Compensation Philosophy
Teams of multidisciplinary thinkers, working in close collaboration with our clients, are the foundation of all the great work we do at Instrument. Our approach to compensating talent has evolved over the years, and in 2018 we finalized a system of pay bands that exemplifies our compensation philosophy: structure, consistency, and parity across disciplines.
Our pay bands ensure equity and serve as an essential benchmark for measuring the velocity of performance against monetary growth. We’re deeply committed to this process, and to a level of transparency that sets us apart from other agencies. Making sure that every employee (and potential employee) understands how we manage compensation, and why, is a core ethic at Instrument.
We’re proud of the progress we’ve made, and will continue to make, in demonstrating our values in this space.
Pay Bands
We believe that it’s critical for our pay bands to be visible and accessible to everyone who works here. This table outlines the pay bands for the US 3 region. Details of each region are included below.
| Grade | Salary Range | Client Services Team Roles | Operation Team Roles |
|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | $40,000-$55,000 | - | Assistant Roles |
| G2 | $55,000-$70,000 | All Junior Role | Coordinator Roles |
| G3 | $70,000-$85,000 | All Mid-level Roles | Associate Manager & Mid Roles |
| G4 | $85,000-$110,000 | All Senior Roles | Manager & Senior Roles |
| G5 | $110,000-$135,000 | Associate Design Director / Associate Writing Director / Executive Producer / Lead | Associate Director Roles |
| G6 | $135,000-$160,000 | Design Director / Associate Creative Director / Senior Account Director / Senior Executive Producer / Senior Lead / Associate Strategy Director / Associate Technical Director / Writing Director | Director Roles |
| G7 | $160,000-$185,000 | Creative Director / Group Account Director / Technical Director / Strategy Director | Senior Director Roles |
| G8 | $185,000-$210,000 | Executive Creative Director / AVP, Client Accounts / Executive Technical Director / Executive Strategy Director | Senior Director or Associate VP Roles |
| G9 | $210,000-$260,000 | - | VP Roles |
| G10 | $260,000-$300,000 | - | President or SVP Roles |
| G11 | $300,000-$600,000 | - | C-Suite Roles |
Regional Adjustments
Our company has three regional pay bands that it adheres to depending on an employee’s location, internally identified as US 1, US 2, and US 3.
US 3 is our base pay, meaning no employee will make less than what is specified in the US 3 band.
US 2 pay is 7.5% higher than US 3 to meet the market rates.
US 1 pay is 15% higher than US 3 to meet market rates.
If you are curious which region you are in, visit our careers page and get connected with our recruiting team!
Think you’d be a good addition to our team?View Careers