Over the last few years, the shared services and BPO sector in Poland has recorded extraordinary growth, but it still faces many challenges, both local and global. One of the most important challenge is compensation. Among other things, over the past few years, the minimum wage in Poland has been growing rapidly - in 2025 it will be 2.7 times higher than 10 years earlier. The increase in the minimum wage has contributed to flattening of salary levels and reducing the difference in pay levels between the lowest grades in the organization. We are still far from the remuneration model characteristic of the German or Scandinavian market, but the changes are clearly outlined.

In addition, due to the high level of inflation in recent years, companies had to introduce a more aggressive salary increase policy, including some companies declaring the introduction of off-cycle increases. Inflation in Poland in 2022 exceeded 13%, while the increases granted at that time did not yet reflect the difficult economic situation. This resulted in a 7% decline in purchasing power. The reason for this situation was simple - salary budgeting took place a few months before the increases effective date, and most companies could react to the sudden market situation only in the next budgeting process - as was the case in Poland, where salary increases in 2023 increased to 9%, with 12% inflation.

For 2024 and 2025, the forecasted salary increases in the SSC/BPO sector in Poland are around 7-8%, with inflation forecast at 5%. The Mercer salary survey for the SSC/BPO sector also allows us to analyze the actual salary increase of employees who have not changed their role year over year. Analyzing data in this way shows that reality does not always match the budgeted values. The areas that have recently grown the most include IT User Support (up to 13%), Finance and Accounting (up to 12%) or Supply Chain and Logistics (up to 11%).

Salary levels in Shared Service Centers in Poland are at a very similar level to salaries on the Poland general market. Sectors rewarded above the general market level are Life Sciences (including Pharma), IT, Professional Services and sectors rewarded lower are, among others, Retail, Logistics and Manufacturing. The highest-paid positions in the SSC/BPO sector are those in the Data Analytics and Warehousing and IT departments (13-16% above the SSC sector average), and the lowest-paid departments are Human Resources and Finance and Accounting (-6%).

What’s more, companies in Poland and the European Union will soon have to focus on pay gap analyses and on pay transparency in their organizations, all because of the EU directive. The directive is already causing challenges and will force companies to act – over half of SSC companies are reviewing their structures, analyzing the salary ranges and the pay gaps in order to be ready to be a transparent employer when the time comes. Companies often decide to conduct analysis with a third-party provider, such as Mercer, and thanks to early action, SSC companies have reported an adjusted pay gap of 4.5%.

Another trend that we observe in Poland and globally is a more flexible approach to the Total Rewards Package. The purpose of such activities is to provide employees with the opportunity to adapt the benefit offer to their needs. This can be done by segmenting employees into specific groups and offering different benefits to each group, depending on needs. We must remember that young employees or graduates have different needs than employees with young children or employees approaching retirement age. This approach to benefits allows companies to personalize their offering and offer attractive compensation packages for each employee, while focusing on cost management.

One more challenge that companies are currently facing, not only in Poland, is the search for strategic skills, needed to achieve business goals. Companies are facing a problem in the availability of the right talent on the market, which is why it is crucial for CEOs and HR departments to consider what skills will be needed from a business perspective in the coming years, and then plan employment based on the search for these specific skills on the market. The second possible solution is to focus on reskilling and upskilling of currently employed staff. This solution requires less financial outlays, and at the same time will fill the skill gap in the organization and increase employee engagement and satisfaction.

Looking ahead, we see stable growth of the sector based on roles that create high value for the market and require specific knowledge, which makes Poland a specialized hub, with a big advantage over other countries taken into consideration by investors. Due to the dynamic development of the sector, Poland maintains its position as a significant player in the field of global outsourcing, and thanks to its focus on innovation and implementation of new technologies, it is ready for next challenges and years of growth.