What’s new?

We have 3 exciting updates now available in Carta Total Comp. You can now use: 

• Refreshed equity benchmarks
• Benchmarks for 4 new specializations 
• Benchmark version selector (Bands page)

View new job area specializations

Users will now be able to view and use new salary and equity benchmarks for the following specializations:

• Office Management (within Administration) 
• Recruiting (within HR) 
• Digital Marketing (within Marketing)
• Partnerships (within Strategy)

Note: Our sample size for new specializations  can be smaller than job area benchmarks, which could result in data volatility as we continue to update the data and grow our overall sample size. 

How do I see benchmarks for the additional specializations?

You can view benchmarks for the Digital Marketing specialization by:

1. Visiting the Bands page and selecting “Marketing” under Area. Once the marketing job area is selected, you can select the digital marketing specializations by selecting the Specialization dropdown.

1. This will allow you to view salary/equity bands for levels 1 - 7 for the Digital Marketing specialization.  
   
   
2. The above process can be followed for each of the new specializations.

How do benchmarks for the additional specializations affect the Employee Scorecard?

The compa-ratio is a quick way to compare an employee's compensation to your plan's target rate for a given job area, level, and location. The compa-ratios for an employee assigned to the Administrative (Office Management), HR (Recruiting), Marketing (Digital Marketing), Strategy (Partnerships) specializations will now be calculated using the target compensation for the specialization not the job area.

Use refreshed equity benchmarks version 2022-12-20

What changes can I expect from these benchmarks?

We have updated equity benchmarks for all job areas and specializations. These benchmarks are a reflection of the current market, characterized by limited fundraising, a slowdown in hiring, and a potential decrease in some company valuations. As a result, these benchmarks show decreases in target equity compensation. This is due to having a higher concentration in earlier stage valuations and more junior level roles. Equity benchmarks across mid-to-late stage companies and more senior level roles are flat to slightly above our previous benchmarks. Looking forward to 2023, assuming the overall environment remains the same, we would anticipate continued volatility and potential decreases in equity benchmarks.

How do I update my plan to use the new benchmarks version?

You can update your compensation plan to use the latest benchmark versions in one of two ways: 

1. Navigating to  the Plan page and clicking on the "Update available" link in the Active Plan window.

1. Navigating to the Bands page and clicking on the "Update" bubble in the top left.
   
   

You will have the opportunity to preview the new plan with the updated benchmarks version and assess their impact on your scorecard before accepting the new plan.

View the current market without affecting your Scorecard

Carta is focused on providing your business with the latest market compensation data. We understand that your plan is tied to a point-in-time, making your benchmark version an integral part of your compensation philosophy. We also understand that viewing future versions can help in understanding the current market, headcount planning, and more. Carta is excited to announce that you can now access the latest compensation benchmarks without updating your Plan. 

The Bands page will now default to Carta Total Compensation’s latest benchmarks. However, regardless of what is selected on the Bands page, the Scorecard will remain associated with your selected Plan’s benchmark. Users can easily toggle between the latest benchmarks and those associated with their compensation plan using the Benchmark version dropdown. How do I toggle the Bands page to display the benchmark associated with my Plan?

1. Visit the Bands page and click the Benchmark version dropdown. 
   
   
2. Select “Default Plan” to view the Bands page using the benchmark associated with your compensation plan. 
   
   

What’s next?

Carta Total Comp is working on international geo-adjustments.