Compensation & Benefits Manager - #2181365

Sterling Williams are supporting a Series B FinTech / EMI in growth mode who are seeking a Compensation & Benefits Manager to join their UK HR function. This is a newly created role, and as such will suit someone who has experience in working with fast growth, FinTech or Technology businesses previously and can take full ownership of the function, whilst reporting to the Global Head of HR and working closely with Finance.

Compensation & Benefits Manager

Full-time, Permanent

Salary dependent on experience circa £75 - 90,000 pa plus benefits

City of London office 3 days per week.

This is a highly cross-functional role spanning HR and finance, you’ll work closely with the Head of HR, CFO and Head of FP&A, to ensure that reward decisions are commercially sound and financially sustainable.

Compensation:

• Develop and maintain salary structures, job levels, and pay bands using market data and benchmarking
• Lead annual salary review, bonus, and equity/long-term incentive cycles, including modelling, budgeting, and communications
• Advise managers and People Partners on offers, promotions, and pay adjustments
• Run job evaluation and levelling to ensure internal equity and consistency
• Conduct regular pay equity analysis, and gender and ethnicity pay gap reporting where required

Finance Partnership

• Work closely with the Head of FP&A to develop and maintain accurate salary and employee benefits cost forecasts and budgets, including salary reviews, bonuses, employer taxes, pension contributions and other employee-related costs, in collaboration with the Talent team.
• Partner with the CFO on reward strategy
• Partner with Finance to develop salary review and bonus budgets, and manage the annual compensation review process to ensure proposed awards align with agreed budgets.

Benefits

• Manage the full benefits portfolio (e.g. pension/retirement, health and life insurance, wellbeing, leave, and flexible benefits)
• Manage relationships with benefits brokers, insurers, and providers, including renewals and tenders
• Evaluate new benefits offerings and monitor take-up and employee satisfaction
• Ensure benefits communications are clear, accessible, and engaging

Governance and Analytics

• Ensure compliance with employment, tax, and pensions legislation across all operating locations
• Build dashboards and reporting on compensation costs, pay competitiveness, and benefits utilisation
• Support the remuneration committee or leadership with data, proposals, and market insights
• Own relevant policies, documentation, and audit readiness

The successful candidate will have:

• 5 plus years of experience in compensation and benefits, reward, or a related HR analytics role
• Strong analytical and modelling skills, with good Excel/Google Sheets
• Hands-on experience with salary benchmarking tools and surveys (e.g. Radford, Mercer, Korn Ferry, Willis Towers Watson)
• Solid knowledge of employment, tax, and benefits regulations in relevant jurisdictions.
• Experience running an annual pay review cycle end to end
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain complex topics simply to employees and executives
• Experience in fintech, technology, or a high-growth environments would be hugely beneficial.
• Experience with multi-country reward and equity plans (desirable)
• Familiarity with HRIS and compensation platforms (e.g. BambooHR and Pave)
• Experience with pay transparency and pay equity regulations