Total Rewards Manager

Cherokee Federal•Tulsa, OK

About The Position

The Manager, Total Rewards leads the design, administration, governance, and continuous improvement of Cherokee Federal's total rewards portfolio, including compensation, benefits, leave, wellness, recognition, and regulatory compliance. The role is the enterprise subject matter expert on pay and benefits in a federal government contracting environment, balancing market competitiveness and employee experience with cost allowability, contract-specific wage obligations, and federal regulations. It partners with HR Business Partners, Talent Acquisition, Payroll, Finance, Contracts, Legal, and program leadership. This is a working manager role that combines program strategy with hands-on execution. The manager owns the enterprise compensation structure and annual compensation cycle; coordinates health and welfare plan administration and retirement plan operations; oversees enterprise leave programs, wellness strategies, and recognition programs; and ensures regulatory compliance, required filings, and audit support. The role also leads total rewards due diligence and integration for mergers, acquisitions, contract transitions, and rebadging events. It supervises and develops the total rewards team and provides reporting, recommendations, and education to leaders, managers, and employees. The estimated starting salary is commensurate with experience. Full-time benefits include medical, dental, vision, 401(k), and other possible benefits, subject to change with or without notice. Applicants must pass a background check and any customer-required screening, and must be U.S. citizens or otherwise authorized to work in the United States. Cherokee Federal notes that many openings require access to government buildings or military installations.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in human resources, Business Administration, Finance, or a related field; an equivalent combination of education and directly relevant experience will be considered.
At least five years of progressive compensation experience, including market pricing, job evaluation and leveling, salary structure design, and annual compensation cycle administration.
Demonstrated experience administering benefits and leave programs in a multi-state employer environment.
Working knowledge of FLSA, ERISA, ACA, HIPAA, COBRA, FMLA, and ADA.
Advanced Excel skills, including data modeling, lookups, pivot tables, and cost analysis.
Experience with an enterprise HCM system and its compensation or benefits modules.
Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion and sound judgment.
Strong analytical, written, and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain technical total rewards concepts to managers and employees.
Ability to develop and defend compensation recommendations using data, market evidence, and internal equity analysis.
Comfort operating with ambiguity across a decentralized, contract-driven operating model with varying customer and program requirements.
Strong project management skills and ability to manage multiple concurrent cycles, including open enrollment, merit, audits, and integrations, against fixed deadlines.
Consultative partnership style and ability to influence without authority across HR, Finance, Contracts, and program leadership.
High attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy and audit readiness.
Must pass a background check and any customer-required screening.
Must be a U.S. citizen or otherwise authorized to work in the United States.

Nice To Haves

Experience in federal government contracting, professional services, or a similarly regulated multi-entity environment.
Working knowledge of wage determinations and compensation allowability.
Experience supporting OFCCP compliance, AAP compensation analysis, or federal compliance evaluations.
Direct experience with M&A due diligence, integration, or contract transition and rebadging events.
Experience with Oracle HCM Cloud.
People management experience.
Certified Compensation Professional (CCP), Certified Benefits Professional (CBP), SHRM-CP/SHRM-SCP, or PHR/SPHR.
Experience supporting proposal pricing or capture activity.

Responsibilities

Own the enterprise compensation structure, including job architecture, leveling, salary grades and ranges, FLSA classification, and job-description governance.
Lead the annual compensation cycle, including merit, promotion, and incentive planning, budget modeling, manager guidance, and employee communications.
Price roles using market survey data and recommend structure adjustments; serve as an escalation point for offers, promotions, internal equity reviews, and retention actions.
Conduct pay equity analyses and ensure pay practices align with wage determinations, collective bargaining agreements, and cost allowability standards.
Maintain compensation configuration and data integrity in Oracle HCM Cloud in partnership with HRIS.
Coordinate with Cherokee Nation Business on health and welfare plan administration, annual renewals, and open enrollment, including plan design, rate modeling, system configuration, and post-enrollment audits.
Oversee retirement plan operations with the recordkeeper and Finance, including eligibility, contributions, discrimination testing, filings, and annual audit support.
Provide benefits performance, cost, and RFP information; model benefits costs to support fringe-rate development and contract pricing and assist with vendor relationship management.
Escalate and resolve complex benefits eligibility, claims, and coverage issues.
Own the enterprise leave program, including FMLA, ADA accommodations, military and USERRA leave, workers' compensation coordination, parental leave, and state and local paid leave mandates.
Ensure consistent, compliant leave-case handling and partner with HRBPs, Legal, and managers on complex, intermittent, and accommodation-related cases.
Manage the third-party leave administrator, PTO and accrual configuration in Oracle HCM, and reporting on leave utilization, cost, and risk exposure.
Coordinate enterprise wellness strategies with Cherokee Nation Business across physical, mental, financial, and preventive health, including campaign calendars and incentive structures.
Oversee recognition and service award programs, including design, budget, platform administration, approval workflows, and award fulfillment.
Measure wellness and recognition program participation and effectiveness and recommend enhancements that reinforce company values and support retention.
Ensure total rewards programs comply with ERISA, ACA, HIPAA, COBRA, FMLA, ADA, GINA, and applicable federal, state, and local requirements.
Prepare required filings and notices, including ACA 1094/1095, Form 5500, Summary Annual Reports, and SPD and SMM distribution; support internal, external, and government audits.
Support OFCCP obligations, including compensation data for Affirmative Action Plan development, EEO-1 reporting, and compliance evaluation responses.
Monitor pay transparency, salary history, and pay data reporting requirements and partner with Talent Acquisition on job-posting compliance.
Lead total rewards due diligence for mergers and acquisitions, including plan review, liability identification, change-in-control and severance obligations, and cost modeling.
Develop and execute integration plans covering job mapping, pay harmonization, benefits transition, service credit treatment, and PTO conversion.
Support contract transitions and rebadging events, including incumbent compensation analysis, wage determination application, and offer package construction.
Supervise, coach, and develop the total rewards team; set goals, manage performance, and build functional depth.
Deliver total rewards reporting and recommendations to HR and executive leadership, and educate managers and employees on pay, benefits, and leave.
Perform other duties as assigned.