Episode
Totally Rewarding Chats | Ep. 26: Rewards from the CPO Seat - Roast Paul edition
- Podcast
- Totally Rewarding Chats
- Published
- Mar 19, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3136
- Processing state
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Summary
In this episode, Paul and Sean sit down with Jesper Helt, a global HR leader, to rethink how rewards actually drive business impact. Jesper shares the moment he realized up to 80% of HR spend lives in rewards and how that changed the way he approaches every decision. The conversation covers why data storytelling makes compensation easier to act on, how flexibility leads to stronger pay programs, and where data needs real-world context to be useful. They also challenge traditional ideas of benchmarking and success in rewards, digging into the role of human behavior, transparency, and questioning the status quo. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to Jesper Helt and His Background 11:01 The CHRO Perspective on Rewards 20:56 Skills and Qualities of Effective Rewards Professionals 26:37 The Exclusion Principle in Compensation 27:41 Rethinking Reward Structures 28:51 Simplifying Compensation Approaches 29:43 The Science of Quotas and Performance 31:47 The Complexity of Performance Measurement 33:40 The Role of Transparency in HR 35:36 Learning from Past Compensation Decisions 37:47 Designing Compensation Programs with Psychology 39:49 The Importance of Recognition in HR 41:47 Personal Stories and Leadership Lessons 47:43 Radical Transparency in HR Practices