Advanced Specialist, Sales Incentives - This role aligns to industry level titles such as Senior Sales Compensation Specialist, Senior Sales Incentive Analyst, or Sales Compensation Business Partner.
Location: United States
Pearson is seeking a strategic and business-oriented Advanced Specialist, Sales Incentives to support the design, operationalization, and execution of sales incentive programs across one or more business units within the organization. This role will serve as a key partner to Sales Leadership, Revenue Operations, Finance, HR, and Commercial teams to help align sales incentive strategy with broader business priorities, growth objectives, and organizational goals.
This individual will play a critical role in translating business strategy into scalable compensation programs and operational delivery plans that drive performance, reinforce desired sales behaviors, and support organizational transformation initiatives. The role requires strong business acumen, partnership skills, operational discipline, and the ability to balance strategic thinking with tactical execution.
In addition to helping shape incentive strategies and implementation roadmaps, this role will also support the administration, calculation, validation, and timely processing of sales incentive and commission payments while ensuring alignment to governance standards and operational controls.
Key Responsibilities
Sales Incentive Strategy & Business Partnership
Partner closely with Sales Leadership, Revenue Operations, Finance, and HR to align sales incentive programs with strategic business priorities and commercial objectives
Support the development and evolution of sales incentive plan strategies that drive growth, customer retention, product focus, and sales performance
Translate organizational goals and sales priorities into scalable and operationally executable compensation frameworks
Serve as a trusted advisor to business leaders on compensation effectiveness, incentive alignment, sales behaviors, and operational considerations
Help drive consistency, governance, and standardization across sales compensation programs while balancing business-specific needs
Participate in compensation planning cycles, strategic discussions, and ongoing optimization initiatives
Incentive Program Delivery & Operational Execution
Lead operational delivery plans and implementation activities associated with annual and mid-year sales incentive plan rollouts
Coordinate cross-functional readiness activities with Finance, HR, Systems, and Sales Operations teams
Support implementation and operational administration of incentive compensation tools and systems including SPIFF and other Sales Performance Management (SPM) platforms
Ensure compensation plans, payout rules, and operational processes are accurately documented and executable
Assist in launch readiness efforts including communications, FAQs, leader enablement, testing, and governance validation
Commission & Incentive Administration
Accurately calculate, validate, and process monthly, quarterly, and annual sales incentive and commission payments
Validate attainment calculations, quota-related metrics, accelerators, modifiers, kickers, and special incentive programs
Ensure all compensation payments are completed accurately and on time in alignment with established governance and payroll timelines
Investigate and resolve payout discrepancies, operational issues, and compensation inquiries proactively
Maintain strong operational controls and audit-ready documentation supporting compensation processes
Governance & Continuous Improvement
Support governance processes related to incentive compensation strategy, administration, approvals, and payout validation
Identify opportunities to improve scalability, efficiency, transparency, and operational effectiveness across compensation processes
Help drive simplification and standardization of compensation operations and supporting tools
Monitor compensation outcomes and operational trends to support continuous improvement discussions with leadership
Contribute to development of policies, procedures, and best practices related to sales incentive administration
Qualifications
Required Qualifications
Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Economics, Operations, Human Resources, or related field
5+ years of experience in Sales Compensation, Revenue Operations, Sales Operations, Commercial Operations, or related business functions
Strong understanding of sales incentive strategy, commission operations, and compensation governance
Experience partnering directly with Sales Leadership and cross-functional business stakeholders
Strong business acumen and ability to connect compensation strategy to organizational priorities and sales outcomes
Experience administering and processing incentive compensation plans
Familiarity with Sales Performance Management (SPM) platforms such as SPIFF, Xactly, CaptivateIQ, Varicent, or similar tools
Experience working with CRM systems such as Salesforce
Compensation at Pearson is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and specific location. As required by the California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York State, New York City, Vermont, Washington State, and Washington DC laws, the pay range for this position is as follows:
The minimum full-time salary range is between $85,000 - $100,000.
This position is eligible to participate in an annual incentive program, and information on benefits offered is here.
Applications will be accepted through Monday, July 6, 2026. This window may be extended depending on business needs.
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Who we are:
At Pearson, our purpose is simple: to help people realize the life they imagine through learning. We believe that every learning opportunity is a chance for a personal breakthrough. We are the world's lifelong learning company. For us, learning isn't just what we do. It's who we are. To learn more: We are Pearson.
Pearson is an Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit and business need. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other group protected by law. We actively seek qualified candidates who are protected veterans and individuals with disabilities as defined under VEVRAA and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act.
If you are an individual with a disability and are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our career site as a result of your disability, you may request reasonable accommodations by emailing TalentExperienceGlobalTeam@grp.pearson.com.
Job: Sales Enablement
Job Family: GO\TO\MARKET
Organization: Chief Business Office
Schedule: FULL_TIME
Workplace Type:
Req ID: 24673
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