Modern total rewards: interview with Josh Berkowitz, Head of Compensation, Benefits & HR Infrastructure

We recently spoke with Josh Berkowitz, Head of Compensation, Benefits and HR Infrastructure at Silver Point Capital. 

In his role, Josh oversees the firm’s compensation and benefits strategy alongside its HR infrastructure, supporting the needs of a global workforce and partnering closely with senior leadership. 

Over the course of his career, he has built deep expertise across compensation, benefits and HR operations, holding HR and compensation roles within the insurance industry before joining Silver Point Capital.

You spent a significant part of your career in the insurance industry before moving into investment management. What surprised you most about how total rewards models differ between the two worlds? 

The most striking difference was the absence of structured bonus pools. In the alternative asset management space, many firms utilize a bottom-up compensation process without predefined departmental budgets.  

Leaders typically propose what they deem fair for each individual, followed by a rigorous debate to calibrate these figures into the firm-wide financial framework.  

This contrasts sharply with the larger insurance organization I transitioned from, which relied on established bonus targets, pool allocations, and forced distribution curves to manage budgets before refining individual awards. 

What elements of the insurance industry’s reward philosophy do you think investment firms could benefit from adopting, and vice versa? 

Investment firms would benefit from adopting bonus targets and payout ranges, particularly for infrastructure roles. This approach sets clear upfront expectations, simplifies budgeting and provides a structured rationale for year-over-year compensation adjustments.  

Conversely, the insurance industry could benefit from greater flexibility in bonus eligibility. Reducing the rigid dependency on job grading for incentive access would minimize internal friction between Compensation and HR Business Partners, ensuring that jobs are leveled based on impact rather than administrative constraints. 

Hedge funds often operate with a “pay for performance” culture. How do you balance that with the need for fairness, transparency, and long‑term retention? 

Strategic use of deferred awards with multi-year vesting schedules is a highly effective retention tool and, when deployed properly, can also serve transparency and fairness ends.  

By positioning these as special recognitions for exceptional results, distinct from the core annual package, firms can strengthen long-term alignment. However, these must be applied judiciously to maintain their perceived value and avoid creating a culture of suspicion or entitlement.

How do you communicate compensation decisions in a way that builds trust, especially in an industry where expectations can run high?

Trust is built through transparency in both methodology and assumptions. If a compensation decision is formulaic, the underlying logic should be shared; if it includes performance-based projections, those benchmarks must be clearly articulated.  

Investment professionals are naturally analytical and skeptical; therefore, providing a clear, evidence-based narrative for their compensation is essential to maintaining institutional credibility.

Looking back, what early‑career decision had the biggest impact on your trajectory? 

Learning to build and manage relational databases was a pivotal moment in my career. It provided me with a fundamental understanding of data structuring, referential integrity, and unique identifiers.  

These technical concepts underpin nearly all modern HRIS and compensation systems, allowing me to navigate, implement, and optimize complex software solutions with greater agility and precision.

How do you design rewards programs that support both high performance and employee well‑being in an industry known for intensity? 

In a high-intensity environment, benefits should prioritize the reduction of administrative friction for employees. While many industries have moved toward consumer-driven healthcare models, investment professionals value simplicity and time efficiency.  

Providing generous out-of-network reimbursements and streamlined access to care ensures that employees can focus on generating alpha rather than navigating insurance complexities.  

In the context of total reward spend, the incremental cost of frictionless benefits is justified and offset by the productivity gained from removing these personal distractions.

What’s the most rewarding part of leading total rewards in a hedge fund environment? 

Investment management firms operate purely on human capital; our success is defined entirely by the collective expertise and drive of our people. Total rewards is the strategic lever that ensures the firm attracts and retains the talent necessary to outperform the market.  

While we don’t generate the investment ideas ourselves, our work ensures the right individuals are in the right roles to execute them. Seeing the direct impact of these talent strategies reflected in the firm’s growth is incredibly rewarding.