I spend a lot of time using Excel. I sort, filter, and run pivot tables.

I look at averages, medians, highs, and lows.

I take the job, pay, and employee data and tell a story to influence decision making.

I spend employer money to attract and retain employees. I design incentives to motivate employees to deliver the results the company needs to achieve.

I see the employee ID, overtime, birthdates, commissions, and bonus payouts. I look at race, ethnicity, and gender to see if that is being used in discriminatory way.

I design pay program alternatives for employers, so they are rewarding employees in way that is aligned to budget, what other employers are paying, and to employee needs.

And I never forget that for each row of data is a person. A family. Hopes. Dreams.

A person who is paying rent or a mortgage. A mom who is trying to figure out how to pay for braces or a larger karate uniform. A dad who is trying to put new tires on the car before his daughter drives to college. Someone saving for a vacation to see the ocean for the first time. A person who needs a newer car because the one they have now keeps breaking down. A grandmother raising her grandkids and struggling to buy enough groceries to keep them from being hungry.

I see the layoffs and wonder if the leaders making these decisions remember each person on the spreadsheet is more than just a number. They aren’t just headcount and an expense.

We look at the stars at night and wonder what is out there undiscovered. We laugh as we eat ice cream cones with our kids in the sunshine on a warm summer day. We sit around backyard firepits and have deep conversations. We tell our kids to put on a warmer coat before they go to school. We look in the mirror and find more gray hair today than we had yesterday. We plan weddings and retirement parties.

We deserve to be treated with empathy and compassion. Have the difficult conversations with us but do so in a manner that is respectful and kind.

Don’t run from the intense feelings that make you want to withdraw and treat us like a number.

We are more than a number. Just like you.

#compensation #layoffs #rewards #incentives #jobsearch #leadership #hr #empathy