Compensation Partner

Airbnb Airbnb · Consumer · San Francisco, CA · Compensation

This role serves as the dedicated compensation partner for Airbnb's Technology organization, including Engineering, Infrastructure, Machine Learning, and Data Science. The primary focus is on supporting VP and Director level tech leaders by managing compensation cycles, conducting market research for technical roles (especially in AI/ML), and designing/building compensation models and AI-powered tools. The role requires strong analytical skills, experience in technical compensation, and the ability to build and present data-driven recommendations.

What you'd actually do

  1. Serve as the dedicated compensation partner for the Technology organization, supporting VP and Director level leaders, Talent Directors, and People Partners across Engineering, Infrastructure, ML/AI, and Data Science.
  2. Act as the primary point of contact for Talent Directors and senior tech leaders on new hire offers, internal equity reviews, leveling decisions, and out-of-cycle requests.
  3. Own compensation cycle execution for tech client groups end-to-end, including market benchmarking, budget modeling, manager enablement, and leadership rollups.
  4. Lead competitive intelligence for technical roles by conducting market research on compensation trends, pay practices, and talent movement across AI, ML, and frontier technology companies.
  5. Design and build compensation models, tools, and frameworks tailored to technical roles, incorporating factors such as AI expertise, research impact, and specialized skills.

Skills

Required

  • 8+ years of compensation or analytics experience
  • depth in technical roles and familiarity with the AI/ML talent market
  • Advanced analytical skills
  • proficiency in Excel
  • working knowledge of SQL, Python, or R for data analysis and tool development
  • Proven track record as a compensation business partner for a technical or engineering organization
  • ownership of cyclical programs end-to-end
  • Strong knowledge of third-party survey methodologies
  • ability to build and validate pay structures across geographies and functions
  • experience leading cross-functional compensation initiatives
  • comfortable navigating ambiguous, fast-moving environments
  • Strong communication skills
  • proven ability to present complex compensation data clearly to senior business and technical audiences

Nice to have

  • Experience building AI-powered tools or data products
  • automated reporting systems or compensation technology prototypes
  • Background in both compensation business partner and programs or analytics roles
  • Experience at a high-growth technology company with exposure to AI, ML, or research-focused organizations
  • Advanced degree in a quantitative field such as Economics, Statistics, or Data Science
  • Experience with Workday Tableau, BI and data analytics and compensation platforms

What the JD emphasized

  • depth in technical roles and familiarity with the AI/ML talent market
  • AI expertise
  • AI-powered tools