Total Rewards Specialist
January 15 2025
Industries
Education, Training
Categories HR, Training, Marketing, Communications, Public Relations,
Calgary, AB • Part time
Our people make SAIT great. The Human Resources team is here to help you make the most of your career at SAIT. Building on the Strategic Plan, our people plan provides opportunities to learn, develop and grow.
The Opportunity
SAIT is seeking a Total Rewards Specialist with a specialization in Compensation & Classification to lead and implement strategic initiatives that enhance SAIT’s job evaluation framework, pay structures, and overall compensation strategy. Reporting to the Manager, Total Rewards, this role will be instrumental in designing and governing SAIT’s compensation and classification policies, frameworks, and guidelines to ensure transparency, equity, and market competitiveness.
This role requires expertise in job evaluation, salary administration, policy development, and stakeholder engagement, with the ability to translate complex compensation concepts into practical, user-friendly guidance for leaders and employees. The Specialist will play a critical role in supporting organizational change, workforce planning, and leadership education on classification and compensation best practices.
This position will play a key role in supporting SAIT’s pension and benefits programs, ensuring a well-rounded and holistic approach to Total Rewards that enhances the overall employee experience.
The Role
- Compensation & Job Classification Framework Development
- Lead the strategic implementation of SAIT’s Compensation & Classification project in partnership with Mercer, ensuring alignment with organizational goals
- Design and develop comprehensive compensation and classification resources, including frameworks, guides, policies, and tools tailored for employees and leaders
- Oversee the development and maintenance of job evaluation frameworks, grading structures, and compensation strategies
- Creation and maintenance of accurate and clear job descriptions that align with SAIT’s classification standards and business needs
- Ensure compliance with relevant legislation, collective agreements, and organizational policies
- Establish and facilitate a classification committee to ensure transparency, equity, and consistency in job evaluation and classification
- Drive the integration of compensation structures with SAIT’s pay-for-performance philosophy, succession planning initiatives, and performance management programs
- Collaborate with Finance, Talent Management, Recruitment, and HR Business Partners to align compensation strategies and ensure successful implementation
- Provide expertise in organizational redesigns and structural changes, analyzing their impact on compensation and classification frameworks
- Prepare materials and present insights for Board and Committee meetings, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and providing data-driven recommendations to support strategic decision-making
- Strategic Oversight & Governance
- Provide strategic oversight in areas of compensation, pension and benefits, and recognition related programming including the design, maintenance, costing, and continuous improvement of associated systems, structures, and philosophies
- Collaborate with departments and individuals across Human Resources, Finance and other Business Units to ensure alignment and coordination of advisory, transactional, and strategic functions
- Support bargaining preparations and work collaboratively with union stakeholders to ensure compliant, efficient and optimal use of related programs
- Partners with external vendors to develop and maintain ongoing relationships, including the participation in client meetings and consultant data review sessions
- Ensures the effective resolution of complex issues to ensure a positive employee experience
- Stay abreast of legislation and the political landscape to ensure compliance of policies and programs and support future state readiness
- Leads special projects, strategy development, measurement, and analysis of trends related to total rewards.
- Creates and maintains procedural documentation for all day-to-day and periodic processes, ensuring integrity and efficiency
- Program Management
- Lead compensation program management, including the design and maintenance of job evaluation and grading structures, survey participation, pay equity review, and compliance reporting, including required compensation disclosure obligations
- Conduct benchmarking studies and market analysis to ensure competitive total rewards offerings.
- Develop and implement strategies to promote equity and inclusiveness in compensation and benefits.
- Leads and manages pension programs (defined benefit, defined contribution), group savings programs (TFSA, RRSP), and Supplemental Executive plans, ensuring compliance with pension plan texts, pension legislation, and SAIT policies
- Manage benefits renewals and day-to-day administration, including maintaining employee benefits records, processing changes, enrollments, and renewals, and verifying and analyzing coverage. This includes managing annual projects, census data, spending accounts, overage dependents, annual benefits statements, rate changes, insurance policy renewals, and reviewing SAIT programs and Policies and Procedures
- Manage all leave programs, including short-term and long-term disability, parental leave, and lifecycle events such as employee death
- Support effective pension and benefit program management including the ongoing monitoring of plan utilization, annual renewals, costs, and budget
- Identify and implement process improvements to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of total rewards programs.
