Mercer Database Shows Wide Variation in Managers Pay

October 2, 2008 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The 2008 US Mercer Benchmark Database shows a wide variation in compensation across both various functional positions and industries at the management level.

For human resource managers, pay ranges from $107,200 in the Finance/Banking industry to $102,000 in Manufacturing Non-durable and $90,300 in Retail Wholesale, according to a Mercer news release. For information systems managers pay ranges from $116,700 to $108,300 and $108,900, respectively.

Financial systems managers in the Professional Services industry receive a higher pay ($116,700) than those in Manufacturing Non-durable ($114,400), Finance/Banking ($101,200), and Retail/Wholesale ($92,800).

Year-over-year comparisons by position indicate a range of changes in median total cash compensation, the news release said. Pay increases varied considerably among some of the most common executive level positions. The top human resource management executives received an average 6.5% pay increase from 2007 to 2008, while chief financial officers received a 4.5% bump in pay and top marketing research executives only saw their pay increase by 0.3%.

The 2008 US Mercer Benchmark Database is a source of pay data for more than 1,000 functional positions. The database helps organizations assess trends in pay to ensure compensation for their employees is competitive and financial resources are properly allocated.

The modules of the database are available individually or as a single, cross-functional database. To order the 2008 US Mercer Benchmark Database, visit www.imercer.com or call 800 333 3070.

align="center"> Position

align="center"> Finance/

align="center"> Banking*

align="center"> Retail/

align="center"> Wholesale*

align="center"> Manufacturing Non-Durable*

align="center"> Professional Services*

Human Resource Manager

align="center"> $107,200

align="center"> $90,300

align="center"> $102,000

align="center"> $104,500

Marketing Manager

align="center"> $99,000

align="center"> $82,500

align="center"> $110,000

align="center"> $87,700

Information Systems Audit Manager

align="center"> $116,700

align="center"> $108,900

align="center"> $119,600

align="center"> $108,300

Financial Systems Manager

align="center"> $101,200

align="center"> $92,800

align="center"> $114,400

align="center"> $116,700

Quality Assurance Manager

align="center"> $104,000

align="center"> $77,600

align="center"> $91,000

align="center"> $90,000

align="center"> Position

align="center"> 2008 Total Cash Compensation*

align="center"> 2007 Total Cash Compensation*

align="center"> Percent Change

Top Legal Executive/General Counsel

align="center"> $422,400

align="center"> $406,400

align="center"> 3.9%

Chief Financial Officer

align="center"> $484,000

align="center"> $463,100

align="center"> 4.5%

Top Marketing Research Executive

align="center"> $215,300

align="center"> $214,600

align="center"> 0.3%

Information Systems Executive

align="center"> $202,000

align="center"> $195,100

align="center"> 3.5%

Top Human Resource Management Executive

align="center"> $296,300

align="center"> $278,300

align="center"> 6.5%

*Median total cash compensation

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