Total Rewards Manager
Posted
Whelen Engineering is formalizing Total Rewards as a dedicated HR capability. The Manager, Total Rewards will serve as Whelen's primary compensation and benefits subject matter leader, with responsibility for administering and continuously improving compensation, job architecture, salary structures, benefits, recognition, and related Total Rewards programs.
Whelen has recently implemented a job architecture, Career Pathways framework, and salary bands. A near-term priority for this role will be to operationalize and govern these tools so they are used consistently in offers, promotions, career movement, market pricing, merit planning, and other pay decisions.
Whelen has recently implemented a job architecture, Career Pathways framework, and salary bands. A near-term priority for this role will be to operationalize and govern these tools so they are used consistently in offers, promotions, career movement, market pricing, merit planning, and other pay decisions.
This is a hands-on functional leadership role. The Manager will work closely with HR Business Partners, who remain the primary advisors to business leaders, and will provide the tools, market data, guidance, and specialized support needed for consistent Total Rewards decisions. The role reports to the VP of Human Resources, serves on the HR Leadership Team, and partners closely with Finance and HRIS & HR Operations.
Compensation & Job Architecture
- Own day-to-day administration and governance of Whelen's compensation programs, job architecture, Career Pathways, and salary structures.
- Maintain job families, levels, titles, and salary bands; evaluate new or changing roles and ensure consistent job mapping and market positioning.
- Conduct market pricing and benchmarking, maintain compensation survey sources, and recommend periodic updates to salary structures and pay practices.
- Maintain practical compensation guidelines and decision tools for offers, promotions, internal moves, retention adjustments, and other pay actions.
- Use the job architecture and salary bands as the foundation for consistent pay and career decisions across the organization.
Compensation Planning & Administration
- Lead the annual merit and salary planning cycle in partnership with Finance, HR Business Partners, and HRIS & HR Operations, including budgeting, manager guidance, execution, and reporting.
- Provide HR Business Partners with market data, pay guidance, and recommendations for individual compensation decisions while preserving the HRBP as the primary business-facing advisor.
- Administer and improve variable pay and other compensation programs, supporting design changes as business needs evolve.
- Monitor internal equity, range positioning, pay compression, market competitiveness, and other compensation trends and recommend appropriate actions.
Benefits & Vendor Management
- Oversee benefits program management in partnership with Whelen's broker, vendors, and internal stakeholders.
- Oversee renewals, plan changes, vendor performance, employee communications, and resolution of significant service issues.
- Monitor cost, utilization, service, and employee experience metrics and identify practical opportunities to improve program value and delivery.
Recognition & Total Rewards Communication
- Support the administration and continuous improvement of Whelen's employee recognition programs.
- Partner with Employee Engagement and Communications Lead to create clear tools and communications that help employees and managers understand compensation philosophy, salary bands, Career Pathways, benefits, and the broader value of Total Rewards.
- Equip HR Business Partners with resources and guidance for effective manager and employee conversations about pay and rewards.
Systems, Analytics & Governance
- Partner with the Manager, HRIS & HR Operations to maintain job, compensation, merit, and related Total Rewards processes in Workday, including data quality, configuration requirements, testing, and reporting.
- Maintain policies, process documentation, controls, and governance needed for consistent, compliant, and defensible Total Rewards decisions.
- Produce clear compensation and benefits analyses for HR leadership, Finance, HR Business Partners, and other stakeholders.
Partnership & Leadership
- Build a strong operating partnership with HR Business Partners, who remain the primary relationship owners for business leaders and a critical delivery channel for Total Rewards programs.
- Partner with Talent Management to ensure job architecture, Career Pathways, and compensation programs support career development, internal mobility, succession, and talent priorities.
- Partner with Finance, HRIS & HR Operations, and external advisors on workforce cost modeling, program administration, compliance, and process improvement.
- Serve as a core member of the HR Leadership Team and contribute Total Rewards expertise to broader HR priorities.
Required
- 6+ years of progressive HR experience, including at least three years focused on compensation or Total Rewards.
- Demonstrated experience administering and improving compensation programs, salary structures, annual merit processes, and related pay practices.
- Experience operating and governing job architecture, job levels, salary bands, and market-pricing processes.
- Strong analytical skills, including experience with compensation surveys, market data, Excel modeling, and data-driven recommendations.
- Experience partnering with HR Business Partners and Finance on compensation decisions, planning cycles, and business needs.
- Working knowledge of benefits programs and experience partnering with brokers, vendors, or external advisors.
- Strong communication and judgment, with the ability to explain compensation and benefits decisions clearly to HR, managers, and employees.
Preferred
- Experience in a manufacturing, engineering, industrial, or multi-site environment.
- Familiarity with Workday Compensation, Advanced Compensation, or a comparable HCM platform.
- Experience managing compensation survey subscriptions, benefits vendors, or external Total Rewards consultants.
- CCP, GRP, SHRM-CP, SHRM-SCP, PHR, SPHR, or related credential.
- Comply with the EH&S Policy and applicable regulatory and company EH&S rules and requirements
- Report to supervision conditions or practices that are either unsafe or that may adversely impact the environment, to ensure prompt resolution of potential hazards
- Attend scheduled EH&S training program
- Actively support the organization’s efforts to meet or exceed EH&S goals and plans
- Recommend improved EH&S practices
Must be able to communicate effectively with co-workers, supervisors, and third parties. This ability to communicate requires the employee to be conversant in English as the majority of our workforce and the third parties that we encounter only speak English.
The incumbent is responsible for complying with the policies in Whelen’s “Employee Handbook.”
Whelen Engineering is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, sex, ancestry, citizenship status, mental or physical disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, veteran status, or military status.
This Job Description is to serve as a guide. It is intended to be flexible and will continue to evolve over time with business needs and demands and may be updated periodically and at the Company’s discretion.
Nothing in this position description changes or is intended to change the employment at-will relationship with the Company. Employment at-will means that an employee or the Company may terminate the employment relationship at any time, for any reason or no reason at all, with or without notice.