ALM Intelligence Q&A with CRI's Mary Rizzuti

With the U.S. economy near full employment, managing compensation has become a top priority for organizations seeking smart ways to compete for talent with limited rewards budgets. Mary Rizzuti, CEO of Compensation Resources, Inc. (CRI), recently sat down with ALMI's Liz DeVito to talk about how her firm helps clients stay ahead of the game.

ALM Intelligence: What are the key challenges facing HR and compensation professionals today?

Rizzuti: Rewarding talent has become increasingly complex for a number of reasons.  While attracting and engaging a highly-skilled workforce has always been an important strategic objective for senior leadership, the challenge is greater today because employees and applicants have a wide array of opportunities that were not available several years ago.  The economy is healthy and growing, and the workforce has more choices from both a compensation and career perspective. Employees are considering how to structure their work experience through telecommuting and flex-time policies. There is increased focus on career-pathing, with a desire to understand what skills, abilities and competencies are needed to move through the organizational hierarchy.  HR and compensation professionals recognize that this new environment requires their compensation pro-grams to be strategic and not simply a collection of market data.