Senior executives in finance, marketing and human resources earn the highest salaries and annual total cash if they live in the US, according to an analysis of 15 countries by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.
The research found that finance and marketing directors in the US earn more than five times their counterparts in India, while HR directors earn more than four times as much.
“Compensation has long been driven by such factors as historic pay levels, size of economy and competition for talent,” said Steve Gross, global leader of broad-based rewards at Mercer. “As companies become more globally mobile and can shift some jobs to lower-cost locations, these new considerations will have a big impact on pay levels among countries.”
The 15-country analysis is drawn from a larger Mercer survey, the 2007 Global Pay Summary which provides base salary and total cash compensation for 50 job positions in 50 countries worldwide. More than 2,300 organizations responded to the survey. The benchmark data is used by multinational organizations to set pay levels for employees globally.
“Global pay data helps multinational companies make better decisions about sourcing employees and where to set up overseas operations,” Gross said. “Factors such as productivity, retention costs and availability of skills influence market rates and determine what an organization must pay to attract, engage and retain needed talent.”
Finance directors
US-based finance directors are the highest paid, earning base pay of 130,800 on average, followed by those in the UK and Canada, who receive around 106,000 and 100,400, respectively. Their counterparts in Germany, Hong Kong and Brazil also earn high base pay at 89,400, 86,400 and 84,800, respectively.
Annual total cash for finance directors follows the same pattern as base pay. US-based finance directors are the highest paid, earning annual total cash of 166,100 on average, followed by those in the UK and Canada, who receive approximately 137,400 and 131,000, respectively.
At the lower end of the spectrum, finance directors in Hungary and India receive less than half of the 15-country average for this position, earning base pay of approximately 31,500 and 29,300, respectively. Average base pay for this position in China – Shanghai is 39,600.
“Finance directors frequently are the second-highest paid individuals in an organization, receiving only slightly less than the CEO,” said David Conroy, UK leader of reward at Mercer. “During the past few years the finance director’s role has expanded as new regulatory and risk management responsibilities make them increasingly accountable for corporate governance.”
Marketing directors
Base pay for marketing directors ranges between 107,800 in the US and 22,500 in India. Marketing directors in the US are followed by those in the UK and Germany, who are paid around 99,800 and 85,400, respectively.
Marketing directors in the US also receive the most annual total cash, followed by those in the UK, Germany and Brazil.
Human resources directors
HR director is the lowest paid role of the three positions covered. The best-paid HR directors are found in the US, the UK and Germany, where employees can earn average base pay of 99,900, 90,700 and 88,400, respectively.
The US also leads in total cash compensation of HR directors at 127,100, followed by Brazil at 119,900 and Germany at 118,100.
“We find higher than average salaries for HR directors where their role is more strategic and business focused,” Conroy said. “Examples are where HR directors are driving through change programs for their employer and taking a leadership role in M&A activity.”