Douglas Dynamics, Inc.

Director, Total Rewards

Douglas Dynamics, Inc.$120K — $150K *
Business Services
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 10+ years of progressive Total Rewards leadership experience
  • Proven success in building and scaling enterprise-wide compensation and benefits strategies
  • Experience in global environments, particularly the U.S. and China
  • Track record in M&A, integration, and transformation
  • Expertise in compliance, market benchmarking, and rewards design
  • Exceptional analytical skills for data-driven decision making
  • Executive presence to influence senior leaders
  • Leadership experience with vendors and cross-functional initiatives
  • Strong command of HR systems, Excel, and executive presentations
  • Bachelor's degree required; CCP, CBP or advanced degree preferred
  • Willingness to travel up to 25% of the time

Responsibilities

  • Design and execute a forward-thinking Total Rewards strategy aligned with business growth
  • Build modern compensation frameworks and benefits programs
  • Evolve programs using market intelligence and workforce insights
  • Act as a strategic advisor on pay, benefits, and workforce investment
  • Translate complex data into actionable insights for executives
  • Lead compensation and benefits due diligence for M&A
  • Integrate and harmonize reward programs post-acquisition
  • Optimize systems powering rewards delivery
  • Elevate analytics capabilities for faster decision-making
  • Manage vendor relationships to deliver high-impact programs
  • Ensure compliance with U.S. and global regulations
  • Build governance frameworks that adapt with business growth
  • Mentor a high-impact Total Rewards team
  • Lead recognition programs that enhance culture and performance
  • Drive initiatives for engagement, retention, and employee experience

Benefits

  • Opportunity to shape a globally scalable compensation and benefits strategy
  • Engagement with a diverse and inclusive workforce across multiple countries
  • Access to modern compensation frameworks and benefits programs
  • Involvement in strategic decision-making at the executive level
  • Exposure to key financial considerations in compensation and benefits
  • Access to analytics for smarter business decisions
  • Leadership opportunities within a high-impact team
  • Culture focused on innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement
Full Job Description
JOB SUMMARY:

As Director of Total Rewards, you'll architect and lead a bold, globally scalable compensation and benefits strategy that powers our growth and keeps us fiercely competitive. From Milwaukee to Beijing, you'll shape an employee value proposition that stands out and stands up to a rapidly evolving market.

As a core member of the HR leadership team, you'll push boundaries, challenge the status quo, and design data-driven compensation and benefit strategies that fuel performance, engagement, and business success.

WHAT YOU'LL LEAD:

Strategy & Innovation
  • Design and execute a forward-thinking Total Rewards strategy tightly aligned to business growth and talent priorities
  • Build modern, competitive compensation frameworks (base, incentives, equity) and benefits programs that people value
  • Continuously evolve programs using market intelligence, workforce insights, and emerging trends

Executive Influence
  • Act as the go-to strategic advisor for leaders on pay, benefits, and workforce investment decisions
  • Turn complex data into clear, actionable insights that influence executive decisions
  • Partner with Finance to balance cost discipline with talent competitiveness

M&A, Change & Transformation
  • Lead compensation and benefits due diligence for M&A activity
  • Rapidly integrate and harmonize reward programs across newly acquired businesses
  • Drive change strategies that bring people along and keep them engaged

Operations, Data & Scale
  • Optimize the systems and infrastructure powering rewards delivery
  • Elevate analytics capabilities to enable smarter, faster decision-making
  • Streamline processes through automation and continuous improvement

Vendor & Partnerships
  • Own and optimize relationships with brokers, consultants, and providers
  • Negotiate aggressively to deliver high-impact, cost-effective programs
  • Hold partners accountable for performance and innovation

Governance & Compliance
  • Ensure compliance across U.S. and global regulations (ERISA, ACA, EEO-1, Form 5500, etc.)
  • Build governance frameworks that scale with the business
  • Stay ahead of regulatory shifts by never being reactive, always proactive

Team Leadership
  • Build and mentor a high-impact Total Rewards team
  • Raise the bar for expertise, execution, and strategic thinking
  • Foster a culture of innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement

Programs That Matter
  • Lead recognition and service award programs that reinforce culture and performance
  • Own job architecture, salary benchmarking, and market positioning
  • Drive initiatives that measurably improve engagement, retention, and employee experience

WHAT YOU'LL BRING:
  • 10+ years of progressive Total Rewards leadership experience
  • Proven success building and scaling enterprise-wide compensation and benefits strategies
  • Experience operating in global environments (U.S. + China)
  • Strong track record in M&A, integration, and transformation
  • Deep expertise in compliance, market benchmarking, and rewards design
  • Exceptional analytical skillset and comfortable turning data into decisions
  • Executive presence with the ability to influence and challenge senior leaders
  • Experience leading vendors and cross-functional initiatives
  • Strong command of HR systems, Excel, and executive-level presentations
  • Bachelor's degree required; CCP, CBP, or advanced degree a strong plus
  • Ability to travel up to 25%

About Douglas Dynamics, Inc.

Douglas Dynamics, Inc. operates as a manufacturer and upfitter of commercial work truck attachments and equipment primarily in North America. It operates in two segments, Work Truck Attachments and Work Truck Solutions. The Work Truck Attachments segment manufactures and sells snow and ice control attachments, including snowplows, and sand and salt spreaders for light and heavy duty trucks, as well as various related parts and accessories. The Work Truck Solutions segment provides truck and vehicle upfitting services. The company sells its products under the WESTERN, FISHER, and BLIZZARD brands through a distributor network primarily to professional snowplowers who are contracted to remove snow and ice from commercial, municipal, and residential areas. Douglas Dynamics, Inc. was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Learn more about Douglas Dynamics, Inc.
Size
1,436 employees
Market Cap
$831 million
Industry
Net Income
-$86.5 million
5 Year Trend
+5.4%
Revenue
$480.1 million
NASDAQ

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