Sr Manager, Compensation Strategy

McDonald's Corporation • Chicago, IL

6d • $156,495 - $195,618

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Compensation Strategy is a strategic advisor within Total Rewards who applies compensation expertise, advanced analytics, structured problem solving, executive storytelling, and internal consulting to complex business and workforce challenges. The position focuses on strategic projects, advanced analytics, and executive advisory work, rather than ongoing compensation program administration.

The role addresses complex and often ambiguous questions without predefined paths. It frames problems, develops hypotheses, conducts quantitative and qualitative analysis, evaluates alternatives and trade-offs, and delivers clear, actionable recommendations to senior and executive leadership. Success requires intellectual curiosity, executive presence, strong business acumen, and the ability to turn complex analysis into compelling stories that influence decisions and drive action.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, economics, finance, human resources, analytics, or a related discipline.
• Significant experience in human capital, or closely related strategic advisory work.
• Prior management consulting experience with a leading global strategy or management consulting firm.
• Ability to structure and solve complex, ambiguous business problems using quantitative and qualitative analysis.
• Strong analytical capabilities, including experience with scenario modeling, benchmarking, large and complex data sets, and translating analysis into actionable business insights.
• Ability to develop a point of view from data and communicate it through a concise, compelling executive story.
• Exceptional executive communication and presentation skills, including the ability to simplify complexity and clearly articulate insights, implications, trade-offs, and recommendations.
• Ability to act as a trusted advisor and thought partner to senior leaders, influencing decisions through analytical rigor, business judgment, and effective communication.
• Experience leading complex, cross-functional projects with senior leadership visibility and multiple stakeholders.
• Strong business and financial acumen, intellectual curiosity, and comfort challenging conventional thinking.
• Ability to move between strategic thinking, detailed analytical work, executive communication, and implementation.
• Ability to thrive in ambiguity, independently structure work, establish priorities, and drive complex issues from initial question through analysis, recommendation, and decision.
• Strong collaboration and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to build credibility and influence across functions and organizational levels.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced degree.
• Compensation experience.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders and People teams on complex compensation and workforce matters, using structured, hypothesis-driven problem solving to help inform decisions.
• Lead sophisticated compensation analyses, scenario modeling, benchmarking, and quantitative assessments, drawing out business implications and recommended actions.
• Translate complex analytics into concise executive narratives that explain implications and trade-offs and support leadership decision-making.
• Lead high-priority, high-visibility projects across Compensation and Total Rewards, including work beyond traditional compensation program management.
• Develop and evaluate compensation strategies, frameworks, and approaches that support business and talent objectives while considering market competitiveness, internal equity, organizational priorities, and workforce implications.
• Structure complex business and workforce questions into decision frameworks, synthesize quantitative and qualitative information, assess alternatives, and develop fact-based recommendations.
• Develop models, scenarios, sensitivity analyses, and decision frameworks to assess compensation investments, workforce implications, potential outcomes, and alternative actions.
• Evaluate external compensation practices, market trends, and emerging workforce issues, and identify their potential implications, risks, and opportunities for the organization.
• Partner across Total Rewards, Finance, People, Strategy, and other functions on enterprise challenges requiring compensation expertise and broader business judgment.
• Challenge established approaches when appropriate and develop pragmatic solutions that balance analytical rigor with business and organizational realities.
• Maintain strong knowledge of compensation principles, market practices, and programs, serving as a subject-matter expert on strategic and analytical questions.

Benefits

• Comprehensive health insurance, including medical, prescription drug, mental health, dental, and vision coverage.
• Life insurance.
• Bonus eligibility based on individual and company performance.
• Eligibility for stock or other equity grants under the long-term incentive plan.
• Sabbatical program.
• Tuition assistance.
• Flexible work arrangements.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior