When it comes to HR leadership pay, size really does matter.
Salaries for HR Directors and CPOs clearly scale with the size of the business – both in base pay and bonus opportunities. In smaller organisations, HRDs average just under $200K, but that can climb well over $300K in companies with more than 500 staff.
At CPO level, the gap widens further, with averages pushing beyond $340K in mid-sized firms. Interestingly, bonus eligibility becomes far more common at the top.
Every CPO in a small business surveyed was bonus eligible, while many HRDs in smaller organisations weren’t. Yet, even where bonuses apply, the average percentage tends to stay modest – especially at the HRD level.
What’s clear is that the same title can mean very different things depending on company size. If you’re hiring or benchmarking your own career, don’t just look at the job title – look at the context. Scope, scale, influence and level of risk are the true drivers of value.
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