The hidden cost of peanut butter pay

When budgets shrink, performance pay is put to the test.  The 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report tells a clear story: budgets are tighter, bonuses are shrinking, and organizations are reaching for simpler pay strategies to get through the year.   Today we're exploring what happens when compensation decisions prioritize administrative ease over strategic intent — and what leaders can do about it.  In this episode of Comp and Coffee, Ruth Thomas is joined by Founder of Payformance Partners Marc Mullis and People Operations leader at Leapfrog, Brittany Vogel to explore how organizations can maintain performance differentiation, employee trust, and retention in an era of tiny budgets.  This conversation goes beyond theory. It examines how leaders are creatively rethinking frequency versus size of rewards, leveraging non-base pay tools, strengthening communication, and avoiding the long-term consequences of oversimplified pay strategies.  Episode Resources: 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report: https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/cbpr   Your insights matter and shape the future of work. Participate in the 2027 Compensation Best Practices Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/cbprsignup Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions

In this episode of Comp and Coffee, Ruth Thomas sits down with Stacey Harris, Chief Research Officer at Sapient Insights Group, and Amy Stewart, Payscale’s Manager of Content & Research, to unpack how HR and compensation leaders can turn data into strategic, defensible decisions. We explore the latest research on HR systems, compensation trends, and the growing role of AI in pay and talent management. Stacey shares insights from the 28th annual HR Systems Survey, highlighting the tension HR leaders face between driving growth and managing costs, navigating workforce shifts, and understanding mid-market versus enterprise trends. Amy provides a sneak peek at Payscale’s 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report, including pay increase trends, “peanut butter” pay practices, and strategies for retaining top talent while controlling costs. Key takeaways include: Data-driven decision making: Use multiple validated data sources to interpret trends and avoid overreacting to headlines. Strategic compensation: Confidence in pay offers and total rewards is critical, especially in uncertain markets. Technology & AI: AI is transforming compensation strategy, enabling smarter market pricing and strategic insights—but trust and validated data remain essential. HR as a business partner: Compensation isn’t just an HR function; it’s a strategic lever that should inform enterprise-level decisions and connect to business outcomes. Whether you’re evaluating HR tech, managing tight budgets, or planning for AI integration, this episode provides practical guidance for leaders who want to leverage research to make smarter, more strategic decisions in 2026. Episode resources: Sapient Insights Group HR Systems Survey Report: https://bit.ly/4rB1zos Payscale 2026 Salary Increase Preview Report: https://bit.ly/3NWIQ8a Payscale Salary Budget Survey: https://bit.ly/4qYwlaD Payscale Pay Trends and Market Pricing Research: https://bit.ly/4kj5hk4 Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions

Pay decisions do not live in isolation. They shape hiring speed, retention, employee trust, and ultimately business performance.  According to Payscale’s 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report, 63% of organizations believe their compensation policies drive positive business outcomes. That confidence shows up in measurable ways, including lower voluntary turnover, faster time to fill, and stronger employee sentiment.  In this episode of Comp and Coffee, Ruth Thomas brings together leaders from across Payscale’s people, research, and total rewards teams to unpack what “pay confidence” really means, how organizations are building it in a constrained market, and why compensation is increasingly being treated as core business infrastructure rather than an HR function of last resort.  This conversation moves beyond theory to explore how confident pay decisions are made today, how they are being tested by flat increases, AI, and misinformation, and how leaders can connect pay strategy directly to outcomes executives care about.  Speakers:   Ruth Thomas – Chief Compensation Strategist, Payscale    Amy Stewart – Manager, Research and Insights, Payscale   Brittni Beers-Branco – VP of People, Payscale  Lauren Hein – Head of Total Rewards, Payscale   Episode Resources: 2026 Compensation Best Practices Report:   https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/cbpr?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_2026-cbpr-podcast_wv_fls&utm_content=2026-cbpr-podcast_rpt_pst Your insights matter and shape the future of work. Participate in the 2027 Compensation Best Practices Survey:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/cbprsignup Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions

HR and compensation leaders are facing a new set of challenges and opportunities in 2026. From new pay transparency laws to AI-driven decision-making, the landscape is shifting fast. This episode unpacks what is in and what is out for the year ahead and explores the trends that will define the future of work. Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions. Payscale End-of-Year report and HR Predictions: https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/end-of-year-top-jobs-report?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_eoyreport_wv&utm_content=eoyreport_pst Compensation translator: https://www.payscale.com/research-and-insights/your-compensation-translator?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_comptranslator-asset_wv&utm_content=compensation-translator-asset 2026 Pay increase report – https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/2026-salary-increases-preview?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_payincreasereport_wv&utm_content=payincreasereport_pst

Everyone agrees that pay matters. What they do not agree on is what it means. HR talks about fairness and equity.Finance talks about cost and ROI.Legal talks about compliance and defensibility.Leaders talk about performance and business outcomes. These perspectives are all correct, yet they often conflict. When they collide, compensation decisions lose clarity, employees feel confused, and managers deliver mixed messages—leaving HR as the translator. In this episode, Ruth Thomas is joined by Hannah Beaver, Director of Compensation at Trilogy Health Services, and Kim O’Grady, Compensation Supervisor at Designer Brands. Together, they break down how organizations can turn pay into a shared language that builds trust, alignment, and credibility from the C-suite to the front line. Episode resources: Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions.   Compensation translator: https://www.payscale.com/research-and-insights/your-compensation-translator?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_comptranslator-asset_wv&utm_content=compensation-translator-asset

