TALENT
Career Ladders Quietly Price Technical Talent Lower
Kellogg Insight covered research using employee records from 43 firms across manufacturing, technology, finance and healthcare. The study found that individual contributors earn less than managers at every level, and that the gap grows higher up the hierarchy even when roles are comparable.
The finding matters for companies trying to retain experts without forcing them into management. If technical ladders are paid as second-class paths, firms may lose the people most able to solve hard problems. The compensation architecture becomes a strategy issue, not only an HR cleanup project.
Source: Kellogg Insight · September 1, 2026