Mergers frequently result in large one-time payouts to executives of the acquired company, through change-in-control payments and acceleration of equity awards. Several recent mergers, however, have highlighted how significant those deferred costs can be for shareholders. Executives at oilfield-services company BJ Services, which is being acquired Baker Hughes in a cash-and-stock deal worth $5.3 billion […]
Read MoreEuropean companies fail to link executive pay to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance according to new research published by Eurosif (European Sustainable Investment Forum). The report, produced in association with an investor-led steering committee including Groupama Asset Management, Henderson Global Investors, MACIF Gestion, PhiTrust Active Investors, Robeco and Société Générale Gestion, highlights what EUROSIF sees as “critical challenges and […]
Read MoreThe first big week of Australian proxy season has seen a number of revolts on executive pay, with one ASX 100 company losing the remuneration report vote and two others seeing very significant dissent. At Downer Edi, the remuneration report was defeated, with investors reacting to reduced performance hurdles for the long-term incentive plan and […]
Read MoreAustralia is proposing some innovative steps to address concerns about executive pay. This week, the Productivity Commission released a detailed discussion document outlining a series of reforms which it hopes will improve board accountability, remove conflicts of interest and enhance shareholder engagement on remuneration. While the Commission doesn’t consider that Australia is suffering from a systemic failure in […]
Read MoreThe Walker Review has ignited something of a bonfire under the UK’s current “Guidelines” based approach to corporate governance monitoring and enforcement. Leaving the politics of the debate aside for a moment, there is a genuine practical consideration for adopting a more formal approach to “Best Practice Guidelines” – ongoing suitability. Over the past 20 years the […]
Read MoreAn analysis of company-selected compensation peer groups at S&P 500 companies reveals some clear favorites. 3M Co. tops the list, selected as a peer by 11% of the 374 companies that disclosed in their 2009 annual proxy statements a peer group of up to 35 companies. Six other firms – Johnson & Johnson, General Mills […]
Read MoreThe German Bundestag has adopted the Gesetz zur Angemessenheit der Vorstandsvergütung (Act on the Appropriateness of Management Board Remuneration or VorstAG). The objectives of the new Act are to ensure a greater focus on incentives concerning the company’s long-term development, to make it easier to cut pay when a company’s situation deteriorates while creating clear […]
Read MoreThe Guardian’s annual survey of executive pay has been published, and reveals a 10% increase in basic salary for executives at FTSE 100 companies. Today’s Guardian editorial cites voting data from Manifest noting that dissenting votes on remuneration reports in the year to 31 July was circa 12% while dissent on long-term incentive plans was […]
Read MoreUS Congressman Barney Frank’s Financial Services Committee has started its deliberations on the problem of executive pay. A total of eight witnesses including former Chief Accountant, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Lynn Turner and noted academics Lucien Bebchuk and Kevin Murphy were on hand to present their testimony. A say on pay and access to […]
Read MoreThe US Treasury has announced the appointment of a “special master” to oversee executives’ compensation at U.S. companies receiving large amounts of government aid, with the power to reject pay plans deemed excessive. Kenneth Feinberg, a lawyer who oversaw payments to families of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, will review the compensation […]
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