Benefits & Compensation Specialist

Job Description

Job Description

About Yami

Founded in 2013, Yami’s mission is to bring the world closer for everyone to experience and enjoy. We make it easy to discover exciting flavors and trending products from Asia. Named Inc. Magazine’s fastest growing start-up on the ”Inc. 500 List.”, we’re committed to connecting people with authentic food, beauty, home, and wellness experiences through our e-commerce platform, iOS, and Android apps.

Benefits & Compensation

- 401(k) Matching

- Health Insurance: Medical, Vision, and Dental

- Paid Time Off: Vacation, Sick, and Holidays

- On-site Amenities: Gym, Pool, Game Rooms, etc.

- Team Building

- Employee Discount

- 72K–95K

- Coffee and Snacks

Job Summary

Yami is looking for a detail-oriented Benefits & Compensation Specialist to own the day-to-day administration of employee benefits programs and support the design, benchmarking, and maintenance of our compensation structure. This role partners closely with HR, Finance, and Payroll to ensure our total rewards programs are competitive, compliant, and effectively communicated to employees, while helping build scalable processes as the company continues to grow across the U.S. and Canada. As part of a lean HR team, this person will also flex into broader HR generalist support, including onboarding, employee relations, policy administration, and other day-to-day HR needs.

Job Responsibilities

Benefits Administration

- Administer employee benefits programs, including medical, dental, vision, 401(k), life insurance, and employer sponsorship, serving as the primary point of contact for employee questions.

- Assist and lead annual open enrollment, including vendor coordination, employee communications, system setup, and post-enrollment audits.

- Manage day-to-day benefits transactions such as new hire enrollments, qualifying life events, terminations, and COBRA administration.

- Reconcile monthly benefits invoices and partner with Finance/Accounting to ensure accurate billing and timely payment.

- Serve as the point of contact for leave of absence programs (FMLA, state-specific leave, disability, and workers’ compensation), ensuring accurate tracking and compliant administration.

Compensation

- Support job evaluation, leveling, and pay structure maintenance, ensuring internal equity and market competitiveness.

- Participate in and analyze market compensation surveys and benchmarking data to inform pay ranges and offer recommendations.

- Support the annual review cycles, including data preparation, modeling, and communication materials.

- Partner with Talent Acquisition on offer benchmarking and new hire compensation recommendations.

- Maintain compensation records within the HRIS, ensuring data accuracy and audit readiness.

Compliance & Reporting

- Ensure benefits and compensation programs comply with applicable federal, state, and provincial regulations

- Prepare required filings and reporting, including employer sponsorship, ACA reporting, 5500 filings etc.

- Maintain accurate documentation and audit trails to support internal and external audits.

Process Improvement & Cross-Functional Support

- Identify opportunities to streamline benefits and compensation processes and improve the employee experience through automation and AI-enabled tools.

- Partner with HRIS/Payroll teams on system configuration, testing, and troubleshooting related to benefits and compensation data.

- Develop clear, employee-friendly communications and resources (guides, FAQs, presentations) to explain total rewards programs.

- Support ad hoc compensation and benefits analysis and projects as needed.

HR Generalist Support

- Serve as a point of contact for general employee inquiries (policies, PTO, onboarding, HR systems, Employer sponsorship), routing to the appropriate specialist when needed.

- Support new hire onboarding and offboarding processes, including benefits orientation, paperwork audits, and exit interviews.

- Assist with maintaining and updating employee handbooks, HR policies, and standard operating procedures to ensure they remain current and compliant.

- Support employee relations activities, including documentation, investigations assistance, and escalation of issues to HR leadership as appropriate.

- Help maintain accurate employee records and personnel files within the HRIS, ensuring data integrity across systems.

- Assist with performance management cycle logistics (review windows, system setup, reminders, reporting) alongside the merit and bonus cycles.

- Support other HR functions and initiatives as needed, including training coordination, and special projects.

Qualifications & Requirements

- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration or a related field.

- 1- 4 + years of experience in benefits administration, compensation, or total rewards, ideally within a fast-paced or high-growth company.

- Working knowledge of U.S. benefits and compensation ; familiarity with Canadian employment standards is a plus.

- Experience with HRIS and benefits administration platforms (e.g., Paycom, ADP, or similar); strong Excel skills required.

- Analytical mindset with the ability to interpret survey data, model pay scenarios, and translate findings into clear recommendations.

- High level of discretion and integrity when handling confidential compensation and personal data.

- Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple deadlines (open enrollment, audits, merit cycles) simultaneously.

- Excellent written and verbal communication skills; comfortable explaining complex benefits/compensation topics to employees at all levels.

- Practical experience using AI tools to improve HR/total rewards workflows is a plus.

- Bilingual in English and Mandarin is a plus.

- CEBS, CCP, or PHR/SHRM certification is a plus, but not required.

- This role is on-site; remote work is not available.

- Must be authorized to work in the United States