Department: County Administration
Department Head/Elected Official: Diana Ramirez, County Administrator
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Financial Authorization
Project ID (if applicable): N/A
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWDBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWDBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request for discussion and possible action, including funding and timing decisions, on the executive pay study from Korn Ferry for the 16 department heads that report to OCA and the Fire Marshal.
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Background and Discussion:
On March 26, 2024, Commissioners Court directed the County Administrator to work with HRRM to contract for a compensation study of 16 department heads that report to OCA and the Fire Marshal. Commissioners Court required the study to be completed and presented to Court no later than June 2024, which greatly compressed the usual timeline for a compensation study.
HRRM engaged Korn Ferry, which developed a compensation framework to ensure fairness and equity within Harris County's executive leadership positions and market competitiveness. The framework did not consider the value of the County's benefits package. The attached presentation by Korn Ferry explains the methodology used.
Expected Impact:
The compensation study, if approved by Commissioners Court, will align department heads in an executive pay scale that assesses the relative magnitude of the job (or "job size") based on three things: knowledge, problem-solving, and accountability, and compares these to executive roles of similar materiality from a wide assortment of public and private organizations.
The most impactful part of the Commissioners Court's decision relates to the market competitiveness the Court chooses. Current executive pay is at approximately the 25th percentile of the market (as...
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