Senior Compensation & Benefits Advisor, EU and Strategic Initiatives- UK or NL

Risk Level: ☐ Level 3       ☐Level 2 ☐Level 1 

(Level 3: Frequent contact with participants, direct contact with children, access to sensitive data, and/or high level of accountability.  

Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.

Level 1: Likely to have no contact with participants or sensitive data) 

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse, and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have a long-term impact.

The Department

The People Team ensures that Mercy Corps has the people, strategies and learning that will enable it to be a world-class, cutting edge, humanitarian organization, creating transformational change in the world. We do this through the recruitment, retention and development of the best global talent. Our aim is to drive strategic thinking and planning at all levels of the organization; create a robust body of research to guide us internally and externally and steward the organizational culture. To achieve this, we align conversations on learning; keep the organization focused on what has the greatest impact; leverage our comparative advantages in the crowded and competitive international relief and development landscape; and assure we are constantly learning from our work and the external environment.

The Position

The Senior Compensation and Benefits Advisor – Europe & Strategic Initiatives designs and delivers compensation, benefits, and performance management frameworks that support a diverse workforce across European markets and globally.

This role develops and implements total rewards strategies that enhance the organization’s ability to attract, retain, and incentivize top talent from the private sector, impact investing, and tech sectors. With a strong emphasis on performance management and value creation, the role ensures that compensation and benefits structures are aligned with organizational outcomes and impact objectives. They partner closely with global teams, regional leadership, and HR team members to ensure that compensation and benefits frameworks are market-relevant and performance-driven.

Working closely with senior leadership, the role drives the design and execution of compensation and benefits frameworks and tools. They build global HR capacity and provide strategic advisory support. A strong focus is placed on data-driven decision-making, pay equity, and continuous improvement in line with evolving business and investment priorities.

The position serves as a strategic partner, strengthening cross-functional collaboration and ensuring that total rewards approaches are aligned, performance-oriented, and scalable across global operations.

Essential Responsibilities

Strategy, Planning & Continuous Improvement

• Champion and operationalize the organization’s People Strategy, ensuring alignment between pay practices and innovation objectives.
• Partner with leadership to define and execute a forward-looking total rewards and performance management strategy, linking compensation to financial, operational, and impact performance.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives by identifying gaps, inefficiencies, and opportunities across compensation and benefits programs and processes.
• Influence organizational and regional strategies through data-driven compensation insights that support growth, equity, and impact.
• Lead the design and implementation of scalable, globally consistent compensation and benefits frameworks and tools.
• Build and maintain strategic external partnerships.

Compensation, Benefits & Performance Advisory

• Familiar with different compensation structures and statutory benefits across Europe, bring working knowledge and practical experience.
• Design, implement, and refine global salary structures, grading frameworks, and pay policies aligned with market competitiveness and organizational goals.
• Lead regular market benchmarking and salary analysis to ensure competitive, equitable, and compliant pay practices.
• Drive improvements in job evaluation, role architecture, and pay-for-performance methodologies.
• Integrate compensation frameworks with performance management systems, ensuring clear links between individual performance, growth outcomes, and reward.
• Develop and harmonize benefits strategies across European jurisdictions, ensuring competitiveness, compliance, and employee well-being.
• Stay on top of employment law in European countries with Mercy Corps presence, so the organization can proactively adapt.
• Provide strategic advisory support to leadership on compensation, performance calibration, workforce planning, and organizational design.

Strategic Improvement Projects

• Design and implement key improvement initiatives that align Mercy Corps’ compensation and benefits with the organization’s strategic direction, including:
  • Partner with Mercy Corps Europe HR and Talent Acquisition to support strategies to attract and retain high-performing professionals across Europe from private sector and impact investing backgrounds.
  • Develop performance-related pay principles and establish incentive structures to align with organizational growth and impact metrics.
  • Support operationalizing the organization’s framework to global mobility to ensure compliance, employee retention, and equitable compensation decisions. Own and implement the organization’s global mobility workstream, including reviewing and advising on requests, with executive, HR, and legal input.
• Develop metrics, dashboards, and reporting frameworks to track performance, inform decisions, and support continuous improvement.

Communication, Influence & Stakeholder Engagement

• Communicate compensation and benefits initiatives clearly to internal stakeholders, strengthening understanding and engagement.
• Partner with innovations teams, HR, and leadership to ensure alignment between talent, performance and reward strategies.
• Build internal capability through coaching and guidance on compensation, benefits, and performance management best practices.

• Collaborate with Talent Acquisition to position total rewards as a competitive advantage in attracting top-tier talent in private markets.

Personal Leadership & Organizational Values

• Demonstrate resilience, adaptability, and professionalism in complex and dynamic environments.
• Promote innovation by encouraging new approaches to problem-solving within organizational frameworks.
• Foster a high-performing, inclusive team culture focused on learning, accountability, and innovation.
• Uphold high ethical standards and model organizational values in all interactions.

Safeguarding Responsibilities

●        Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.

●        Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.

●        Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

Supervisory Responsibility

None.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Global Compensation and Benefits Director

Works Directly With: People Team, Europe HR, Talent Acquisition, and global and regional leadership

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• 5+ years of experience managing total rewards or compensation and benefits programs at a private sector company, investment firm, or development bank. 
• Familiar with different compensation structures and statutory benefits across Europe, bringing working knowledge and practical experience.
• Experience managing global programs and designing performance-related pay structures is highly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Human Resources, Business Administration or related field, preferred.
• English proficiency required.
• Project management skills including the ability to create and execute plans within established deadlines. Strong problem-solving skills, interpersonal skills, and written and verbal communication.
• Strong analytical skills and a thorough knowledge of compensation and benefit plan designs. Ability to understand how to leverage compensation and benefits programs to align with industry best practices

Success Factors

The successful team member will be an avid learner, self-directed, innovative and action orientated. Furthermore, they must have the ability to work independently, employ effective time management skills, handle frequent interruptions and shift priorities, exhibit effective customer service skills and work effectively with a wide variety of individuals including team members based overseas.

They will be able to work onsite and collaborate with team members, deliver compelling designs within the guidelines of specific project objectives and interact professionally and productively with HQ and other global staff. Additionally, the individual will thrive in a fast-paced environment prone to rapid change and be willing to increase his/her responsibility level in the assigned areas.

The most successful Mercy Corps team members have a positive approach, a strong commitment to teamwork and personal accountability, and the ability to be flexible and ensure effective communication is a priority in all situations.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in UK or Netherlands and may require occasional travel to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Team Engagement and Effectiveness 

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline (integrityhotline@mercycorps.org).