Fury over excessive executive compensation is beating up on the pay consultants too. As part of its new rules on proxy disclosure and solicitation enhancements, the Securities and Exchange Commission has decreed that a company whose board retains a compensation consultant to advise its comp committee on executive pay must disclose all fees paid to this consultant if the same firm provides the company with other services, such as retirement-plan counseling.
Archive for February 9th, 2010
Newsfeeds
Executive Compensation—Say on Pay Heads Your Way
Get a grip on that saddle. Washington spent much of 2009 feverishly rewriting the rules of corporate governance in response to the gravest financial crisis since the Great Depression. Rules flowing from the Securities and Exchange Commission and included in the enormous financial-reform bills before Congress could subject your board to the most intense scrutiny yet on everything from executive pay to risk management to shareholder rights.
Newsfeeds
Entitled to an Increase?
Given the economic turbulence of the past few years, “normal” salary increase programs are few and far between. If entitlement was an issue before, it now looks like it will continue to be a part of the “new normal” to manage as organizations must deal with limited or non-existent budgets and greater disparity among industry sectors.
Newsfeeds
Pay Cuts Not as Prevalent as Pay Freezes in 2009
In response to the sluggish economy, many corporations either froze or cut pay in 2009. Even as the economy starts showing signs of life, a majority plan to remain conservative when it comes to pay practices in 2010.