Global Compensation Manager

 

Guided by our values: Do what is right, Always learning and improving, Respect everyone, and Lead with service and humility; we empower our people to turn ideas into real impact. Joining Watlow means becoming part of a team that embraces challenges, grows together, and shapes the future of technology while making a real difference in the world.

At Watlow's Global Headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, we combine a rich legacy with forward-thinking innovation. Our headquarters is a hub for collaboration, advanced engineering, and customer-focused solutions.

We are hiring a: Global Compensation Manager

In this role, you will help develop and lead the strategy, design, and implementation of compensation across Watlow's global organization, the Americas (U.S. and Mexico), EMEA, and APAC. You will support a global job architecture project to establish compensation and total rewards fundamentals worldwide, and serve as a trusted expert on classification, benchmarking, market trends, and total rewards design for leadership across every region. Reporting to the Sr. Director of Human Resources, Global Total Rewards, you will partner with senior leaders and HR professionals across the globe to ensure equitable, competitive, and scalable total rewards that support Watlow's talent and business goals.

What You'll Do:

Shape Global Compensation & Total Rewards Strategy

• Build and implement pay bands and total rewards structures across the global organization, ensuring fairness, equity, and competitiveness.
• Conduct salary and benefits benchmarking to develop market-aligned pay ranges across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC.
• Bring thought leadership and secure buy-in for a global compensation and total rewards philosophy that scales with the company's growth.
• Partner with executive leadership to design and evolve short-term incentive plans that drive performance and engagement worldwide.

Lead Global Job Architecture

• Lead the global job architecture project, creating and maintaining job leveling guides that streamline career progression and internal equity worldwide.
• Help identify and configure HCM compensation and total rewards architecture to support managers and employees in merit, benefits, and incentive planning.

Drive Market Insights & Program Execution

• Conduct ongoing analysis of compensation and total rewards trends, market data, and industry best practices across every country where Watlow has team members.
• Manage global survey participation, submission, and purchases; monitor benchmark data, pay structures, and economic trends, recommending changes to maintain competitiveness and internal equity.
• Support or lead special projects, including acquisition integration, organizational restructuring, and systems implementation.

Enable HR & Leadership Effectiveness

• Provide expert guidance to HR and Talent Acquisition teams and leadership on compensation and total rewards matters, including salary negotiations and job offers.
• Ensure full compliance with compensation, benefits, wage, and labor laws by country, including U.S. state/federal requirements (e.g., pay transparency and reporting) and union/works council requirements across EMEA and APAC.

Enhance Systems & Communication

• Coordinate with HRIS on the management of compensation and total rewards tools (e.g., Dayforce), including system enhancements, testing, and merit and incentive administration.
• Develop and deliver formal and informal training and presentations on compensation and total rewards topics.

What You'll Need to Succeed:

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance, or a related field; Master's degree preferred.
• Minimum 7 years' experience overseeing compensation and/or total rewards functions, including experience across multiple countries or regions (e.g., the Americas, EMEA, and/or APAC).
• Demonstrated success developing, implementing, and managing global compensation and total rewards strategies aligned with organizational objectives.
• Experience working with unions and/or works councils is a plus.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build rapport and influence stakeholders at all levels of the organization.
• Proven analytical skills with the ability to interpret data, identify trends, and make recommendations, tell compelling stories with data.
• Excellent project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver results within established timelines.
• Demonstrated proficiency in Excel and other Microsoft Office applications.
• Certified Compensation Professional (CCP) or Certified Total Rewards Professional highly preferred.
• Multilingual (e.g., Spanish or other languages relevant to the regions supported) is a plus.