Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella emailed employees Monday morning letting them know the company is set to readjust its compensation package to remain competitive amongst its rivals in the market.
According to Nadella, a memo obtained by GeekWire explains that Microsoft is prepared to increase its Annual Stock ranges by at least 25 percent for all employee levels 67 and below in an attempt to squelch some staff unrest as reported by Business Insider last week.
Specifically, we are nearly doubling the global merit budget. Merit budgets will vary by country, based on local market data, and the most meaningful increases will be focused where the market demands and on early to mid-career levels. We are also increasing Annual Stock ranges by at least 25 percent for all levels 67 and below.
When all is said and done, the upgraded compensation package will affect most employees’ sans partners, general managers vice presidents or higher, since a majority of Microsoft hires initially range between 59 and 65 according to a leaked spreadsheet shared among 400 employees back in 2019.
The proposed increase is designed to undercut larger moves by neighboring competitors such as Amazon’s recently doubling its maximum base pay range for its tech and corporate employees.
As we’ve reported on several occasions, industry competitors such as Amazon and Facebook have been nipping at the company’s heels to lure its talent to their own AR, cloud and Quantum Computing projects over the past couple of years.
As Microsoft continues to record ever-increasing revenue and profit quarter over quarter it seems like a no-brainer for the company to reinvest its earnings into keeping the talent that’s helped produce those investor-approved wins at home and away from the competition.
