Director of Compensation and Classification

Job Summary

Reporting to the Associate Vice President of Human Resources, the Director of Compensation and Classification leads the development, implementation, and administration of compensation and classification programs, policies, and procedures for all employees including staff, student employees, faculty, and administrators.

The Director of Compensation and Classification is responsible for defining the strategic direction for and implementation of the university’s compensation and classification systems and is a strategic partner with university leadership to support their success in attracting and retaining diverse talent in a dynamic and changing employment environment. 

Working with a team of professionals, The Director of Compensation and Classification oversees compensation and classification functions, including survey participation, job evaluation and classification, salary structure development, salary market and equity studies and implementation, incentive plan design, pay program administration, and other associated initiatives. The Director of Compensation and Classification recommends structures and strategies for pay and job evaluation programs that ensure base pay, incentive pay, and other pay programs remain competitive and conform to current CSU policies, bargaining unit collective bargaining agreements, and California and Federal compensation laws and strategies. The Director of Compensation and Classification designs and audits data collection and analysis processes for job and pay alignment with market, pay equity, and conducts other compensation, classification, and job studies.

Division Summary

The division of University Personnel is responsible for providing strategic leadership to advance a wide variety of mission-critical human resource and academic personnel responsibilities and initiatives with broad campus impact. University Personnel includes Human Resources, Academic Personnel and the Civil Rights and Compliance Offices that partners with all campus divisions on initiatives and strategic directions that support the employee talent cycle including talent acquisition, talent development and workforce planning, as well as with the vision, innovation, and strategic organizational and managerial leadership for employer and employee services to support the success of all university employees throughout the employment lifecycle.

Key Qualifications

• Demonstrated expertise in compensation program design and administration, including the creation of policies, guidelines, and standard operating procedures.
• Working knowledge of job description development and categorization methods, including classification systems.
• Working knowledge of leading and supervising diverse, high-performing teams, including talent attraction, engagement, performance management, and development.
• Thorough working knowledge of federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and compliance requirements related to employee compensation.
• Working knowledge of salary structures and systems including traditional, broadband, and market-based solutions.
• Demonstrated expertise in conducting data analytics and modeling using Excel and other analytics tools.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, human resources, or a related field and 6 years of progressively responsible experience in employee compensation, with at least 3 years of experience supervising employees. Additional qualifying experience may be substituted for the required education on a year-for-year basis.

Salary and Benefits

The anticipated hiring range for this role is $130,000 - $148,000 per year. Note that the offer is calculated based on the background and relevant years of experience of the individual selected.

Cal Poly offers a best-in-class benefits program, including health, dental and vision insurance, retirement participation in the Public Employees' Retirement System, and educational benefits for eligible employees. See our benefits website for additional information. 

Cal Poly

Cal Poly is a nationally-ranked public university located in San Luis Obispo, California, and known for its Learn by Doing philosophy. Each year more than 20,000 top-tier students come to San Luis Obispo to put knowledge into action, taking their learning outside the classroom as they prepare for careers in