- Prepare materials for Board & Committee meetings
- Oversee and audit programs for governance, compliance, and data integrity
- Vendor Management
- Manage relationships with external vendors, including negotiating contracts and ensuring service delivery meets organizational standards
- Participate in client meetings and consultant data review sessions to develop and maintain ongoing vendor relationships
- Education & Communications
- Educate employees on total rewards programs and communicate these programs effectively to senior leadership, including executives and directors
- Create and deliver communication materials, total rewards statements, and information sessions to improve education and engagement on total rewards programs
- Act as a subject matter expert, supporting and educating team members and employees on complex compensation, pension, and benefit matters
- Respond to employee questions and inquiries in a ticketing system, ensuring timely and accurate resolution
- Create standardized responses for common, entry-level questions to streamline the communication process
- Provide feedback on communication needs and contribute to the development of new communication materials to enhance employee understanding and engagement with total rewards programs
- Data Analysis & Trends
- Research, evaluate, and summarize trends related to compensation and other rewards programs to enhance culture and improve the employee experience
- Ensure accurate data management and financial reconciliations, auditing pension, benefits, payroll, and vendor systems to ensure data integrity
- Operate as a subject matter expert for related data gathering efforts, survey participation, pay equity reviews, and other compliance related reporting and disclosure obligations
- Determine key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics for measurement and reporting.
- Create reporting frameworks, optimize workflows, and identify actionable insights for continuous improvement.
- Conduct budgeting and forecasting for compensation costs, ensuring alignment with financial goals and organizational priorities
Technical Capabilities
- Strong verbal and written communication skills; ability to prepare clear and concise documents, information, and data reports to convey complex concepts to a broad audience
- Ability to manage multiple priorities, projects and workload independently
- Strong customer service focus with sound professional judgment skills
- Continuous improvement mindset, committed to staying abreast of related trends, research, and best practice
- Ability to think critically and strategically to creatively problem solve
- Ability to demonstrate tact and respect for confidential material
- Strong vendor management skills to ensure effective service delivery and adherence to company contracts and policies
- Knowledge of relevant legislation and compliance requirements
- Creativity – the willingness to experiment, improvise, innovate and imagine
- Critical Thinking – analyzing, evaluating, synthesizing, and reconstructing information to inform and make decisions
- Citizenship – understanding and facilitating the connection between people, society and the planet for the sustainability of systems, both cultural and environmental
- Curiosity – seeking out current information and experiences and strives for understanding
- Connection – building effective relationships. Working effectively and communicating with others across differences
SAIT Core Capabilities
Qualifications & Experience
- Post-secondary degree, with preference given to specialties in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field
- 5 or more years’ experience in senior compensation and/or benefit work is required
- Experience in building and sustaining complex total rewards strategies and programs is an asset
- Experience in a unionized environment is preferred
- Proficiency in advanced excel such as experience building macros, compensation spreadsheets, etc
- Completion of CCP and/or CEBS designation (or currently enrolled) is desired
Job classification: P5954 - Sr Pension & Ben Specialist
Salary range: $95,000 - $112,000
Hours Per Week: 37.5
Posting closing date: Until the position has been filled
About SAIT
SAIT is a global leader in applied education. Named one of Alberta’s Top Employers, we offer the chance to work with a purpose — preparing the next generation of industry leaders, entrepreneurs, advocates and explorers.
Building on our 100+ year history, we’re looking for innovative, bold and collaborative employees who embrace change and deliver world-class customer experiences. Your future starts now at SAIT.
Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is essential to achieving SAIT’s vision to be a global leader in applied education. We encourage applications from women, Indigenous people, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from gender and sexually diverse communities, and/or people with intersectional identities. Learn more about EDI at SAIT.
At SAIT, we understand that experience comes in many forms. We’re dedicated to adding diverse perspectives to SAIT - so if your experience is close to what we’re looking for, please consider applying.
SAIT is committed to supporting persons with disabilities throughout the recruitment process. We will work with applicants to provide accommodations upon request to the Talent Advisor.
BEWARE FALSE POSTINGS AND RECRUITING OFFERS
SAIT has been made aware of individuals or organizations posing as SAIT using false postings to attract job seekers and collect personal information. Please be aware that SAIT will never request sensitive personal information beyond what is required for an application.
Career opportunities at SAIT will always be posted on the SAIT career site and we encourage applicants to only apply directly through there. When your application is completed you will receive an email confirmation, if you did not receive one please check your junk mail or try applying through the SAIT career page again.
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