March 12, 2019
There
isn’t a day that goes by in which I am not asked at least once or twice about
how to price hybrid jobs.
Hybrid
roles are common in the workforce today and they’re often created in
high-turnover or downsizing situations. Often, workers will retire and
employees who stay end up taking over tasks handled by their former colleagues.
I’ve worked with hundreds of HR teams over the years — I can’t tell you how
many times someone has told me they wear “multiple hats” because of turnover
and the company’s decision not to backfill. These situations sometimes become
permanent hybrid jobs, due to organizations’ need to fill the gaps from staff
reduction.
Other
times, hybrid roles are created because an organization has highly specific
business needs which cannot be met by the typical roles in the market. My
colleagues and I have seen examples where companies blend Program Manager with
SEO Manager, Taxonomists with Administrative Assistants, and HR with Director
of IT.
Advising
clients on this topic can feel like opening up the Pandora’s box, because there
are so many unique roles out there and there isn’t a one-size-fits-all
approach. As they say, you can’t fit a square peg into a round hole and you
need to accept sometimes you may not find the best match. Averaging the market
value of two roles isn’t always the right answer either. The right approach for
you depends on the role in question, your business needs, your talent market
and your organization’s pay philosophy. When I first started looking for the best
response to this question, I noticed several distinct approaches.
Four Approaches for Pricing Hybrid Jobs
Regardless
of the method you choose, your first step is to identify the end goal for
combining two jobs into one. Let’s work with a simple example of HR
Manager/Office Coordinator and explore a few methods.
1. The
Blending Method
This
method would start by benchmarking each job separately then blending the market
data to create a composite. If the position has clear delineation of duties
performed, you can apply the appropriate weight before blending: HR Manager 40
percent, Office Coordinator 60 percent.
The blending
method works best for companies who value a fair balance between market
competitiveness and internal equity. However, if one or more of the jobs you
are blending is not common in the market and the market data doesn’t instill
confidence, this isn’t the best approach for you.
2. Highest
Level Role Method
Sometimes
it helps to imagine that you are posting this job for external candidates. Are
you looking for an Office Coordinator with HR Manager experience or the other
way around? It is common for the higher-level position to drive the pay in the
market for the talent you are seeking. If this applies to you, it makes sense
to match this role to the higher level of responsibility when choosing a title.
In this case, selecting the HR Manager title would be the best approach. This
approach works well for organizations which want to pay competitively to the
market.
3. Internal
Equity Method
Are
there times when your hybrid role is so unique you just can’t nail down a match
or blend of market data that instills confidence? If this is your situation,
you may choose to align these roles to your internal structure. With a
grade-based structure, slotting jobs based on internal equity can ease the
burden of trying to find the best market match. If you use job-based ranges,
you can slot your role to the best internal comparable role. Obviously, this
method aligns well for those organizations which value internal equity. But
this can also be a good resolution for organizations which struggle with
nailing down market competitiveness.
4. Premiums
& Discounts
Now,
this is an advanced technique. When you have a really good pulse on the market
and you understand the values of certain skills, applying a premium can
accommodate for any skills that maybe are not typical to the position the
hybrid role was aligned to. Or, maybe the job that your hybrid position best
aligns to needs an adjustment in the other direction based on internal
leveling. For instance you might match a Manager level to a Director level and
apply a 10 to 15 percent discount to bring that role in line.
Any way
we slice it, hybrid roles are always unique to each employer because they are
the result of an organization’s business needs not being met by the typical
jobs in the market. No matter what approach you take, having the right tools
and an understanding of the different methods you can apply will get you to a
more reliable range. Compensation
management platforms like PayScale’s Insight Lab can make this
process easier and can help you find the right balance or blend of data.
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