Highlights:
- “Salary benchmarking is like doing a reality check on salaries,” Manish Kujur said on Salary Benchmarking.
- Manish talks about how salary benchmarking is now about understanding the whole package that makes a role attractive.
- “Platforms like Glassdoor, Naukri.com, and LinkedIn Salary Insights are valuable for real-time insights directly from employees.”
- “Smaller companies need to get creative,” Manish on how SMEs should approach salary benchmarking.
Salary benchmarking is one of the best ways to make your company’s compensation and benefits management more efficient. The process involves studying the industry standard for the salary for a particular position to know just what to offer to your current or potential employees.
When hiring, salary benchmarking helps in attracting the right kind of talent while keeping your company’s hiring budget in mind. In the process of recruitment, both overpaying and underpaying have led to negative results, which can be avoided thanks to salary benchmarking.
To shed more light on the connection between salary benchmarking and hiring, ThePeoplesBoard team talked to Manish Kujur, Head of Talent Acquisition at Hogarth Studios. With nearly two decades of experience, Manish is a seasoned HR professional who is well-versed in the ins and outs of salary benchmarking.
TPB Team: Can you explain what salary benchmarking means and why it’s important in the hiring context in India today?
Manish Kujur: Salary benchmarking is like doing a reality check on salaries. It’s the process of comparing the pay for a specific role in your company with what other companies are offering for similar roles in the market. Think of it as understanding the “going rate” for a job.
In India today, salary benchmarking has become super important in hiring because the job market is highly competitive. Companies want to attract and retain top talent, but at the same time, they need to stay within their budgets. If you offer too little, candidates might not even consider your offer. On the flip side, if you overpay without knowing the market trends, it could impact your overall costs. By benchmarking salaries, businesses can strike the right balance—offering competitive pay that attracts skilled professionals while staying fair and sustainable. It also helps ensure internal equity, so employees feel valued and don’t think they’re being underpaid compared to peers in the industry.
TPB Team: How has the perception of salary benchmarking changed over the past few years, especially post-pandemic and during the rise of remote work?
Manish Kujur: Over the past few years, especially after the pandemic and with the rise of remote work, the way people think about salary benchmarking has shifted quite a bit. Before, it was mostly about comparing salaries within the same city or region. But now, with remote work becoming so common, companies are looking at salaries on a much broader scale, sometimes even globally.
The pandemic also made employees rethink what they value in a job. It’s not just about money anymore; things like flexibility, work-life balance, and benefits have become just as important. So, salary benchmarking today isn’t just about matching numbers, it’s about understanding the whole package that makes a role attractive.
For companies, this shift means they need to be more thoughtful. They can’t just stick to old benchmarks because the talent pool is now more diverse and spread out. If someone in India is competing for a remote job with candidates from other countries, companies need to ensure their pay aligns with global standards while still making sense locally. It’s a balancing act, but one that’s crucial to staying competitive in this new world of work.
TPB Team: What data sources do you typically rely on for accurate salary benchmarking for the Indian job market?
Manish Kujur: For salary benchmarking in India, we usually rely on a mix of reliable sources. Primarily, it includes industry reports from consulting firms like Mercer, Aon, which provide structured and comprehensive data. Platforms like Glassdoor, Naukri.com, and LinkedIn Salary Insights are valuable for real-time insights directly from employees, especially for niche or emerging roles. The key is to cross-check multiple sources to ensure the data is both accurate and relevant, while also considering regional variations within India.
TPB Team: In what ways is salary benchmarking influencing hiring decisions today—especially in high-demand sectors like IT, analytics, or green energy?
Manish Kujur: Salary benchmarking has become a cornerstone of hiring strategies, particularly in fast-growing sectors like IT, analytics, and green energy. These industries are highly competitive, and skilled professionals often have multiple offers to choose from. Benchmarking ensures companies can offer salaries that are attractive enough to stand out while staying aligned with their budgets. For example, in IT and analytics, where specialized skills like AI, machine learning, or data engineering are in demand, benchmarks help companies understand how much they need to pay to secure top talent without overpaying. Similarly, in green energy, where many roles are relatively new, benchmarking helps businesses navigate uncharted territory and attract talent with competitive packages. Beyond just salaries, benchmarking influences decisions about benefits, perks, and even the speed at which offers are made, helping companies close candidates before competitors do.
TPB Team: Can you share an instance where salary benchmarking helped you win a key talent or restructure a compensation strategy?
