Coming soon · Book Profile
Executive compensation
A comprehensive guide for compensation professionals, written by leading practitioners, on designing and managing strategic executive rewards programs in an era of heightened accountability and performance standards.
A profile of this book is on the way.
What it’s about
Drawing from nine of the leading compensation advisory firms in the country, Executive Compensation: The Professional’s Guide to Current Issues and Practices is the first publication to bring together top practitioners to provide the information and insights you need to navigate the new era of accountability. Seventeen chapters present key topics, from regulatory and governance changes to specialized topics like business unit incentives, with each thoughtfully analyzed by distinguished professionals. Whether you need to solve specific issues or seek a general reference covering the major components of an integrated executive compensation program, this book and its accompanying tools provide an 'advanced degree' in the practice of executive compensation, emphasizing the alignment of rewards with business strategy to drive long-term success.
The through-line
- Who it’s for
- A compensation professional, HR leader, or consultant responsible for designing, managing, or advising on executive compensation programs. They want to create effective, compliant, and strategically-aligned rewards systems that attract, retain, and motivate top leadership to drive business success while navigating a complex landscape of regulations and stakeholder scrutiny.
- The problem
- The business environment demands greater accountability and a stronger link between executive pay and performance. Regulations are tightening, shareholders are more scrutinous, and designing compensation programs that are both competitive and justifiable is increasingly difficult. The reader feels immense pressure to design programs that actually drive the right behaviors and results, but they often struggle with misaligned incentives, complex technical issues (tax, accounting), and the lack of a clear strategic framework, leading to frustration and ineffective outcomes.
- The plan
- Establish a Strategic Framework: Learn to view compensation as a 'Total Rewards' system and align it with your business strategy.
- Master the Core Components: Deep-dive into the design of short-term incentives, stock options, benefits, and deferred compensation.
- Tackle Advanced Topics: Understand the role of the compensation committee, how to select performance measures, and navigate complex governance changes.
- Handle Special Situations: Learn to design compensation for specific contexts like private companies, IPOs, and spin-offs.
- The payoff
- You become a highly valued strategic partner, confidently designing and managing executive compensation programs that drive performance, align with business strategy, and withstand stakeholder scrutiny. · You are seen as a thought leader with the knowledge and integrity to navigate complex challenges and contribute directly to your company's long-term success. · Your executive rewards systems successfully attract, retain, and motivate the right leadership talent.
See our guide
Related profiles we’ve built
Additional reading
- Pay without Performance: The Unfulfilled Promise of Executive Compensation · Lucian Bebchuk and Jesse Fried
This book is presented as the primary academic work arguing that high executive pay is a result of the 'managerial power' thesis, where executives exploit weak corporate governance and captured boards to extract rents, rather than being a product of arm's-length bargaining.
- The Real Story Behind Executive Pay: The Myth of Crony Capitalism · Steven N. Kaplan
This article is excerpted as the main counter-argument to Bebchuk and Fried, contending that high CEO pay is a result of market forces and a competitive 'market for talent,' similar to star systems in sports or entertainment, and is not primarily due to governance failures.
- Bonus Questions: Executive Compensation in the Era of Pay for Performance · Charles M. Yablon
Provides a historical overview of executive compensation, tracing its evolution from the era of owner-managers through the conglomerate mergers and hostile takeovers, leading to the modern focus on performance-based pay and incentive alignment.
- Are American CEOs Overpaid, and, If So, What If Anything Should Be Done About It? · Richard A. Posner
This article offers a prominent law and economics perspective that largely sides with the managerial power thesis, arguing that feeble board incentives and conflicts of interest lead to excessive pay. It also proposes several regulatory reforms, such as enhanced disclosure and back-loaded compensation.
- Power In and Around Organizations · Henry Mintzberg
The author cites this as the 'best academic handling of how environmental factors affect organization performance,' which is the first step in the book's reward design process.
- Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors · Michael E. Porter
This book provides the foundational concepts of cost-based, differentiated, and focused business strategies, which the author uses as a key framework for aligning rewards with company strategy.
- Organizational Capability: Competing From the Inside Out · David Ulrich and Dale Lake
This book is recommended for understanding the concept of organizational capabilities, a crucial link between business strategy and people strategy in the author's model.
- People, Performance, & Pay · Thomas P. Flannery, David A. Hofrichter, and Paul E. Platten
The author references this book for its framework of four general cultural types (process, functional, network, time-based), which is helpful in analyzing the 'People Strategy' component of the design process.
- The Structuring of Organizations · Henry Mintzberg
Recommended for its in-depth synthesis of research on organizational structure, a key element of the 'People Strategy' analysis.
- Officer Compensation Report · Panel Publishers
Listed as a related publication by the publisher, likely offering detailed survey data and analysis on executive pay levels and practices.