February 2019 In our November Compensation Alert, we argued that compensation transparency leads to greater employee engagement. When done correctly—with a well-defined plan and communications approach—compensation transparency becomes a powerful tool for attracting and retaining top talent. Although there is widespread agreement on the benefits of pay transparency in the workplace, what is not always […]
The year 2018 has been one of major volatility in many markets creating widespread uncertainty. In this environment, it is understandable that companies are evaluating the impact market volatility may have on their salesforce incentive plans for 2019. Fortunately, mindful planning and clear communication about your salesforce incentive plan can accelerate growth even in an […]
With unemployment at low levels and the economy continuing to expand, the need for compensation transparency is at an all-time high. Increasingly, employees are also making more demands for visibility into their rewards programs. If your employees aren’t asking directly for this transparency, they are likely seeking information elsewhere from peers, for example, or through […]
Last June in our Compensation Alert, we discussed how to develop a compensation strategy. As year-end compensation planning approaches for many companies, we think this topic is timely and worth revisiting with updates to address current trends. Compensation strategy is part of a company’s human resource strategy and should be integrated with all other elements […]
A lot has been written about the interests, attitudes, and behaviors of Millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996). Among the facts that have been reported, primarily by the Gallup organization, these stand out: Millennials will account for 50 percent of the US workforce by the year 2020. Only 50 percent plan to be with […]
For the first time in four years, the national U.S. salary budget increase average is higher than 3%, nudging up slightly to 3.1% for 2018. This also is the first time when the actual salary increase has met the previous year’s projection. Further, U.S. salary budgets are projected to reach 3.2% in 2019. Capturing information […]
In his 2015 book Misbehaving, Nobel Prize-winning economist Richard Thaler addresses the concept of loss aversion and its impact on decision making. “Roughly speaking,” he asserts, “losing something makes you twice as miserable as gaining the same thing makes you happy.” For this reason, given the choice, people tend to put more energy into reducing […]
Late last year, Congress passed and President Trump signed into law the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The sweeping tax reform law reduces the marginal corporate tax rate at the federal level from 35 percent to 21 percent. This and other changes to tax law are boosting profits and will save businesses billions in […]