2. Executive compensation or executive pay is
composed of the financial compensation and other
non-financial awards received by an executive from
their firm for their service to the organization.
It is typically a mixture of salary, bonuses, shares of or
call options on the company stock, benefits,
and perquisites, ideally configured to take into account
government regulations, tax law, the desires of the
organization and the executive, and rewards for
performance
3. Executive Compensation
The compensation program serves three main purposes.
It must attract executives with the skills, experiences,
and behavioral profile necessary to succeed in the
position.
It must be sufficient to retain these individuals, so they
do not leave for alternative employment.
It must motivate them to perform in a manner
consistent with the strategy and risk-profile of the
organization and discourage self-interested behavior.
4. The Principles of the Executive
Compensation are:
Clear focus on profits generation
Long-term orientation of the compensation scheme
Motivation of manager by high bonuses
Non-cash focus of the compensation (stock options,
shares, share phantom schemes)
Risk Management
Balanced Scorecard implemented into the
Compensation Scheme
6. The Short Term Pay
The short term pay of the executives is about the base
salary and short term bonuses, which are paid on the
basis of the immediate performance of the
organization.
The bonuses are usually deferred over a period of time.
The short term pay is usually fully cash based executive
compensation component.
7. The Long Term Pay
The long term pay is about the stock options, shares,
restricted stocks and pay based on the performance
against the index.
The shareholders use these long term compensation
components to protect the value of the organization
and betting of the top executives on the growing value
of the organization on the market.
The long term compensation components can be
realized just in case, the stock price of the
organization grows. The long term pay component is
usually non-cash based.
8. Types of Executive Compensation
There are many different forms of executive compensation that
offer a variety of tax benefits and performance incentives. Below
are the most common forms:
Cash Compensation – This is the sum of all standard cash
salary compensation that the executive receives for the year.
Deferred Compensation – This is compensation that is
deferred until a later date, typically for tax purposes. However,
changes in regulations have lessened the popularity of this type
of compensation. Examples of deferred
compensation include pensions, retirement plans etc
9. Long-Term Incentive Plans (LTIPs) – Long-term
incentive plans encompass all compensation that is
tied to performance for tax purposes. Current tax laws
favor pay for performance-type compensation.
Stock options-
An employee stock option (ESO) is commonly
viewed as a complex call option on the
common stock of a company, granted by the company
to an employee as part of the employee's remuneration
package
10. Restricted stock-
Outright grant of shares that are restricted in
transferability and are subject to vesting. Once vested, they
are economically equivalent to outright ownership of stock.
Retirement Packages – These are packages given to
executives after they retire from the company. These are
important to watch because they can contain so-called
"golden parachutes" for corrupt executives.
Executive Perks – These are various other perks given to
executives, including the use of a private jet, travel
reimbursements and other rewards.
11. Executive Compensation Benefits
Employee Benefits is a term used to indicate the
non-wage part of remuneration consisting of a broad
range of special payments or benefits in kind.
Typical Employee Benefits are:
Insurance,
Pension/retirement benefits,
12. Income protection/social security,
Maternity pay/daycare/child care,
Profit sharing/Employee Stock Ownership Plan,
Holiday/vacation, relocation assistance/benefits,
Legal assistance, company car, company computer/internet
access,
Company mobile phone, Membership of sport and health
clubs/leisure activities during work time,
Education/personal development, staff discounts,
industry-related benefits.
13. Golden Handcuff is a form of employee
benefits or executive compensation, in which a
(substantial) bonus is built into an executive's
contract, subject to continuous employment for a
certain number of years.
In case of leaving the employment premature there
would be substantial financial penalties or the entire
amount may have to be repaid.
14. Golden Handshake is a form of employee
benefits or executive compensation, wherein a large
payment made by a company to a senior executive is
done upon termination of employment (retirement)
before his/her contract ends.
15. Golden Hello is a form of employee
benefits or executive compensation, wherein a signing
bonus is given to an executive to induce him to leave a
previous employment in order to take up a new
employment by the payment of a large sum of money
or other considerable remuneration.
Such welcome arrangement could be in cash or in
shares or in options.
16. Golden Parachute is a form of employee
benefits or executive compensation, wherein the
executive is provided with a lucrative severance
package in the event of job termination, for example in
case of a takeover by an acquiring company. A GP may
include a continuation of salary, bonus and/or certain
benefits and perquisites, as well as accelerated vesting
of stock options.