Glossary of Human Resources Management and Employee Benefit Terms
Variable compensation, also known as performance-based pay, the compensation fluctuates based on the goals achieved. It is designed to motivate employees to contribute towards the organization’s success. Variable compensation may be reinforced in various forms, such as stock options, profit sharing, or bonuses.
Variable compensation refers to the portion of an employee’s total compensation based on their performance and specific goals. It rewards or reinforces the employees for the team or individually contributes to the organization’s success.
Dual variable compensation refers to the compensation structure in which employees are eligible for two varied variable pay compensation based on performance metrics.
In a dual variable compensation system, employees may have a chance to earn bonuses from two different sources, which may be individual performance or team performance. This allows a more comprehensive and balanced approach to reinforce employees.
The formula to calculate variable compensation can vary depending on the specific structure and components of the compensation plan. However, here is a general formula that can be used as a starting point:
Variable Compensation = (Base Salary) + (Performance Multiplier) x (Variable Performance Component)
In this formula:
The performance multiplier is typically applied to the variable performance component to calculate the additional compensation amount that is earned based on performance. The resulting variable compensation is then added to the base salary to determine the total compensation for the period.
Variable compensation works by allowing employees to earn additional pay based on their performance.
Here’s how variable compensation work:
The difference between the base salary and variable compensation on the basis of various components is as follows:
Fixed compensation refers to the stable, predetermined amount of money an employee receives regularly, such as a monthly or annual salary. It remains constant over a certain period and is not directly tied to individual or company performance.
Variable compensation, on the other hand, is the portion of an employee's compensation that fluctuates based on performance. It is contingent upon achieving specific performance goals, targets, or metrics and can take the form of bonuses, commissions, profit-sharing, or equity-based incentives.
These are short surveys that can be sent frequently to check what your employees think about an issue quickly. The survey comprises fewer questions (not more than 10) to get the information quickly. These can be administered at regular intervals (monthly/weekly/quarterly).
Having periodic, hour-long meetings for an informal chat with every team member is an excellent way to get a true sense of what’s happening with them. Since it is a safe and private conversation, it helps you get better details about an issue.
eNPS (employee Net Promoter score) is one of the simplest yet effective ways to assess your employee's opinion of your company. It includes one intriguing question that gauges loyalty. An example of eNPS questions include: How likely are you to recommend our company to others? Employees respond to the eNPS survey on a scale of 1-10, where 10 denotes they are ‘highly likely’ to recommend the company and 1 signifies they are ‘highly unlikely’ to recommend it.