Head - Compensation & Benefits - FinTech/SaaS

Role Overview:

The Head of Compensation & Benefits (C&B) will lead the design, governance, and execution of the organisations global total rewards strategy. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in tech and SaaS compensation, experience working with engineering, product, and enterprise sales talent, and a strong ability to build scalable frameworks for international expansion. The role also requires strong capability in managing salary cost data, driving insights, shaping organisational cost structures, and acting as the custodian of the overall wage bill. Experience with equity/ESOP administration and IPO-preparedness is a strong advantage.
Key Responsibilities:

1. Compensation Strategy & Design:

- Develop and drive the organisations compensation philosophy and strategy.

- Design role-based salary structures, job levels, and market-aligned compensation frameworks for tech, product, GTM, and enterprise sales teams.

- Build and maintain compensation benchmarking processes using market data, especially for SaaS/product companies.

2. Enterprise Sales Incentive Programs:

- Design and manage enterprise and commercial sales incentive plans (quota-based, commission, accelerators, SPIFFs).

- Partner with Sales, RevOps, and Finance to ensure incentives drive performance, align with revenue goals, and maintain high governance.

- Manage periodic audits and ensure compliance for incentive payouts.

3. Benefits & Total Rewards Management:

- Build and lead a comprehensive benefits strategyincluding health, wellness, retirement, allowance structuresacross multiple geographies.

- Evaluate, optimise, and negotiate benefits with vendors to ensure cost-effectiveness and high employee experience.

4. ESOP & Equity Administration:

- Oversee end-to-end management of ESOPs/RSUs, including grant cycles, vesting schedules, communication, and cap-table coordination.

- Partner with legal and finance to ensure compliance with regulatory and tax requirements across jurisdictions.

- Lead employee education on equity, long-term incentives, and wealth creation.

5. International Expansion:

- Develop compensation structures and localized benefits frameworks for new countries and regions.

- Build scalable, country-specific playbooks covering pay ranges, benefits, legal guidelines, and employment norms.

- Benchmark and adapt compensation for distributed/global teams.

6. Governance, Compliance & Audits:

- Establish governance mechanisms for compensation cycles, promotions, pay reviews, and equity grants.

- Maintain adherence to internal controls and regulatory requirements across regions.

- Drive compensation-related audits and support internal/external compliance processes.

7. IPO & Maturity Readiness (Preferred):

- Support or lead compensation and equity workstreams for IPO readiness.

- Partner with leadership on executive compensation, long-term incentives, and regulatory disclosures.

- Ensure reward frameworks align with public-company standards.

8. Salary Cost Management & Workforce Analytics:

- Own and manage the organisations wage bill, including headcount budgets, salary forecasts, and labour cost modelling.

- Analyse salary cost data, hiring trends, attrition patterns, and movement of talent to derive actionable insights.

- Guide leadership on optimal cost structures, workforce mix, and compensation effectiveness to support sustainable growth.

- Lead the HR analytics charter, building dashboards, models, and frameworks that influence strategic decision-making.

- Drive adoption and optimisation of compensation systems and tools (HRIS, compensation modules, modelling tools).

Qualifications & Experience:

- 8-12+ years of experience in Compensation & Benefits, with deep exposure to tech/SaaS/product organisations.

- Strong experience designing compensation structures for engineering, product, GTM, and enterprise sales roles.

- Proven ability to manage global ESOP programs and equity administration.

- Experience in international expansion across multiple geographies.

- Exposure to IPO preparation/listing is preferred.

- Strong analytical, modelling, and communication skills.

- Ability to partner effectively with senior leadership, finance, legal, and business teams.
Key Competencies:

- Expertise in global compensation design for tech/SaaS

- Strong analytical and financial modelling skills

- Sales incentive design and governance

- Equity/ESOP management

- Global mindset & understanding of regional pay norms

- Stakeholder management & communication

- Strategic thinking with operational rigour

- High level of integrity, confidentiality, and attention to detail