Salary Transparency : The Revolution Tech Needs
In a recent episode I produced for Grow You Now, I walked through something many of us have felt but few of us talk about openly: salary transparency. I started with a memory that still stings my very first “real” job offer, being asked what I made in a way that left me embarrassed and powerless. Today, I want to turn that feeling into fuel. This article is for leaders in tech who care about building teams that thrive and for every employee who deserves to know their worth.
Photo by Claire Nakkachi on Unsplash
Attention: The taboo around pay is intentional
We were taught never to talk about salary. But salary secrecy in many organizations is not an accident; it is a control tactic. Historically, when companies keep compensation private, frustration among employees tends to be directed sideways toward peers instead of upward toward leadership. That confusion protects the power structure.
As leaders, if we want loyal, creative teams, we must recognize that secrecy breeds suspicion. As individuals, we must recognize that talking about pay is not only legal in many jurisdictions but often necessary to create fairness.
Interest: What transparency delivers (and what keeps organizations from doing it)
When compensation is visible, many things improve quickly:
Pay gaps related to gender and race shrink or disappear.
Top performers get appropriately rewarded, reducing attrition.
Hiring is faster and fairer when expectations are clear.
Conversely, companies that cling to secrecy often justify it as “privacy” or “tradition.” But those are thin rationales compared to the real outcomes: diminished trust, sideways blame, and lost talent.
Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash
Desire: Practical tools and numbers every leader and employee must know
If you want to negotiate well or design fair pay systems, start with open data. Two practical pillars I recommend:
Public compensation aggregates — sites like levels.fyi and Glassdoor show how companies and levels map to compensation. Use them to calibrate internal pay bands.
Legal foundations — under national labor law frameworks (for example, the National Labor Relations Act in the U.S.), employees generally have the right to discuss wages. Some states (California among them) require employers to post pay ranges for job listings.
To illustrate how powerful that data can be, consider the difference between two lateral moves at the same seniority:
An E5 software engineer at Meta (Facebook) — total comp example: ~ $455k (mix of base, bonus, equity).
A comparable technical leader at a legacy company like Cisco — total comp example: ~ $300k (higher base, much less equity).
The reason for the gap is clear: base pay bands across high-growth tech tend to cluster (roughly $200k–$275k for many mid-to-senior bases in competitive US markets), while equity allocation varies widely and can drive total comp much higher at certain companies. Knowing the split (base vs. equity) is essential to negotiating the right offer.
What the market trend looks like
Salaries spiked after the pandemic in many high-growth tech firms, then settled. Today, companies are placing more emphasis on base pay than they did at the peak especially as hiring markets cooled. Equity still matters, but it’s a lever that companies use differently depending on their cash flow and stage.
How to decide between base pay and equity (a leader's and an employee's perspective)
This is a personal choice and it depends on life stage and financial goals:
If you need immediate cash flow for housing, family obligations, or other commitments, push for higher base pay.
If you have a stable cash situation and you want long-term wealth creation (possible generational wealth), negotiate higher equity.
Example: a modest investment made early compounds dramatically. I often show people that $10,000 invested and left to compound in an index fund for decades can become a meaningful nest egg one reason equity and long-term ownership matter.
Photo by LinkedIn Sales Solutions on Unsplash
Photo by ThisisEngineering on Unsplash
Action: A practical negotiation playbook you can use today
Here’s a script and structure I use with candidates and coach clients on. It’s data-driven, respectful, and psychologically smart.
How to answer “What’s your number?”
“Thank you for asking I appreciate the directness. I’ll share three numbers so you can see the range I’m considering. Once I share them I’m open to hearing your perspective.
Top (anchor) number: The number where the role and offer would be an immediate ‘yes’ for me. (This is intentionally aspirational.)
Safe target: The number I expect for the role given market data and the scope I’ll deliver.
Bottom (walk-away) number: The minimum that makes financial sense for me to accept.
For example: “My top number would be $796k total comp, my safe target is $550k, and my floor is $460k. I’m sharing this because I want to be transparent and also understand your constraints.”
Why this works:
The anchor sets upward expectation; the “safe” target is the realistic ask; the floor communicates boundaries so you’re negotiating from a place of data, calm, and respect.
This approach avoids appearing unreasonable while still demanding fair market value.
Negotiation tips for leaders
Train recruiters and hiring managers to ask for candidate ranges instead of pressing candidates to name a single number first.
Publish pay ranges for roles internally and externally where allowed clarity reduces back-and-forth and builds trust.
Create a process for equity education many candidates don’t understand vesting schedules, dilution, or tax consequences.
Why senior management should invest in transparency
Making pay visible is not charity it's smart business. When employees understand how pay is determined, you get:
Higher retention of high performers
Better internal mobility (people apply for roles at the right level)
Stronger alignment between performance and reward, which drives product quality and customer outcomes
Transparency also reduces the cost of turnover. When people leave because of perceived unfairness, you pay for recruiting, ramp-up, lost institutional knowledge and often you lose momentum on key projects.
[Stock image 5: Executive team reviewing compensation dashboard]
Quick action checklist (for leaders and for professionals)
Audit: Publish pay bands by role and level internally.
Educate: Host regular sessions explaining base vs. equity and how offers are structured.
Calibrate: Use public aggregators (levels.fyi, Glassdoor) to validate internal ranges.
Normalize: Encourage peer conversations about compensation remove the taboo.
Review cadence: Reassess comp every 12–24 months for high-performers instead of letting long gaps occur.
FAQ
Is it legal to discuss salaries?
Yes, under labor law frameworks in many countries (for example, the National Labor Relations Act in the U.S.), employees generally have the right to discuss wages. Some states also require employers to post pay ranges for job postings.
Which resource should I use to benchmark compensation?
Start with levels.fyi and Glassdoor. Use them to map levels across companies and to understand the breakdown between base, bonus, and equity. Then calibrate those external data points with your internal pay philosophy.
How often should I revisit my salary?
Every 12–24 months is reasonable. At a minimum, review contracts and compensation when you change roles, levels, or companies.
Should I ask for more base or equity?
It depends on your financial needs and risk tolerance. If you need cash flow (mortgage, education expenses), prioritize base. If you can tolerate volatility and want long-term upside, negotiate equity.
What if my manager refuses to share ranges?
Ask for context: how are pay decisions made, what career pathway and milestones would move your compensation, and whether there’s an internal band you can see. If answers remain evasive, escalate to HR or seek external opportunities where pay is more transparent.
Conclusion — build a win-win
Salary transparency is not about creating winners and losers. It’s about aligning reward with value so teams can focus on building excellent products, not decoding hidden pay rules. For leaders in tech: invest in transparent compensation practices now. For professionals: use public data, decide your needs (cash vs. equity), and negotiate with a calm, data-driven script.
If this resonates, start small: publish a single role’s pay band, run a compensation Q&A, or coach a manager through an offer conversation. We all gain when people feel fairly treated employees bring their best, and companies build better products and stronger brands.
Take action today: run a compensation transparency pilot at your next hiring cycle, and review your internal pay bands with honest data. The ROI will outlast any short-term discomfort.
