As the weather gets colder and the nights draw in, HR leaders across the country start looking distinctly nervous. It’s that time again… RemCom season.

Are you shifting uncomfortably? Then I’ll begin.

By now you’ll probably be getting your reports together for annual pay reviews and planning how you’re going to manage this year’s RemCom. If you’re newly responsible for RemCom matters, there’s a lot to wrap your head around, and dealing with strong personalities on the Board can feel daunting.

The role of the HR Director is a tricky one, even for seasoned professionals. Technically the leader of the RemCom is the chair of Rem – but in practice you will often be responsible for brokering the deals across different stakeholders without compromising your independence or integrity.

You’ll need to provide a combination of expert technical advice and negotiation skills. It’s not enough just to know your numbers inside out – building relationships with your CEO, CFO etc is crucial to a successful outcome. Getting everyone to ‘yes’ takes hours of developing papers, as well as meetings and facilitating discussion with all concerned.

If you’re not intimidated, you’re not paying attention.

Luckily, help is at hand in the form of Innecto’s RemCom mentoring programme. Our goal is to plan, develop and coach you through a RemCom season, ensuring you are ready for each meeting, have access to research, template documents and expert guidance to support you. In turn, in future years you will be able to rely on your training to ensure that your RemComs are effective in delivering key strategic value to the Board.

We use the GOLD standard as a structure for success:

Governance – A good starting point is taking guidance from the UK Corporate Governance Code, because it allows you to root your practise in highly compliant soil.  

Objectives – Linking exec pay to the wider objectives of the business is the whole point of RemCom. To do so, you need to understand the DNA of your company, and quantify what success really looks like – now, and in five years’ time.

Leadership – As HR leader, you will need to wrangle strong personalities on the Committee, and broker a deal so that your Rem Chair, CEO, NEDs etc all feel you’ve come to a good conclusion.

Delivery – How will you establish and implement a plan that works for the business? You’ll need hard numbers to map out your scheme, as well as constant consultation with other stakeholders.

How does this work in practise? To give you an idea, in our first few sessions I can help you outline goals for RemCom season, as well as discussing key gaps and areas for development. I’ll offer support on interpreting upcoming legal and regulatory changes, and establish terms of reference. Later, we’ll plan how to manage key elements of your reward strategy, such as benchmarking, performance audit and bonus review, and move on to crafting your own RemCom paper to present to the Board.

The programme is designed to be a mix of structured sessions, backed up by a programme of support, template documents and expert guidance, and tailored ‘just-for-you’ guidance on RemCom papers, advice on handling your own RemCom situations, and practice sessions.

Our RemCom Mentor programme is based around the essential elements which we believe make RemComs effective and essential parts of the business strategy delivery and management. It’s designed specifically for HR leaders, to equip you with the blend of technical ability and negotiation skills needed to get your RemCom across the finish line.

To find out more about our RemCom mentoring programme, or any other aspect of pay and reward, call Innecto on 020 3457 0894.

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