Compensation and Benefits Management: Total Rewards, Incentives and Reward Governance – Dubai, 3–7 May 2027

Programme overview

Introduction:

Compensation and benefits spending is often the largest controllable cost an organisation carries, yet many reward functions run pay reviews, bonus plans and benefits renewals as separate annual events with no shared strategy or cost view. The result is incentive plans that pay out regardless of results, benefits that employees do not value and reward decisions that are hard to defend. This Core Concept course equips reward and HR practitioners to manage the full total rewards cycle as one system. Participants build a Total Rewards Plan and Cost Model for a case organisation.

Course Objectives:

• Assess the current total rewards offer against a reward strategy, pay mix philosophy and total remuneration cost baseline
• Plan and run an annual pay review using salary survey data, increase budgets and manager allocation guidelines
• Design short-term, sales and long-term incentive plans with clear eligibility, performance measures, funding and payout curves
• Design and cost allowance, leave, medical insurance and end-of-service benefits while controlling benefits expenditure
• Monitor pay equity and apply reward governance controls, approval authorities and policy documentation
• Build and present a Total Rewards Plan and Cost Model with a total reward statement for employee communication

Target Audience:

• Professionals responsible for compensation and benefits administration, pay reviews and reward data
• HR managers accountable for reward policy, allowances and benefits provision
• HR business partners advising line managers on pay increases, bonuses and offers
• Payroll and HR operations leads responsible for benefits enrolment, entitlements and reward cost reporting
• Finance business partners responsible for personnel cost budgets and incentive accruals

Course Outline:

Day 1: Total Rewards Foundations and Current Reward Assessment

• WorldatWork Total Rewards Model Elements and Organisational Context
• Reward Strategy Statement and Pay Mix Philosophy
• Total Remuneration Cost Baseline by Employee Population
• Fixed Pay, Allowances and Variable Pay Inventory Template
• Reward Effectiveness Diagnostic Using Turnover and Engagement Data

Day 2: Annual Pay Review and Market Data Use

• Salary Survey Selection, Data Ageing and Blending Method
• Market Position Reporting Against Pay Policy Percentiles
• Salary Increase Budget Modelling by Population
• Increase Allocation Guidelines and Manager Discretion Limits
• Pay Review Calendar, Approval Workflow and Audit Trail

Day 3: Variable Pay and Incentive Plan Design

• Short-Term Incentive Plan Design: Eligibility, Targets and Payout Curves
• Bonus Pool Funding Methods: Profit-Sharing, Scorecard and Hybrid
• Sales Incentive Plan Design: Quotas, Commission Rates and Accelerators
• Long-Term Incentive Vehicles: Deferred Cash, Performance Shares and Retention Awards
• Recognition Programme Design: Spot Awards and Team Awards

Day 4: Benefits Design, Pay Equity and Reward Governance

• Allowance and Benefits Policy Benchmarking: Housing, Transport and Leave
• Group Medical Insurance Plan Design and Claims Cost Analysis
• Social Insurance Contributions and End-of-Service Liability Costing
• Pay Equity Monitoring Dashboard and Gap Remediation Plan
• Reward Governance: Remuneration Committee Terms and Delegated Pay Authority

Day 5: Modelling Build: Total Rewards Plan and Cost Model

• Case Organisation Total Remuneration Cost Model Build
• Pay Review Budget and Incentive Payout Scenario Model
• Benefits Cost Projection and Plan Change Options Appraisal
• Total Reward Statement Template for Employee Communication
• Total Rewards Plan Presentation to a Reward Committee Panel

Skills You Will Gain:

• Reward Strategy Formulation
• Salary Survey Analysis
• Pay Review Budgeting
• Incentive Plan Design
• Sales Compensation Design
• Benefits Cost Management
• Reward Governance
• Total Reward Communication

Why Attend This Course:

• Return with a Total Rewards Plan and Cost Model, tested against scenarios and reviewed by a peer reward committee
• Explain to finance and line managers what each bonus, allowance and benefit costs and what it is meant to achieve
• Compare incentive, benefits and pay review practice with reward practitioners from other sectors and organisation sizes
• Replace year-by-year reward fixes with a single annual reward calendar and clear approval rules

Conclusion:

Total rewards work best when pay, incentives, benefits and recognition are planned together, costed together and explained to employees in one message. This course moves from reward strategy and cost baselines, through the annual pay review and incentive design, to benefits costing, pay equity monitoring and governance. On the final day participants combine these elements into a Total Rewards Plan and Cost Model, test it against payout and cost scenarios and present it to a peer panel, ready to inform the next reward cycle.