Ubiquity is one of the fastest growing 401K companies in the U.S. With more than $2 billion in assets, they’ve been helping 7,000 businesses and hundreds of thousand of customers with their retirement planning since 1999.
The financial technology (fintech) industry is developing vigorously on a global scale. In just one year, the industry received $17.4 billion in investment. Innovation and disruption are commonplace within the industry.
A pioneer in the fintech world, Ubiquity was one of the first retirement plan providers in the U.S. to offer flat fees for services to small businesses. They have been designated one of the INC fastest-growing private companies multiple years in a row.
With such intense growth in a relatively short period of time, Ubiquity needed a robust solution for their compensation needs. PayScale was able to offer products that aligned with their needs.
THE PROBLEM
As Ubiquity grew, their HR needs evolved. Initially, like many new businesses, they placed a great deal of focus on revenue. However, as the company grew, they began to foster a commitment to fairness and transparency with their customers. Similarly, this commitment extends to their employees.
Andrew Meadows, SVP of HR, Brand, + Culture at Ubiquity, recalls “When we started the company, we spent a lot of time focused on revenue, but we realized employees weren’t happy. So, we pivoted toward becoming a more employee and mission focused culture.”
Despite their ascent to success, Ubiquity was still challenged with fair and transparent compensation, a key element for those working in the talent management field. “People doing the same job still weren’t being paid the same way. Increases were arbitrary and often based solely on cost-of-living increases,” Meadows lamented. The company also realized they weren’t paying new hires consistently, a move that could potentially alienate new or prospective hires.
THE SOLUTION: PAYSCALE
It soon became clear that Ubiquity needed to try a new approach to solving their compensation challenges. Meadows and his team set out by developing a new compensation plan. In a competitive market, it’s essential for businesses to have a comprehensive and up-to-date compensation plan in place.
They began by eliminating the standard cost-of-living increase across the board. Instead, employees were incentivized to earn pay increases in one of three different ways: completing additional training, taking on more responsibilities, or by getting a promotion. Meadows added, “We didn’t want them simply waiting for an increase. We wanted employees to feel that compensation is earned, not granted.”
In addition to these changes, Ubiquity also implemented PayScale’s Insight Essentials, which aligned with their needs to make data-driven pay decisions and drive greater pay transparency.
“We selected PayScale over other vendors for several reasons; It’s easy to use and there’s a lot of information on where the data comes from. PayScale offers a fantastic level of support. We feel like we have a partner in compensation, with a level of service that we haven’t found with other technology providers.”
— Andrew Meadows, SVP of HR, Brand, + Culture
THE RESULTS
Working with PayScale, Ubiquity was able to achieve a number of goals they had set out when they developed their compensation plan. They can now make pay decisions based on data, and have more open and honest conversations with employees. Here are some of their key accomplishments.
Increased Transparency
As a company, Ubiquity values transparency with customers. They don’t want to alienate customers with confusing fees. Similarly, the company strives to have open, transparent discussions with employees with regard to compensation. Meadows added, “Everyone says ‘Don’t talk about pay’, but that’s not realistic. In the right situation, in the right way, talking about compensation can be a powerful tool for development. With PayScale, we now have a transparent compensation philosophy, one where everyone is equipped with the same information.”
Simplified Budgeting
Using the tools PayScale offers, the compensation team at Ubiquity now has a more streamlined process for budgeting pay increases and promotions. “It’s easier to budget because we can predict how much we are going to pay,” said Meadows. “PayScale has allowed us to be more stable financially and more competent culturally.”
More Strategic Career Pathing
Because of the tools PayScale offers, Ubiquity’s employees are now more aware of the process of achieving pay increases. This increased understanding helps motivate employees to take a more active role in their development. “The way PayScale has helped us the most is with our career pathing,” said Meadows. “We can show people where they are now and what they need to do to increase their compensation over time. As a result, there’s a shared vision of success, and managers and employees can be more collaborative in achieving performance goals.”
More Accurate Location-Based Pay
With a wide geographical territory, Ubiquity needed a tool to help them develop more accurate pay plans to attract and retain workers in different locations. “Seventy percent of our employees work remotely,” said Meadows. “With PayScale, it’s so much easier now to say, ‘Here’s how much we pay in this geographical area.’”
Reduced Risk
By using PayScale, Ubiquity is now able to make compensation decisions based on data, thus eliminating bias and favoritism. Meadows explained, “We want to be a company that is known for being a fair pay provider, not a company that’s going to make the news because we aren’t. PayScale helps ensure we’re paying fairly, regardless of gender, ethnicity, or other factors.
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