Empowering Strategic Compensation Planning-CCI Pakistan’s Data-Driven Shift

Industry Focus and Scope 

As a key bottling partner of The Coca-Cola Company, CCI Pakistan plays a central role in the production, distribution, and sale of sparkling and still beverages across the country. Since becoming part of Coca-Cola İçecek (CCI) in 2008, the company has grown into one of Pakistan’s leading beverage businesses, operating in a fast-paced FMCG environment.

In a competitive talent landscape, CCI Pakistan recognized the need to revisit its compensation structure to ensure alignment with market realities, support employee retention, and stay attractive to top-tier talent. This required a shift away from assumptions and toward a structured, data-informed approach to compensation strategy.

The Challenge

While CCI Pakistan maintained strong operational performance, its HR function faced increasing pressure to align compensation policies with evolving industry standards and employee expectations. A significant challenge was the lack of market visibility. Without reliable external benchmarks, internal decisions around pay and benefits risked becoming reactive and misaligned with industry trends, ultimately affecting the company’s ability to attract and retain top talent.

In addition, leadership lacked the data-driven insights necessary for long-term HR planning and strategic policy development. In a rapidly changing market environment, this gap limited the company’s ability to make informed, forward-looking decisions. To move beyond ad hoc adjustments, CCI Pakistan required peer-specific, real-time compensation data that could serve as a foundation for more consistent, competitive, and future-ready HR strategies.

The Solution:

To address these gaps, CCI Pakistan engaged Abacus to conduct a comprehensive salary survey tailored to the company’s operational context and industry peers. The objective was to gather reliable compensation data, uncover trends, and enable data-backed decision-making.

The survey captured in-depth compensation elements across job titles, career levels, age groups, and experience bands, focusing on both quantitative benchmarks and qualitative insights. All data was collected with strict confidentiality protocols and analyzed using proven statistical methods to deliver clear, comparable insights.

• Remuneration Benchmarking:
   Focused on predefined job levels to ensure accurate and relevant comparisons with industry standards.
• Compensation Mix Analysis:
   Provided a detailed breakdown of how base pay, bonuses, and benefits were structured across the market.
• Role-Specific Comparisons:
   Delivered granular insights into position-specific remuneration, helping identify gaps and optimization opportunities.
• Benefits Evaluation (Mercer Career Stream):
   Assessed the competitiveness of CCI Pakistan’s benefit offerings using a globally recognized evaluation framework.

The Impact:

Clarity, Confidence, and Strategic Readiness

Through this engagement, CCI Pakistan gained a comprehensive and market-aligned view of its compensation landscape. The insights delivered by Abacus not only addressed current blind spots but also provided a roadmap for enhancing the company’s employee value proposition.
Key outcomes included:
The Impact:
●    A holistic view of compensation elements:
CCI Pakistan obtained a complete picture of its compensation structure, including base salary, bonuses, and benefits, enabling a more balanced and competitive approach.

●    Peer group-specific insights:
Abacus delivered tailored insights focused on industry-relevant data, helping CCI Pakistan align its offerings more closely with key competitors in the FMCG sector.

●    Data-driven approach to strategic planning:
Leadership gained access to reliable, real-time compensation data, supporting more informed and forward-looking decisions for long-term organizational growth.

●    Refined policies to meet employee expectations:
Internal compensation policies were modernized to reflect evolving market trends and employee needs, improving both satisfaction and internal equity.

●    Actionable insights to enhance retention:
The analysis helped strengthen retention strategies by ensuring compensation packages were aligned with what employees value most, making the company more attractive in the talent market.

●    Strengthened market alignment:
 CCI Pakistan’s compensation and benefits structure was updated to reflect current market realities, ensuring the organization remains competitive in attracting top talent.

What began as a compensation review project evolved into a strategic initiative that reshaped how CCI Pakistan approaches talent management. By embedding data at the heart of decision-making, the company has taken a major step toward building a resilient, competitive, and future-ready workforce.