Sr Manager Sales, North America

The Senior Manager, Compensation, North America is responsible for leading the design, implementation, and administration of compensation programs that attract, motivate, and retain top talent while aligning with the organization's strategic goals. Reporting to the Sr. Director, Total Rewards, this role serves as a compensation leader for North America, partnering closely with HR leadership, HRBPs, business leaders, and Finance to ensure competitive, equitable, and compliant pay practices across a complex, post-merger environment.

Following the combination of Smurfit Kappa and WestRock, this role is critical to the ongoing harmonization of legacy compensation structures, pay philosophies, and incentive programs into a unified North American framework. The person in this seat will bring both strategic vision and hands-on execution to ensure Smurfit Westrock's compensation programs are market-competitive, internally equitable, and positioned to support the company's owner-operator culture.

How You Will Impact Smurfit Westrock

Compensation Strategy and Design

Responsible for the design, implementation, governance, and optimization of North America sales compensation programs

Ensure alignment with business strategy, drive sales performance, support revenue growth, and maintain compliance with financial, legal, and regulatory requirements.

Support the design, analysis, and administration of compensation programs that support the organization’s pay philosophy, talent strategy, and business objectives.

Partner closely with Sales, Finance, HR, and Executive Leadership to develop scalable, market-competitive incentive structures that motivate performance while managing cost of sales and risk

Conduct regular market analysis and benchmarking using published surveys and custom studies to ensure competitive positioning across the sales population.s

Sales Compensation Strategy & Design

Lead the design and continuous improvement of sales compensation plans across multiple roles (e.g., field sales, inside sales, channel, overlays).

Align incentive plans with corporate strategy, revenue targets, margin objectives, and go-to-market priorities.

Establish plan components (quotas, pay mix, measures, mechanics, caps/accelerators) that drive desired behaviors.

Benchmark programs against market practices and industry standards to ensure competitiveness.

Plan Governance & Administration

Oversee end-to-end sales compensation administration, including plan documentation, quota setting, and payout processes.

Ensure accuracy, timeliness, and auditability of incentive calculations and payments.

Manage compensation systems/tools (e.g., Xactly, Anaplan, SAP Commissions) and related data flows.

Define and maintain policies, controls, and procedures to support compliance (SOX, financial controls).

Performance Management

Lead performance-setting methodologies in partnership with Sales Operations and Finance.

Evaluate distribution, attainability, and pay-for-performance alignment.

Monitor sales performance trends and assess the effectiveness of incentive plans.

Analytics & Insights

Deliver actionable insights on sales productivity, compensation cost, and ROI.

Develop dashboards and reporting for leadership (e.g., attainment, pay vs. performance, cost of sales).

Conduct scenario modeling and sensitivity analysis to inform changes to plan design.

Stakeholder Partnership

Partner with Sales Leadership to ensure understanding and adoption of compensation plans.

Collaborate with Finance on budgeting, accruals, and forecasting of incentive spend.

Work with HR and Legal to ensure programs comply with employment laws and internal policies across jurisdictions (U.S., Canada, and Mexico as applicable).

Compliance & Risk Management

Ensure compliance with applicable regulations (e.g., wage and hour laws, commission payment regulations).

Manage plan documentation and audit readiness for internal/external reviews.

Mitigate risks related to plan design, overpayments, and disputes.

Leadership & Team Management

Lead and develop a team.

Build capability in analytics, systems, and plan design expertise.

Drive continuous improvement and operational excellence within the function.

What You Need to Succeed

Bachelor’s degree in human resources, Business, Finance, or related field

7-10 years of progressive compensation experience in sales compensation, incentives, or related analytics roles

Deep understanding of sales compensation plan design and quota methodologies

Strong analytical skills and advanced proficiency in Excel; experience with data visualization tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau)

Experience with sales compensation platforms (e.g., Xactly, Anaplan, Varicent)

Knowledge of U.S. commission regulations and payroll practices; North America experience preferred

Experience in a large, matrixed, or global organization with both salaried and hourly populations

Expertise in compensation program design, market benchmarking, job evaluation methodologies, and pay analytics

Strong knowledge of compensation-related laws and regulations (FLSA, Equal Pay Act, state/provincial pay transparency laws)

Strategic thinking and business acumen with the ability to translate data into actionable recommendations for leaders

Strong analytical and problem-solving skills

Demonstrated ability to influence at all levels of the organization

Attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy

Preferred

Certified Compensation Professional (CCP) strongly preferred

Master's degree in HR, MBA, or related advanced degree

SHRM-SCP, SPHR, or equivalent professional certification

Experience in manufacturing (Paper, packaging, or forest products industries preferred)

Experience managing direct reports

Familiarity with post-merger compensation harmonization, including integration of disparate pay structures and incentive programs

Active participation in professional organizations such as WorldatWork

What We Offer

Corporate culture based on integrity, respect, accountability, and excellence

Comprehensive training with numerous learning and development opportunities

An attractive salary reflecting skills, competencies, and potential

A career with a global packaging company where Sustainability, Safety, and Inclusion are business drivers and foundational elements of the daily work