Another conversation about pay transparency? We know what you are thinking, haven’t we already covered this?  But the truth is, 2025 changed everything. From a wave of new state laws in the U.S. to Canada and the EU rewriting the playbook, pay transparency has moved from policy talk to daily reality. With 2026 around the corner, the stakes are only getting higher.  In this episode of Comp and Coffee, host Ruth Thomas sits down with Vicky Peakman, Director at Fair Pay Partners, and Lulu Seikaly, Senior Corporate Attorney at Payscale, to unpack the year’s biggest developments and what is coming next.  Episode resources: 2025 – 2026 Salary budget survey - https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/salary-budget-survey-sbs?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_payforperformance-blog_wv&utm_content=payforperformance-blog_sia  Your voice deserves to be heard! Participate in this year’s compensation best practices survey - https://www.research.net/r/CBPR26Coffee   Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions.

At HR Tech 2025, AI stole the spotlight, but not everyone was convinced. Amid the hype and bold claims, HR and compensation professionals were asking tougher questions: What’s actually working? What’s just marketing? And how can AI really make their jobs easier? In this episode of Comp and Coffee, host Ruth Thomas sits down with Peh Keong Teh, Chief Product Officer at Payscale, Olivia Sedler, Product Manager at Payscale, and Mark Feffer, contributing analyst at 3Sixty Insights and editor of WorkforceAI.News and HCM Technology Report. Together, they cut through the noise from HR Tech, unpack what vendors got right and wrong, and discuss where AI can and cannot move the needle for HR and comp leaders today. Episode Resources: Pay trends report -  https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/pay-trends-report How AI is reshaping your workforce - https://www.payscale.com/compensation-trends/how-ai-is-reshaping-your-workforce AI 101 - https://www.payscale.com/compensation-trends/ai-101-the-hr-and-compensation-starter-p[…]gn=brd_ai-blog-engagement_wv&utm_content=data_blg_ai-101_pst AI Webinar - https://www.payscale.com/research-and-insights/how-ai-is-reshaping-pay-decisions-on-d[…]ement_wv&utm_content=data_wbn-o_how-ai-is-reshaping-comp_pst Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions

In a year of tight budgets and increasing expectations of pay transparency, pay conversations are more critical than ever. Skipping, delaying, or diluting these conversations can erode trust and leave employees disengaged. In this episode of Comp and Coffee, host Ruth Thomas is joined by Payscale leaders to explore the “compensation telephone game,” share how HR trains managers to deliver clear messages, and discuss strategies for keeping the right talent engaged in a volatile environment.  Guests:   Lexi Clarke – Chief People Officer, Payscale  Lauren Hein – Head of Total Rewards, Payscale  Lauren Cole – Senior Director, Services & Customer Education Resources:   2025 – 2026 Salary budget survey - https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/salary-budget-survey-sbs?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_payforperformance-blog_wv&utm_content=payforperformance-blog_sia  Your voice deserves to be heard! Participate in this year’s compensation best practices survey - https://www.research.net/r/CBPR26Coffee   Your pay communications playbook - https://www.payscale.com/compensation-trends/your-pay-communications-playbook-building-trust-through-compensation-transparency?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&utm_campaign=cnt_awr_payforperformance-blog_wv&utm_content=payforperformance-blog_sia  Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions

Pay transparency laws are forcing the conversation—but alignment is what makes it stick.  When it comes to pay transparency, HR, Legal, and leadership often speak in different “dialects.” HR frames it around equity and structure, Legal around compliance and risk, and leadership around outcomes and cost. The challenge? These perspectives rarely align into a shared understanding that employees can trust.  In this episode of Comp and Coffee, we’re bringing together three leading voices to explore how organizations can move beyond compliance and turn transparency into a universal language of trust and alignment:  Ruth Thomas – Chief Compensation Strategist and pay equity thought leader and advisor, helping organizations build consistent, bias-free pay practices.  Lulu Seikaly – Corporate attorney guiding employers through the legal realities of pay transparency laws.  Elaina Van Kirk, PHR – Principal Consultant at Exude Human Capital, advising organizations on compensation, performance, and inclusive culture strategies.  Together, they’ll uncover how HR, Finance, and Legal can stop speaking past each other—and start building a pay narrative that employees not only understand but believe.

Salary budgets are tightening — but strategy doesn’t have to.  Payscale’s 10th Annual Salary Budget Survey reveals that planned pay increases for 2026 are dipping slightly from 2025, with economic uncertainty replacing competition for talent as the top driver of budget changes. But even in a cooling pay environment, HR and comp pros have a window to realign strategy before Q4 — if they have the right data in hand.  In this episode of Comp and Coffee, host Ruth Thomas sits down with Amy Stewart, Payscale’s Principal of Research & Insights, and Kathryn Gombos, HR & Total Rewards Leader and Founder of Gombos Group. Together, they unpack the latest salary budget trends, explore what’s behind the shifts, and share how organizations can use these insights to plan smarter, communicate with confidence, and navigate survey season without burning out.  2025–2026 Payscale Salary Budget Survey - https://www.payscale.com/featured-content/salary-budget-survey-sbs Email: [email protected] for listener questions and suggestions