Each Community™ Market Compensation and Benefits survey includes detailed information about salary, cash allowances, variable pay and in-kind benefits.

Examples of cash allowances include:

• 13th or 14th month
• Christmas bonus
• Transport allowance
• Housing allowance
• Any other fixed cash payment

In-kind benefits are items such as:

• Food and beverages
• Recreational activities
• Commuter bus
• Housing
• Subsidized loans
• Any other benefit in-kind that is provided

Each of these elements of reward are valued and displayed, by grade, at various percentiles to illustrate the market practice.  Alongside the market data, your data is shown in a separate column, making it easy to compare your package to the market.

In addition to information about employers in the market, each survey report also includes prevalence information for security benefits such as pensions and health care; insurance; family benefits and leave provisions.  A summary describing the local Social Security and labor code provisions is included, along with information about income taxes and exchange rates.

Our standard report is provided in a two-part PDF format (see samples).  As an option, clients can subscribe to the survey via our Indigo™ software, which enables users to do additional analyses and download data to Excel.

Obtaining high-quality, consistent survey data is just the first step towards managing your compensation programme.  So, what should you do with the survey data now that you have it?

1. Review the Understanding the Report Presentation.  This will help you navigate through the report, understanding the layout, where to find different information, and useful hints about the survey methodology and data.
2. Use the data to manage your compensation programme. Build a salary scale, evaluate your market position, update the benefits and allowances offered, etc.  Birches Group provides Advisory Services to many clients who have chosen to outsource some or all of the technical analysis associated with scale design.