When you choose a business major in college, you typically pick from tracks like accounting, finance, marketing, HR, or management. Some schools offer concentrations in entrepreneurship, business analytics, or international business. But what’s missing?
Compensation.
Despite its complexity, influence, and growing demand, compensation rarely gets the spotlight it deserves in undergraduate programs. And yet, the work we do like defining pay structures, evaluating jobs, analyzing market data, and progressing pay equity and transparency is central to how organizations attract, motivate, and retain talent.
Imagine if more business schools offered a compensation specialty or certification track.
We already have powerful resources:
· WorldatWork’s CCP, CBP, GRP, CECP, and CSCP curriculum
· Dave Weaver’s Compensation Analyst Academy (CCA)
· International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) offers the CEBS
But what if we integrated those into university programs to build the next generation of experts in compensation and benefits -- before they stumble into this work the way many of us did?
Students could dive deep into areas like:
· Sales compensation design
· Global mobility and international pay
· Executive compensation and governance
· Pay transparency and communication
· Pay equity analytics and strategy
· Benefits strategy, design, and delivery
Compensation is more than math and spreadsheets. It’s storytelling, ethics, psychology, law, and business strategy all wrapped into one. It’s aligning people to purpose. And it’s about fairness – real and perceived.
Many of us who’ve spent decades in the field want to give back. To mentor. To share lessons learned. To help shape future leaders who will move the profession forward with integrity, curiosity, and courage.
Let’s create that pathway. Let’s leave a legacy that outlasts our spreadsheets.
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