PayScale Incorporates Skills, Location Data into Pay Planning

PayScale launched Differentials Engine, a new tool to help businesses incorporate skill and location data into their compensation planning efforts.

With the number of technology-driven jobs growing rapidly, PayScale believes it’s more important for employers to understand the value of skills. “Companies want to get the most from their recruiting investments and many today are unable to attract top talent because they are not paying these in-demand employees based on the skills they deliver,” said Heather Taylor, the company’s head of data products.

Geography is also important, PayScale believes, although looking at general location data doesn’t go far enough. Compensation, the company noted, often varies specific job or industry. That could lead an employer to, for example, underpay IT professionals while it overpays financial workers. Differentials Engine helps employers understand geography differentials by each “job family.”

Bulking Up PayScale’s Compensation Engine

With the tool, PayScale customers will be able to layer skill and geographic differentials on top of their existing compensation data. That will allow them to more accurately price positions, the company said.

The Differential Engine works by incorporating skills and geographic data into PayScale’s MarketPay solution, matching an employee’s job title to PayScale’s compensation database. The Differential Engine’s data has been validated by a team of statisticians and is updated regularly, PayScale said. Skills data is updated every two weeks and geographic is data updated quarterly.

PayScale’s been highlighting its data chops this year. In April the company relaunched its flagship Insight product as “Insight Lab,” a system designed to provide data-driven compensation analysis to HR and hiring managers so they can make more informed decisions about pay.

The company also announced technologies that streamline compensation management, improve collaboration between HR and managers, and automate a number of routine compensation tasks through machine learning.

At the time, Chief Product and Strategy Officer David Smith said Insight Lab was designed to streamline processes so HR can more accurately determine pay rates. In addition, PayScale said the product would allow HR to “feel much more confident” about compensation decisions.”  

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