Compensation Consulting & Advisory

Compensation is more than data – it’s both art and science. At Exude Human Capital, we design pay programs that balance business strategy and people equity. From market benchmarking to full program design, our experienced consultants deliver practical, tailored solutions that strengthen your talent strategy.

Why Compensation Matters

Compensation is one of the most powerful levers to attract, retain, and motivate talent. But it’s complex with market shifts, equity pressures, and performance demands. Organizations turn to us because compensation is complex, fast-changing, and requires specialized expertise. With Exude Human Capital as your partner, you combine market insight, thoughtful design, and deployment support that is all tailored to your organization’s strategy and goals.

Standard Compensation Analysis Approach:
A focused engagement to diagnose, design, and roll out competitive compensation practices.

• Market Analysis & Benchmarking
• Salary Structure Design & Advisory
• Bonus & Incentive Program Guidance
• Executive Compensation Strategy
• Pay Equity Review
• Compensation Philosophy, Grade Criteria & Transparency
• Communications & Education Resources

Best for you if: You already have stable job definitions and want a sharper, fairer, and more competitive compensation framework.

Job Analysis & Integrated Strategy Approach:

A more holistic, foundational process that links job architecture, performance, and pay.

• Differentiated Job Analysis (factors that influence value)
• Job Architecture Development (qualitative & quantitative models)
• Salary Structure Development / Alignment (with optional benchmarking)
• Criteria for role scope, leveling, and pay decisions
• Compensation Strategy, Philosophy & Administrative Guidelines
• Integration with performance & development systems
• Deployment support including communication, training, and adoption

Best for you if: You’re evolving roles, restructuring, or lacking a consistent job framework, and need an integrated, future-ready model.

Why Partner With Exude Human Capital?

• Expertise & Insight – Dedicated specialists who stay ahead of rapid market changes.
• Tailored & Equitable Solutions – Flexible support that balances fairness with competitiveness.
• Strategy for Growth – Compensation aligned with performance, development, and business goals.

What we bring:

• 29 years of average consultant experience.
• Access to multiple leading data sources (Payfactors, ERI, World at Work, nonprofit datasets, etc.).
• Deep experience across industries, organization sizes, and non-profit / for-profit sectors.

Your compensation plan should reflect your brand, support growth, and help you attract and retain top talent.

What Our Clients Are Saying:

“Their team did an amazing job of walking through the process with us, listening to our needs, helping us gain context and perspective, and working through the nuances of our situation as an organization.”

“We were so pleased with the work Exude did that we recommended them to work with our Headquarters.”

“We learned so much throughout this process. Our leaders feel more educated about compensation than ever before.”

“With Exude Human Capital, I am always able to work with knowledgeable, quick, and friendly consultants every time, and this time was no exception! They took pride in the work, asking questions that showed they were not only interested in proposing accurate compensation data but also were passionate about the work that we do – as a leader at a non-profit, this made the relationship that much more special. We were able to quickly put a compensation plan in place that worked well for the organization, problem-solve the variety of hiccups we faced, and laugh along the way. I look at Exude as an extension of our small HR Department, where I can rely on them to provide me with sound advice and knowledge.”

Frequently Asked Questions About Our Compensation Consulting and Advisory Services

What is a compensation study?

Compensation studies analyze your current pay practices and determine if they are competitive for your organization’s size, industry, and geographic location(s). They also help determine if your pay practices and salaries comply with current employment, state, and federal laws. For clients who are primarily looking for market data, Exude can benchmark your roles against your competitive market. For clients who are looking for comparative data based on a deep understanding of your organization’s unique and nuanced roles, our compensation consultants can evaluate the knowledge, skills, experience, autonomy, leadership, and other key factors to identify the internal and external value of each position.

Can the project be project-based or on-going support?

While our compensation engagements often start as defined projects, our consultants are available for additional support to refresh market data, provide data, or design a structure for a new market or location, support acquisitions or large-scale organizational restructuring, or provide secondary advisory for training and communication in support of pay transparency.

What is the consultant’s background?

Our Exude Human Capital consultants have very diverse backgrounds and bring expertise in analyzing and designing salary structures, incentive pay programs, pay equity evaluations, executive compensation, and total rewards programs. Having worked in many different industries, levels, and sizes of companies, they bring with them expertise and experience that allows them to share best practices with our clients. Our model is very collaborative, so consultants have access to the depth of knowledge of the entire team whenever needed.

What types of companies will Exude support?

We have experience in designing and implementing compensation programs with for-profit, non-profit, and government contractor clients in most industries, including but not limited to professional services, social services, education, bio/pharma, technology, healthcare, hospitality, entertainment, communications, manufacturing, associations, finance, and construction.

What are the fees?

Our compensation projects are scoped based on a variety of factors, including the number of unique jobs requiring market data, the involvement of leaders or managers throughout the process, and the quantity of data sets or salary structures required for implementation. Our projects are scalable in size and can also expand to include the development of compensation philosophies, job architectures, administrative policies, training, and communications.

Which data sources does Exude use?

Exude subscribes to a number of industry-leading compensation data sources, including Payfactors, Economic Research Institute, World at Work, Candid Nonprofit Compensation Reports, and others. We are always open to including industry-specific market data provided by our clients or obtaining additional data sources for an additional fee.