How transparent pay practices are part of ClearScore’s culture
When we set up back in 2015, our aim was to disrupt the financial services industry, and to create a special place to work. Very early in our company history we deliberately introduced people practices like rigorous feedback, excellent parental leave packages, flexible working, proactive mental & physical wellbeing support, investment in ClearScore University, celebration rituals and behavioural principles — weaving autonomy, mastery and purpose into our employee offering.
But what about Pay? It’s not necessarily the first topic people think of when asked about culture, but in my view it’s right up there in terms of importance. I believe how companies pay their employees says a lot about how they value their people and how they make decisions — and that’s ultimately at the heart of culture.
Transparency is a cornerstone of ClearScore’s business mission and is an intrinsic part of our compensation philosophy. We have a detailed Reward Philosophy and Approach which all employees can access on our Intranet. I’ve summarised it here by looking at the 4 elements making up Reward at ClearScore — (1) Salary, (2) Bonus, (3) Stock and (4) Benefits.
1. Salary — fixed structures
At ClearScore we apply fixed salary structures, which mean we have standardised the salary we pay people, by level. There are numerous reasons why we believe this is a very good thing, but these are the top 3:
We want people to develop their career with us
Our goal is to create a culture where our employees can learn and develop at pace. Naturally pay is an important factor in choosing an employer, and it’s disheartening that often in our industry the point of entry is the best/only time to negotiate.
Our people build valuable knowledge, context and relationships which we recognise increases their value. So internal promotions are rewarded equally to a new joiner coming in at that level, and our salaries keep pace with the market benchmarks and are reviewed annually.
Removes negotiation (and the negative implications)
It’s well documented that not everyone feels confident to navigate a salary negotiation, and that confidence does not correlate with effectiveness in a role. What makes it worst is people don’t know where the boundaries are, and are negotiating a bit in the dark. This can mean a negotiation is shaped by frame of reference (family salaries, friends, previous company pay practices…). This all compounds the various Pay Gaps that exist — a topic explored in depth in the excellent book ‘Equal’ by Carrie Gracie.
Instead we choose to pay everyone at the same level the same, and all employees have equal opportunity to excel and earn a bonus on top.
Increases trust
When you know an organisation is paying close attention to transparent pay practices, you don’t need to worry about what others are being paid and have those distracting thoughts (what if I’m getting paid less for the same quality of work).
Trust is a crucial factor in moving quickly, a key source of our competitive advantage. We care a lot about building trust amongst teams, and within our organisation.
2. Bonus
As part of our focus on being a peak performing business, we want to motivate our employees to achieve individual Peak Performance. Our people complete regular performance reviews which include self reflection and feedback from managers and peers.
Employees are evaluated against how well they have-
- Achieved their OKRs (objectives and key results) — these are directly aligned to company, team and individual results
- Aligned with our behavioural principles (including Focus, Fail & Fix Fast, Learn and Obsess)
Everyone has an opportunity to earn a % bonus for achieving a Perform or Peak Perform rating at the end of the year.
3. Stock
We have a broad based options scheme which gives a grant of share options to employees from Level 4 upwards (this is around half of the company) — with a different volume of options granted for each level of seniority. This means that employees share in the long-term growth and success of the company.
Again this isn’t negotiable and means you’re equally rewarded and motivated for ClearScore’s success to your peers.
4. Benefits
Our benefits are centred on financial, physical and emotional wellbeing, and include:
- A financial coach who can help you set up your finances in line with your goals and preferences
- Matched pension up to 6%
- Access to private healthcare and dental care
- £1000 Personal Learning budget to be used as you choose
- In-house psychotherapist
- True flexible working
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
To summarise, our Reward practices are build on the following principles:
- Equitable — fair, transparent, understandable rewards, based on contribution
- Inclusive — same programs available to all cohorts of employees
- Competitive — rewards that help attract and retain talented people/world class capabilities in each market
- Motivational — rewards for achieving short-term results, growing the business, and creating long-term value
- Coherent — consistent global framework and locally appropriate absolute levels of reward
We look for employees who value this transparency and clarity, and who look to invest in a career with ClearScore — in the same way we truly invest in our people. If you’re interested in a career with us, you can see open roles at www.clearscore.com/careers
