Key Definitions

Key Term Definition
Benchmark Job A job whose major responsibilities and requirements are found in the market. These jobs are typically included in salary surveys and have reliable market data readily available year after year
Bring-to-Minimum A mandatory raise that an employee receives when adjustments in a pay range cause their salary to fall below the minimum of the range. “Bring-to-Minimum” raises the salary up to the bottom of the range
Career Path

A career path is a series of jobs an employee moves through to reach short-term and long-term career goals

Career Level

A set of numbered work dimensions within career streams that defines career progression toward more job complexity, knowledge and responsibility.

Career Stream A progression that describes the nature of work being performed.  Examples of career streams include:
  • Operational Contributor
  • Professional Contributor
  • Manager & Leader 
Compensation Compensation includes the combined value of an employee’s salary, benefits, retirement contributions, qualified tuition reduction and more
Incumbent Review A review by the compensation team that is required when an existing employee’s job duties and responsibilities change significantly (typically defined as 30% or more), or in a way that affects how the job is mapped
Job Family A group of jobs involving similar types of work and requiring similar training, skills, knowledge and expertise. The job family concept helps organize related jobs for purposes of pay, career progression and performance management Examples include:
  • Human Resources; Information Technology; Research 
Job Sub-family A sub-set of a job family, usually more specialized in nature. Examples include:
  • Compensation, Benefits (sub-families within Human Resources)
  • Computer Operations, Systems Administration (sub-families within Information Technology)
Job Profiles

High-level definitions of a job’s purpose, responsibilities, and qualifications

Market

The university generally defines its labor market for non-faculty based on the type of work. Comparisons may include similarly situated peer universities, general industry, and private sector institutions. Market geographies (i.e., local, regional, or national) are determined based on where the university generally draws talent. For highly specialized or unique positions, other markets and industry sources may also be considered and used if there are specific needs and requirements for doing so.

Market Adjustment Refers to a salary adjustment that is made to recognize compensation changes in the marketplace for a specific job based on market analysis updated regularly to ensure competitiveness
Market Target The university aspires to provide competitive compensation in the market in which the university competes for talent and benefits that are market competitive, inclusive of complying with federal and state requirements.
Pay Grade A pay range to which jobs are assigned based on the job role, impact and complexity requirements, and the market value of benchmark jobs. Pay ranges have been designed to accommodate a wide variety of skill and experience levels, from novice to expert, in a job
Working Title

A title that refers to a specific department where an employee is working, or a specific type of work, and is used in job postings, employees’ signature line, business cards, etc.  Examples include:

  • Director, Center for Academic Excellence
  • Analyst, Workforce Systems

These may differ from what are known as State Titles, which are the official names of positions that the university refers to when working with state government.