Business Acumen for Compensation Professional

Competitive global economy business leaders expect you to go beyond the technical aspects of your job and think like a business person and drive results. To accomplish this, you must embody business acumen skills, knowing what’s going on around you and how the business works internally and externally. Having a keen sense of business knowledge is essential for better decision making and driving long-term positive results for your organization. This certification exam proves that you have the essential skills, behaviors and actions that support the understanding and development of business acumen, shows your awareness and vision of the big picture, understanding for finance concepts, recognizing the important relationship between compensation plans and the bottom line and make wiser decisions.

Exam Objectives:

1. Understand of what it takes to apply key business acumen skills and behaviors.
2. Understand, evaluate and articulate the relationship between compensation and business outcomes.
3. Grasp essential financial concepts.
4. Know how your business works and recognize the relationship between the compensation plan and the bottom line.
5. Strengthen communication skills.

Exam Skills:

1. Basic Business Acumen
   1. Business acumen skills and behaviors and key competencies
   2. Importance of business acumen to organizations and individuals
   3. The Global Rewards Framework
   4. Role of the compensation professional
2. Knowing How Business Works
   1. Competitive strategies and market position
   2. Allowances
   3. Business life cycle
3. Financial Literacy
   1. Basics of financial reports
   2. Common profit measures
   3. Common metrics
4. Evaluating the Business
   1. Key performance indicators
   2. The organization’s bottom line and its impact on compensation
   3. Common tools and approaches for evaluation
5. Communication and Connections
   1. Building a knowledge network
   2. Identifying resources and where data comes from
   3. Importance of fact-based communication
   4. Engaging and contributing to discussions with non-compensation colleagues