Director, Incentive Compensation

About the Role

Attentive is building the future of marketing with AI. We believe AI will change how brands connect with people and open new possibilities for growth. Our ambition is to help define that future, building on the experience and trust we’ve earned with thousands of brands.

We’re thinking big about what comes next, with the urgency of a startup and the foundation of a well-established business. Joining Attentive is an opportunity to help shape an industry primed for a massive change and have a meaningful role in the company we’re becoming.

This hybrid role is based in our New York office, with in-office collaboration Tuesday through Thursday each week.

What You’ll Accomplish

• Lead annual incentive planning across Sales, Account Management, Customer Success, and other eligible go-to-market roles. Work with leaders to define performance measures, pay mix, payout curves, accelerators, and plan rules.
• Track, report, and work with Accounting to accrue non GTM bonus plans including executive bonuses.
• Make sure incentives reward the right outcomes. Evaluate how pricing, contract terms, customer commitments, usage, and deal margin affect payouts. Recommend changes that support growth without encouraging poor deal economics.
• Build and test compensation models. Show how different levels of attainment and plan structures affect employee earnings and company costs. Explain the tradeoffs and help leaders reach a decision.
• Own commission operations, including calculation, validation, reconciliation, approvals, and delivery to Payroll. Keep payouts accurate and on time, statements clear, and questions resolved promptly.
• Maintain plan documentation and consistent policies for crediting, ramp periods, guarantees, role changes, adjustments, and exceptions. Work with People, Legal, Accounting, and Payroll on controls and approvals.
• Assess whether plans are working. Track attainment, payout distribution, commission costs, and the behavior each plan encourages. Separate actual results from forecast assumptions and turn findings into recommendations.
• Improve compensation systems and data. Work with Revenue Operations and business systems partners on requirements, testing, and data quality. Use automation and AI where they reduce manual work, improve accuracy and enhance customer experience.
• Lead and develop the compensation team. Set clear responsibilities, review work, and coach people through complex questions. Help managers and employees understand their plans through rollout materials and ongoing communication.
• Partner with FP&A and Accounting on commission forecasts, accruals, reconciliations, and explanations of variance. Prepare clear analysis for senior leadership.

Your Expertise

• 8+ years of relevant experience in incentive compensation, incentive design, or related Finance or Revenue Operations roles, with ownership of both plan design and administration.
• Experience managing and developing a team, ideally including at least two years of people management.
• Experience designing and operating incentive programs in a SaaS, technology, or similarly complex business.
• Strong Excel or Google Sheets skills. You can build a scenario model, trace a calculation to its source, and spot when an assumption does not hold.
• Practical experience with incentive compensation platforms and Salesforce data. You understand how contract terms, bookings, billing, and payouts connect.
• Sound business judgment. You can challenge a proposal constructively and balance employee motivation, financial discipline, and ease of administration.
• Clear communication with executives, managers, and employees. You can explain a complex plan or a difficult payout decision without losing the audience.
• Care with sensitive information and the discipline to get the details right, even during a busy payout or planning cycle.
• Experience with consumption-based revenue, margin-based incentives, expansion and retention plans
• Direct experience with commission management platforms (Xactly preferred, or equivalent SPM systems like CaptivateIQ, Spiff).

You'll get competitive perks and benefits, from health & wellness to equity, to help you bring your best self to work.

For US based applicants:

• The US base salary range for this full-time position is $180,000-$270,000 + equity + benefits
• Our salary ranges are determined by role, level and location

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