Archive for the 'Executive Pay' Category

The revolution is over! (oops, not yet)

Shareholder activists have won the revolution… so says today’s The Wall Street Journal.
But let’s not all fly off to Sardinia for that Kozlowski-like party yet.
A superficial article on the front cover of Section C includes some statistics about more board seats won, more resolutions adopted, etc.  But nowhere does the author stop to ask, “If, since 2006, 218 companies have […]

Broc has his say on “Say on Pay”

Our friend Broc Romanek at CorporateCounsel.net writes an excellent post, breaking down each presidential candidate’s feelings on executive compensation.
Most importantly, Broc let’s us know how divided he personally is on the issue, detailing the following pros and cons:

CON: Compensation is a board task.  Leave it to them.
CON: Say on Pay gives RiskMetrics (formerly ISS) even more clout.
CON: […]

Executive compensation put under the microscope

The Wall Street Journal is running an entire section on CEO compensation in today’s print edition.
The online version of the keynote article, “Boards Flex Their Pay Muscles”, can be found here.
That article’s subtitle offers an astute summary analysis:
“Directors are increasingly exercising more clout in setting CEO compensation.  And in some cases, the boss is actually […]

“Say on Pay” hero at Aflac loses his crown

When Aflac provided its shareholders this year with an advisory vote on executive pay, Aflac CEO Dan Amos became an instant hero, poster child, Greek God, etc. to shareholder rights activisits everywhere.  Until he spoke with The Wall Street Journal. 
In an editorial published yesterday, Amos squashes “say on pay” fever with this quote:
“Frankly, I don’t care what […]

Vote No, Say on Pay fails at Morgan Stanley

Almost lost in yesterday’s major media coverage of Motorola and Yahoo announcements was Morgan Stanley’s shareholder meeting today, where a campaign had been mounted by a union pension advisor, CtW Investment Group.
CNBC is reporting this morning that both the Vote No campaign and the Say on Pay campaign have failed.  With 85% of the shareholder […]

‘Say on pay’ gets momentum with Aflac

Aflac gets the shareholder rights ball rolling this proxy season as it becomes the first publicly-traded company in the U.S. to offer shareholders an advisory vote on executive compensation.  Known as ’say on pay’, these advisory votes make economic sense for consumer-oriented companies such as Aflac.  They also make great governance.
The Wall Street Journal gives a first look […]

Time in the sun for ‘Say on Pay’?

A nice piece appeared in The Wall Street Journal this week covering ‘Say-on-Pay’ proposals, their prevalency in European countries, and the implications of a Barack Obama victory this November.
Certainly the soup du jour for the 2008 proxy season, executive pay-related shareholder proposals should receive an added boost with the new SEC-mandated CD&A (Compensation Discussion and […]

Zelnick’s perplexing statement

I have had some time to ruminate over Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick’s public statement, turning down Electronic Arts’ $26 per share bid.
His statement was as follows:
“Electronic Arts’ proposal provides insufficient value to our shareholders and comes at absolutely the wrong time given the crucial initiatives under way at the company.”
What does “the wrong time” mean?  Is […]

Take-Two saga gains steam

Another potential major proxy fight on our hands?  Perhaps.
Take-Two’s chairman Strauss Zelnick proudly declared yesterday, “Electronic Arts’ proposal provides insufficient value to our shareholders and comes at absolutely the wrong time given the crucial initiatives under way at the company.”  $26 per share is not enough.  In other words, Strauss must think the entire stock […]

ISS founder Bob Monks has new book

Jeff Nash over at Financial Weekly has a great feature today on renown shareholder activist Bob Monks.
Monks, 74, has recently come out with a new book, Corpocracy, targeting executive compensation practices at public companies.
Nash’s feature takes a shot at the Business Roundtable, plugs for Barack Obama, and playfully digs at Monks for his ties to Tyco ex-CEO Dennis […]