How Gilead Sciences designs global comp personas to elevate employees

When it comes to compensation, Gilead Sciences is taking a new path — one that prioritizes real equity, meets employees where they are, and backs it up with data-driven insights. 

In Compa’s recent webinar, Gilead Sciences’ Vice President of Total Rewards, Camille Alexander, joined Charlie Franklin to share how Gilead is reshaping its comp strategy on a global scale. 

With more than two decades of leading compensation programs, Camille brings a depth of expertise in creating reward structures that do more than just meet compliance. 

“We’re moving beyond just compliance… toward trying to achieve and maintain true pay equity,” she explained, capturing the mindset that drives Gilead’s compensation strategy today. 

In this webinar, Camille and Charlie explored the shifts in Gilead’s approach to compensation — from its foundations in equity to innovative, flexible models tailored to real employee needs. 

Key points included building a sustainable approach to pay transparency, creating comp “personas” that fit different career stages, and balancing flexibility with fairness in global reward programs.

We prepared a recap of the most valuable takeaways from their conversation. You can also catch the full recording here. 

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Compensation intelligence and the path to global pay equity

Gilead Sciences is making strides toward a true, global pay equity standard — far beyond compliance. Camille shared that the company’s journey started with baseline compliance but has expanded to ensure employees experience equitable compensation worldwide. 

The company initially ran pay equity analyses twice a year in the United States, focused on mitigating risk and fulfilling regulatory requirements. 

Today, Gilead approaches this challenge from a global perspective, accounting for gender and regional differences to create a fair and transparent compensation model across its entire workforce. 

Camille emphasized that Gilead’s journey reflects a commitment to meaningful change, noting: “It’s about moving past risk mitigation and toward a true standard of pay equity.” 

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Reimagining compensation as a strategic advantage 

Rather than serving as a static, compliance-driven function, compensation at Gilead now plays a pivotal role in the company’s strategic planning. 

By engaging directly with business leaders and making data-backed adjustments, Gilead’s comp team ensures that pay aligns with broader business objectives and evolving workforce needs. Camille explained that this approach turns compensation into “a true strategic business partner” and one that’s integral to Gilead’s talent acquisition and retention strategy.

Adaptability is central to this new philosophy. Gilead has left behind the market median as a guiding principle — which Camille called “table stakes.”

Instead, the company differentiates itself by integrating flexibility and agility into compensation decisions, ensuring Gilead remains competitive, fair, and responsive to changes. As Camille put it, “Being agile enough to adjust as market conditions change is now essential for us.”

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Moving beyond one-size-fits-all: Personalized reward offerings

Gilead is pushing past traditional, standardized comp models to create offerings that reflect employees’ career stages and individual needs. 

This approach, which Camille referred to as “compensation personas,” is designed to meet employees “where they’re at,” focusing on career milestones and “moments that matter.” This level of personalization ensures that rewards are both meaningful and actually relevant. 

The company also took a fresh approach to recognition with a points-based system, allowing employees to choose rewards that resonate personally. 

“Employees now have the flexibility to choose what matters to them,” Camille shared, describing how this new model puts decision-making power in employees’ hands. It’s a shift that gives employees autonomy over their own reward experiences. 

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Balancing flexibility, predictability, and employee experience

At Gilead, comp programs are designed to balance employee experience with financial predictability. This approach allows the company to optimize rewards for mental and physical health, as well as work-life balance. 

To ensure these programs align with the company’s goals and budget, Gilead’s comp team works closely with its finance team. “Flexibility is great, but choice can be difficult,” Camille noted, emphasizing the importance of setting clear parameters while adapting to meet individual employee needs. 

Gilead’s approach also includes testing new programs with employee ambassadors before rolling them out company-wide. This step ensures that programs are well-received and effectively support the company’s commitment to flexibility and inclusion. Both Charlie and Camille highlighted the collaborative effort to build impactful and sustainable rewards. 

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Creating a pathway for phased retirement and tailored employee journeys

As part of its broader strategy to support employees across all career stages, Gilead is exploring phased retirement options that allow employees to transition gradually while staying engaged. 

The company has also enhanced its retirement benefits and is continually evaluating how to meet the evolving needs of a diverse and global workforce. “We’re seeing shifts in what would be meaningful to employees nearing retirement,” Camille said, referencing the importance of offering flexible solutions for different career stages. 

In addition to phased retirement, Gilead leverages tech to create tailored employee journeys — from onboarding to continuous learning and leadership development. 

“We think about each employee’s experience as a journey,” Camille explained, before adding how Gilead provides tailored resources for every career stage. 

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Building trust with transparency

Nearing the end of the webinar, Camille and Charlie discussed how to foster trust and engagement through transparent communication around the incentive plans. 

By ensuring that employees and managers alike understand both short- and long-term incentive plans, companies can align expectations and promote transparency. Camille noted that clarity is essential for employees to fully appreciate the value of these programs. 

The effort is about helping employees see the role they play in driving company success. As Camille said, “If they don’t understand it, they don’t value it.” 

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To catch the full discussion, watch the webinar recording here. 

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