Sr. Total Rewards Manager

Hi! I’m Rachel and I lead People Operations here at Ashby . I recently joined and I’m excited that we're expanding our team! The People Operations Team provides support to Ashby employees through the development and implementation of programs, policies, and services that contribute to a productive and inclusive working environment. We ensure that the work we do aligns with our Operating Principles and strengthens the environment we're building at Ashby. Our approach is to do things differently – we prioritize what truly fits our team and enhances how we work together. By embracing creativity and customization, we aim to create a people-first culture that drives both individual and organizational success. We review all applications, and there isn’t a benefit to applying quickly. Take your time, look at the application questions and please submit before the application deadline! We aren’t able to take calls outside of the interview process, so reaching out to the team won’t push your application forward. About the Role We’re looking for an experienced Total Rewards leader to build and own Ashby’s total rewards function through our next phase of growth. This is a builder’s role. Some of the foundation is in place; a lot of it isn’t. You’ll set the philosophy, design the frameworks, build the infrastructure, and run the work day to day. It’s a chance to shape how a company rewards its people rather than administer decisions someone else made. It’s also unusually analytical, and unusually creative. Ashby’s Total Rewards philosophy is principled and intentionally not one-size-fits-all: approaches vary by function, because different parts of the business compete in different talent markets. Total Rewards partners closely with leadership to provide the structure, documentation, guidance, and governance that keep those approaches equitable, competitive, and scalable. The upshot is that the most interesting problems here don’t have off-the-shelf answers. How do you price a role that survey data doesn’t cover? How do you keep a flexible system fair and explainable? How do you tell, early, that one talent market has moved while the others haven’t? You’ll need real fluency with data, the discipline to structure a problem before you solve it, and the confidence to invent the model when no model exists. A lot of this work looks less like administering a program and more like a well-run strategy engagement: frame the question, get the data, build the model, pressure-test the answer, and bring leaders a recommendation with the tradeoffs made explicit. The difference is that here you also go implement it. You’ll partner closely with People Ops, Finance, Talent Acquisition, Legal, and functional leaders to design programs that support how Ashby attracts, retains, and rewards exceptional people — building a more scalable approach while preserving the flexibility each part of the business needs. We’re looking for someone who has built and scaled Total Rewards in high-growth, VC-backed SaaS companies and is energized by all three of philosophy, systems, and execution — someone who would rather go build the analysis than wait for it. This role starts as an individual contributor and is expected to grow into people management as the function scales. You'll be responsible for Building Ashby’s compensation infrastructure Bands, leveling alignment, market positioning, review cadences, benchmarking methodology, and clear guidance for offers, promotions, refreshers, and market adjustments — globally, and in partnership with founders, executives, and functional leaders. Some areas are mature; others are still forming. You’ll bring structure to the ambiguity with frameworks that are principled, practical, and hold up under scrutiny. You will be resp