Degrees of separation in compensation terms usually refers to the relative weight of intervals between job evaluation elements. That important concept applies in more ways than just that one.
As I vaguely recall, Edward N. Hay subjectively postulated 8% as the appropriate standard interval for the geometric progressions separating factor element level point values in his original Hay Plan designed for job evaluation classifications. Or something like that. Feel free to correct me if I err. Total Rewards professionals also regularly obsess about the precise degree of distinction where differences between performance levels or merit increases become discerned by the average person. You know ... the kind of minimally noticeable variances that can be defined in the precise terms of scientific notation beloved of engineers but cannot be noticed by any normal human being. After all, who can tell the difference between employee performance scored at 387.52706 and 388.04519? Precisely establishing THE right interval that separates the easily noticeable from the totally obscure is often considered quite critical to us. It's part of what makes our work credible. When we fail, our results become literally “incredible” … meaning “not believed” or frankly distrusted.
With that long compensation-related windup finished, here's what's kicked my mind onto this “degrees of separation” track today. A friend sent me a Youtube mashup pastiche of humorous speech bits from a past President. After chuckling and occasionally roaring with laughter for a while, I realized that I felt strangely emotionally close to that former POTUS. But I don't run in that crowd, so I was puzzled. What seminal concepts triggered my undeniable sensation that I had some kind of remote connection with a past president of the United States? Being an unapologetic hopelessly analytical type (a characteristic commonly displayed in the compensation community), I introspectively examined my associated background thoughts to track down the root causes of my feelings. How did this happen? Easy peasey.
A close friend I once worked for in a major corporation's compensation department reported to the CEO who was one of this particular past President's Kitchen Cabinet advisors. The big shot captain of industry had also married a movie actress, lived next to a major film star and befriended many others. He pushed one actor into elective politics, helped him become governor of a major state and led his successful campaigns for two Presidential terms, spending more time in the White House than in his Fortune 50 corporate HQ some years. A friend of mine knew this CEO who was BFFs with a President. I was two “degrees of separation” from a famous world leader. Gee, whiz. An impressively short chain, perhaps.
Guess once you have lived long enough to meet a lot of people of widely disparate backgrounds and levels, you often find that you happen to know someone who knows someone who knows someone really important or famous. How many links exist on such chains depends on the end target and your life experiences. While a relatively short chain of relationships does not make you in any way important or famous, the realization that you have the actual potential power to access such notable people does provide some comfort in this complex world. One can feel more secure with the knowledge that you hold an ability to reach out and touch those who hold real fame and fortune when or if needed.
That's a form of compensation, too, isn't it?
E. James (Jim) Brennan is an independent compensation advisor with extensive total rewards experience, specializing in job evaluation, market pricing and pay budget distribution. After corporate HR jobs in chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing, he consulted at retail, government, energy, IT, tax-exempt and other industries throughout North America before becoming Senior Associate of pay survey software publisher ERI until returning to consulting in 2015. A prolific writer (author of the Performance Management Workbook) and speaker, Jim gave expert witness testimony in many reasonable executive compensation cases both for and against the Internal Revenue Service and also serves on the Advisory Board of the Compensation and Benefits Review.
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Probabilities to one side. I have never met, to say nothing of 'knowing', a person who was famous, creative, and socially perfectly adjusted, other than you Jim.
THAT is how many standard deviations from the mean?????
Posted by: Jay Schuster | 03/14/2016 at 04:26 PM
Can't recognize myself in that most extreme description, I must say. But I do know better than to contradict a living monument in our field. ;-) Thanks, Jay.
Posted by: E. James (Jim) Brennan | 03/14/2016 at 06:53 PM
Ann may want to contact Bob Greene. I just saw a draft of an article "Branding the Organization, The Role of Strategy" that could be abstracted for Compensation Cafe. His work is challenged in depth and knowledge only by your own wonderful stuff.
To be honest with you, I have struggled with the last few posts. I must be too old to grasp such advanced stuff my friend!!!!! I remember when the best reward designs were those that linked people and organizations by shared goals. When is a book on compensation by Bernie Sanders coming out? Must be in the works????
Posted by: Jay Schuster | 03/14/2016 at 08:18 PM
Suspect he may be too busy right now, Jay, but he might have time for that next year. I don't recall him having any management experience outside of political posts or showing any interest in compensation beyond the equitable distribution of income. Of course, such shortcomings have not deterred other writers from telling us our business.
Posted by: E. James (Jim) Brennan | 03/14/2016 at 10:26 PM