Manish Kujur: Sure! A few years ago, we were struggling to hire a Marketing Automation Solutions Architect because our offers kept getting rejected. After reviewing our salary benchmarks, we realized our pay range was slightly below the market median for this role. We adjusted the package to align with current trends, including adding performance and Joining bonuses, transport facility, meal and professional development opportunities. This change not only helped us successfully onboard a highly skilled candidate but also boosted morale among the team, as they saw the company adapting to market realities. Later, we applied similar benchmarking principles across other critical roles, which helped us retain existing HiPos by ensuring internal equity and external competitiveness. It became a turning point in how we approached compensation.
TPB Team: How has salary transparency among candidates (via platforms like Glassdoor, AmbitionBox, etc.) impacted benchmarking practices?
Manish Kujur: Salary transparency has been a game-changer in the hiring landscape. Candidates now come to interviews armed with detailed knowledge about what others in similar roles are earning, thanks to platforms like Glassdoor, AmbitionBox. This has pushed companies to be more transparent and fairer in their own compensation practices. It’s no longer enough to offer “competitive” salaries, you need to back it up with data. For employers, this means there’s less room for negotiation based on vague terms; candidates expect clear and justified offers. Transparency has also increased accountability within organizations, as any mismatch between your offer and market expectations can lead to losing talent or negative reviews online. Companies now use benchmarking not just as a tool for hiring but also as a way to maintain their employer brand and reputation in the market.
TPB Team: Are you seeing new job roles that lack solid benchmarks? How do you deal with that?
Manish Kujur: Absolutely! With emerging fields like AI, blockchain, sustainability, and even influencer marketing, there are roles that don’t yet have well-defined benchmarks. In such cases, we rely on a combination of approaches: analyzing similar roles in related industries, consulting with specialized recruiters, and looking at global trends if the role has international relevance. Sometimes, we also engage directly with candidates to understand their expectations and use that as a starting point. Additionally, we monitor early trends in these roles to create internal benchmarks that can evolve over time. While it’s challenging, this process allows us to stay ahead of the curve and position ourselves as pioneers in offering competitive compensation for cutting-edge roles.
TPB Team: What challenges do Indian companies face in implementing benchmarking effectively—especially startups or SMEs?
Manish Kujur: Startups and SMEs often face unique challenges when it comes to salary benchmarking. Budget constraints are a major hurdle, making it difficult to match market salaries, especially for high-demand roles. They may also lack access to premium benchmarking tools or industry reports, which are often expensive. Another challenge is keeping up with rapidly changing trends, particularly in tech-heavy roles where salaries can fluctuate significantly within months. Additionally, startups often compete with larger corporations that can offer more comprehensive benefits and perks. To overcome these challenges, smaller companies need to get creative, i.e. offering equity, flexible work arrangements, career growth opportunities, or unique perks that appeal to candidates beyond just monetary compensation. The key is to find a balance between being competitive and staying financially sustainable.
TPB Team: With AI and people analytics entering HR, how do you see the future of salary benchmarking evolving in India?
Manish Kujur: AI and people analytics are set to revolutionize salary benchmarking. Instead of relying on static annual reports, companies will soon have access to real-time data powered by AI. Predictive analytics could help forecast salary trends, while machine learning can identify patterns in employee preferences, allowing for more personalized compensation packages. For example, AI could analyze millions of data points to suggest optimal salary ranges based on location, experience, and industry trends, all in seconds. In India, where the job market is so dynamic, these tools will make benchmarking faster, more accurate, and more adaptable to changing conditions. Over time, we may even see AI-driven platforms that allow companies to benchmark salaries on demand, creating a more agile approach to compensation planning. It’s an exciting shift that will empower HR fraternity to make smarter, data-driven decisions.
TPB Team: What advice would you give to organisations just beginning to implement salary benchmarking?
Manish Kujur: Start small but be thorough. Begin by identifying the key roles you want to benchmark and gather data from multiple trusted sources. Don’t just focus on salaries, look at the full compensation package, including benefits, bonuses, and perks. Make sure you involve leadership in the process, so they understand its value and support the initiative. Also, communicate transparently with employees about why benchmarking is being done, it builds trust and shows your commitment to fairness. And most importantly, keep revisiting your benchmarks regularly; the market changes quickly, and staying updated is crucial. Remember, benchmarking isn’t just about numbers, it’s about creating a fair and competitive environment that attracts and retains great talent. Lastly, don’t hesitate to seek external expertise if needed; sometimes, a fresh perspective can make all the difference.
In the End…
Manish’s words highlight how salary benchmarking has become crucial to any effective hiring strategy. The process is not just about providing the employees with what they deserve. It also helps employers attract and retain talent while maintaining a feasible and efficient budget for their overall people operations.