Manager – Performance & Reward

Role Purpose

The Manager Performance & Reward is a mid-level professional role responsible for supporting the design and implementation of Aptias performance management and total reward programs, with a focus on compensation, performance processes, and India-specific benefits. Operating as part of the global Performance & Reward team, this role ensures that annual compensation cycle, performance review processes, and India employee benefit programmes are executed efficiently, accurately, and in alignment with Aptias policies and strategic objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Annual Compensation Review (Salary and Bonus) process: Play a central role in executing Aptias annual compensation review cycle globally.
• Prepare and validate data for the annual salary review and bonus allocation process, working closely with HR Business Partners to consolidate merit increase proposals, promotion recommendations, and incentive awards.
• Take ownership of key process steps in Workdays compensation module, such as configuring the compensation planning tool, troubleshooting issues, and performing bulk actions (e.g. advancing workflows, validating entries) to ensure smooth progress of the review cycle.
• Conduct thorough checks on completed compensation plans, verifying that merit increases, lump-sum adjustments, and bonuses are calculated correctly in line with budgets and guidelines.
• Generate compensation statements for all employees and coordinate their distribution, ensuring accuracy and resolving any discrepancies prior to release.
• Global Compensation Job Architecture and Pay Scales Administration
• Conduct compensation benchmarking and market analysis efforts by liaising with external reward consultants or using survey data e.g., gathering salary survey across 4 countries of operations to inform competitive salary and benefit positioning.
• Preparing annual pay range updates and working with HRIS teams to load new salary ranges into Workday each year.
• Act as a subject matter expert on reward policies and Workday processes, advising HR colleagues and managers on compensation-related queries (for instance, guiding HRBPs on how managers can view submitted compensation decisions in Workday).
• Collaborate with Finance to ensure that compensation changes are accurately reflected in payroll inputs and financial forecasts (while not directly managing payroll, the role ensures reward changes interface correctly with payroll operations).
• Performance Management Support: Administer and continuously improve Aptias performance management cycle across the organisation. This includes:
• Manage the annual goal-setting and year-end performance appraisal processes in Workday, ensuring timely launch and completion of each phase. Monitor completion rates (e.g. providing interim progress reports on self-evaluations and manager evaluations) and follow up with People Business Partners or managers to drive 100% participation.
• Prepare necessary data and reports for the global performance calibration, and by managing system tasks (e.g. mass advancing performance ratings in Workday to the calibration stage).
• Ensure performance data integrity by auditing entries and preventing administrative errors (for example, advising HR colleagues not to manually cancel or duplicate performance review tasks in Workday without appropriate process).
• Generate and distribute performance review reports and analytics for HR leadership and business managers (such as region- or function-specific performance completion stats and rating distributions) to inform talent decisions.
• Serve as a point of contact for performance management queries, providing guidance on system use and best practices to both HR colleagues and people managers.
• India Benefits Administration: Manage and enhance employee benefits programmes for Aptias India operations, ensuring these benefits are competitive, well-communicated, and effectively administered.
• Oversee key India-specific benefits such as the health and life insurance plans, parental insurance coverage, retirement benefits, and flexible benefit plans, working with brokers and vendors (e.g. Marsh, Niva Bupa) to implement plan updates and resolve any service issues.
• Drive communications to India-based employees regarding benefits enrollment, changes, and enhancements for example, drafting announcement emails about insurance benefits updates and important policy changes.
• Coordinate new benefit initiatives tailored to India as designed from time to time
• Maintain an up-to-date understanding of Indian market practices and statutory requirements in compensation and benefits; conduct periodic benefits benchmarking against peer companies in India and recommend adjustments to Aptias offerings to ensure market competitiveness and compliance with local regulations.
• Ensure accurate information is shared with People Support Team and India Payroll team for them to act as a first point of contact for colleagues queries

Required Experience and Qualifications

• Experience: Minimum of 5+ years of specialised experience in Rewards/Compensation & Benefits roles. This experience may come from working in reputable rewards consulting firms (e.g., Mercer, Willis Towers Watson, Aon) and/or in an in-house corporate reward team.
• Candidates should have demonstrable hands-on experience managing or significantly supporting the entire annual compensation review cycle end-to-end including salary benchmarking, budgeting and modeling increases, administering performance bonus or incentive programs, and coordinating promotion and pay review processes.
• Prior experience with India-specific compensation & benefits practices is highly advantageous (for example, familiarity with Indian market salary structures, common benefits plans, and regulatory requirements on provident fund, gratuity, insurance, etc.).
• Education: Bachelors degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance, or a related field is preferred. A postgraduate qualification or relevant certification in HR or Compensation (such as CIPD, SHRM, or WorldatWorks CCP) would be an added advantage, though not mandatory.
• Technical Skills:
• Advanced Excel skills and the ability to analyse and interpret large data sets are required, as the role involves handling complex compensation data, performing calculations (e.g., merit increase simulations, budget usage), and auditing data for accuracy. Note, a formal Excel test will be administered as part of the selection process.
• Proficiency in Workday HRIS (or a similar HR management system) is highly desirable, especially in the Performance Management and Compensation modules (experience in configuring and troubleshooting Workdays compensation planning and performance review processes will be a strong plus). Note that Workday certification may be offered if appropriate through our Workday partners.
• Familiarity with compensation survey tools and market data analysis techniques is expected; experience in collaborating with external consultants or using market benchmarking platforms is beneficial. Strong general computer proficiency, including PowerPoint (for preparing presentations/reports on reward programs) and Word, is also necessary.
• Soft Skills & Competencies:
• Excellent analytical and quantitative skills with a keen attention to detail, ensuring accuracy in all compensation and performance data work.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to explain complex reward concepts and system processes clearly to HR partners and managers (e.g., crafting clear employee communications about benefits or guiding managers on system queries).
• Effective stakeholder management and teamwork capabilities the role requires close collaboration with HR Business Partners, Finance, payroll colleagues, vendors, and the broader Aptia HR community.
• High degree of integrity and discretion, given exposure to sensitive employee data and involvement in confidential reward decisions.
• Ability to manage projects and deadlines, such as coordinating year-end processes under tight timelines and handling multiple benefits initiatives simultaneously.
• A proactive, continuous improvement mindset; someone who can identify process inefficiencies or anomalies (as demonstrated in awards audits or data validation exercises) and suggest solutions to enhance the fairness and effectiveness of reward and performance programs.