, and value. Learn how to choose the best benchmarks for your organization.

4 Reasons Performance Ratings Aren't Vital to the Compensation Cycle [Members Only]

Performance ratings aren't the cornerstone of comp decisions that many think. Here's why your cycle can thrive without them.

Creating Global Compensation Alignment With a New Compensation Structure

Aligning global compensation with a new structure is crucial for organizations. Learn how Novo Insights helped a software company create a harmonized compensation framework to address market challenges and ensure pay equity.

The Big Challenge With Small Compensation Teams

Discover how small compensation teams can optimize their efficiency and impact with strategic planning and tailored strategies. Learn key insights and recommendations to enhance your compensation function.

The Ship Has Sailed: Compensation Benchmarking Leaves the Safe Harbor

Compensation benchmarking is evolving with the introduction of real-time data, raising concerns over legality. However, understanding the Safe Harbor guidelines and the impact on competition is key. This blog explores the changing landscape and the opportunities it brings for compensation professionals.

Creating a Job and Compensation Structure to Align Global Talent

Job architecture and compensation structure become imperative to navigate global organizations and ensure consistent compensation competitiveness.

CompTool Launches Capabilities to Make Survey Management Easier (and maybe even free)

Comment on Pave market pricing solution launch

How Long Does It Take a Rep to Ramp?

Understanding the new hire ramp-up period is crucial for optimizing sales performance. Learn how to evaluate the duration, persistence of under-performance, and predictive metrics in this data-driven approach.

Who Pays At The 25th Percentile?

a perspective on what the 25th percentile of market data actually means and when it is deployed successfully

Six Types of Market Data

Six types of market data used to monitor competitive compensation levels

Understanding the CompTech Domain

Compensation Technology Domain: Linking tech choices to key processes, and categorizing key software providers and vendors into relevant categories

The Secret Sauce: Compensation Strategies to Fuel Retention in High Turnover Service Industries

A compensation recipe to help combat turnover and keep your workforce engaged.

Don't Be Left Behind: Embrace AI and Expand Your Impact

New skills required to embrace AI's impact on HR and compensation

Pave Expands Market Management Offering

Comment on Pave market pricing solution launch

Why Don't People Use My Dashboard?

Top 5 reasons why People Analytics dashboards go unused

Is Your Compensation Team Understaffed?

compensation team staffing research findings

Make This Deal Work: Integration Strategies That Maximize Deal Value

acquisition integration strategies that drive value

Challenge the Robot: Critical Questions to Ask Your AI Tech Provider

People Tech AI | 5 Key Questions to Ask

Enable People Analytics with Thoughtful People Data Management

people analytics and people data strategy

Pay Transparency is Here: How to Make it Work

Key steps to take as pay transparency is no longer coming. It's here. Compensation philosophy, range strategy tune-up, pay equity analysis

Measure the Success of Your Annual Compensation Cycle

annual compensation cycle metris

The Compensation Business Review

compensation metrics

Measure the Outcomes of Your Annual Cycle

Get insights into the key metrics needed to measure if your annual compensation cycle is producing the outcomes you expect.

Machine Learning For Non-Data People

defining machine learning in simple terms. ChatGPT

How To Measure Quality of Hire

talent acquisition metrics | quality of hire

How the Compensation Function Needs to Change

changes driving evolution in compensation create a need for comp functions to change

Around the Web: November 2022

web links and content from November 2022

Make a Bigger Impact With the Information You Have

Identifies predictable challenges in translating data to insights to ideas to implementation. Post gives suggestions for how to close key gaps

Around the Web: October 2022

links to insightful content form aroudn the web in October 2022

Key Metrics: Time to Fill

time to fill recruitment metrics

People Metrics That Matter

HR metrics scorecard example

Pay for Performance: The Big Picture

pay for performance

Key Metric: Comparable Employee Pay Progression

a metric that analyzes pay progression

The MAIN Idea: Framing Investments in Reducing Attrition

employee attrition return on investment

Do You Need To Pay More?

compensation competitiveness benchmarks pay

Attrition is Expensive - But How Expensive Is It?

employee attrition turnover calculation

Wages and Inflation: Chicken and Egg

As inflation rates are high and labor markets are tight, it's a bit difficult to keep straight what is a cause and what is an effect.