MIKE WEST
COMPENSATION PROFESSIONAL
Pay Strategy & Programs | Job Architecture | Compensation Analytics & Systems
Pittsburgh, PA | mike@peopleanalyst.com
linkedin.com/in/michaelcwest | github.com/people-analyst
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
I design compensation programs and build the analyses and systems used to run them. My work includes pay philosophy, job architecture, market pricing, salary ranges, geographic differentials, pay equity, and annual compensation planning. I have modeled cash, bonus, and equity awards; supported global pay programs and M&A integration; and used employee-preference research to inform total-rewards decisions. I bring 20+ years across compensation, people analytics, and HR systems in large and small organizations. My recent engineering work extends this experience into compensation software and AI-enabled workflows. I am the author of People Analytics For Dummies (Wiley).
CONTRACT EXPERIENCE | 2012–PRESENT
My independent practice spans compensation strategy, program design, market analysis, planning cycles, and implementation, supported by hands-on analytics and systems experience.
The New York Times | 2025–2026
Workforce Analytics & Compensation
I built production models for the 2025 compensation cycle: merit increases, annual incentive payouts, restricted stock units (RSUs), and discretionary awards, including Workday data-load (EIB) files for implementation.
I developed annual incentive funding and distribution guidelines for Corporate Leaders and organizational mappings and production workbooks for merit planning.
I built what-if analyses, Monte Carlo simulations, and bonus- and equity-cost calculators for executive compensation planning.
Avid Bioservices | 2024–2025
I worked on compensation philosophy, market benchmarking, pay-range design, and job architecture.
My work also covered pay equity, incentive review, annual budgets and merit planning, and compensation-committee materials.
Juniper Networks | 2023–2025
Interim Global Compensation Programs Technology and Data Lead
I supported the global compensation center of excellence across 45+ countries: market data, pay ranges, job architecture, leveling, Syndio pay-equity analysis, annual budgets, and merit planning.
I reconciled M&A pay structures, harmonizing jobs, levels, bands, and market references across the merged global organization.
Datavant | 2023
I conducted market benchmarking and designed pay ranges.
Cityblock Health | 2022–2023
I rebuilt compensation foundations through pay philosophy, job catalog development, leveling, market benchmarking, and pay-range design. I prepared compensation and HR board presentations.
Instabase | 2022
I designed pay ranges using Radford and Option Impact market and equity data, with consistent job levels and bands.
Zoom | 2022 | through Glen Elliott Consulting
I used conjoint analysis to evaluate employee preferences and trade-offs in total rewards.
Reddit | 2022 | through OpenComp
I analyzed the mix of stock and cash compensation.
Extra | 2022 | through OpenComp
I conducted market benchmarking and designed pay ranges.
Mosaic Building Group | 2022 | through OpenComp
I conducted market benchmarking and designed pay ranges.
Quizlet | 2022 | through OpenComp
I conducted a compensation program audit.
Articulate | 2021–2022 | through OpenComp
I worked on pay philosophy, job architecture, and market benchmarking.
Frontdoor | 2021–2022
I developed compensation systems, job architecture and catalogs, market-pricing models, and annual and long-term incentive models. My work also included minimum-wage and India overtime analysis.
Included Health | 2021
I conducted market benchmarking and designed pay ranges.
BKD | 2020
I conducted market benchmarking and designed pay ranges.
Molekule | 2019
I developed job architecture, matched roles to Radford benchmarks, and designed market-based pay ranges.
10x Genomics | 2018–2019
I developed job leveling and architecture to support consistent compensation and workforce reporting.
Pure Storage | 2016–2019
I worked on job architecture, market benchmarking, pay-range design, including R&D ranges, and the merit process. I also built headcount-planning tools and analytical reporting.
Udemy | 2015
I conducted market benchmarking and designed pay ranges.
Otsuka Pharmaceutical | 2014–2015
I analyzed competency and performance relationships, outliers, and pay-for-performance patterns to inform leadership decisions.
FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE | 2001–2012
Otsuka Pharmaceutical | 2010–2012
Manager, HRIS & Data Management
I led Workday implementation across Core HR, Compensation, Benefits, and Payroll, consolidating three applications in under ten months and going live with $6M+ in monthly payroll transactions and zero payroll errors.
I led requirements, data migration, testing, and launch, including compensation and payroll data integrity and the reporting foundation for ongoing operations.
AstraZeneca | 2008–2010
People Analytics Business Partner, Field Sales
I supported annual compensation, talent, and succession planning with sales leadership. I combined HR, operations, sales, and survey data to inform pay and talent decisions and evaluate training effectiveness.
Google | 2006–2008
Program Manager, People Analytics
I established the Benefits Analytics role and used conjoint analysis to evaluate employee reward preferences and inform total-rewards program design.
I developed benefits decision models and attrition analysis during growth from 7,000 to 21,000 employees, linking program choices with employee experience and retention.
PetSmart | 2005–2006
Sr. Quantitative Analyst, Talent Management
I linked associate knowledge, engagement, and attrition with customer satisfaction and sales. My findings informed compensation, performance, and training investment in sales-critical jobs.
Merck | 2001–2005
Sr. HR Decision Support Analyst; Talent Management & Organization Effectiveness
I built workforce decision-support datasets and reporting, and contributed to HR systems, performance-management, employee-survey, and learning-program analysis.
Graduate School Compensation Work | 1999–2000
I worked on job analysis, market matching, wage research, and range design through assignments at Mounds View Public Schools and the University of Minnesota Clerical Union.
COMPENSATION TECHNOLOGY & APPLIED AI
The last few years I have been building analytical applications and reusable datasets and services for compensation decisions. Examples include job architecture and market-pay intelligence (JobFrame.Global) and compensation-decision tools (AnyComp.AI). My product experience also includes OpenComp and One Model, where I was VP of Product Strategy in 2016–2017.
METHODS & TECHNOLOGY
Compensation: Pay philosophy; job matching and leveling; geographic differentials; cash, incentive, and equity modeling; regression-based pay-equity analysis; conjoint research; compensation-committee materials.
Talent systems and data: Workday, ADP Workforce Now, Oracle HR, PeopleSoft, UltiPro/UKG, Greenhouse, Lever, iCIMS, BrassRing, Syndio, Radford, Mercer, WTW, CompAnalyst, MarketPay, Option Impact, Pave, OpenComp.
Analytical systems: Power BI, Tableau, Alteryx, Excel, R, SPSS, Qualtrics, CultureAmp.
HR specific analytical systems: One Model, Visier.
AI & Software Engineering: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub, Supabase, Vercel, V0, Replit, Railway, Mailgun, Stripe; Node.js; Python, SQL; Novel design method integrating microservices by APIs and Model Context Protocol (MCP).
EDUCATION & ADDITIONAL CREDENTIALS
M.A., Human Resources & Industrial Relations — University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management
B.S., Sociology & Psychology — Northern Arizona University
Compensation Management Specialist (CMS), CEBS / Wharton, 2009; SPHR, 2009.