2007 Equilar CEO Benefits Perquisites Report

The 2007 proxy season ushered in a new generation of executive and director compensation disclosure. Among the many changes introduced for the first time, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) new disclosure regulations significantly altered the manner in which executive benefits and perquisites are disclosed.

First, information on executive benefits and perquisites was consolidated into a single column of the Summary Compensation Table. Next, entirely new disclosure sections of the proxy give more visibility into accumulated pension benefits and deferred compensation plan balances. Last, the disclosure threshold for the aggregate value of executive perquisites was lowered.

The SEC’s new disclosure rules forced companies to provide an unprecedented amount of detail on the nature and value of executive benefits and perquisites in 2007, and,as a result, executive perquisites remain in the spotlight. It is against this backdrop of expanded disclosure that Equilar presents the 2007 CEO Benefits and Perquisites Report. This report offers an in-depth analysis of the following key benefits and perquisites offered at Fortune 100 companies:

• Financial Planning and Other Professional Services;
• Flexible Perquisite Accounts;
• Personal and Home Security;
• Personal Use of Corporate Aircraft; and
• Tax Reimbursements.

In addition, this year’s expanded report includes sections on retirement benefits and highlights trends among companies that have eliminated perquisites in the last year. As companies enter into a new era of disclosure, this comprehensive review of benefits and perquisites is an invaluable tool for compensation professionals developing compensation packages for their own executives.

Shareholder pressure for improved alignment of executive and shareholder interests has led, in part, to increased use of executive stock ownership guidelines and holding requirements.

This trend, in conjunction with improved transparency in corporate governance disclosure, has generated a wealth of new information on the prevalence and design of stock ownership policies.

Furthermore, the SEC\’s new compensation disclosure regulations include the requirement for disclosure of corporate policies on stock retention and hedging in the new Compensation Discussion and Analysis (\”CD&A\”) section, ensuring continued public discussion of ownership guidelines and holding requirements for years to come.
Although different in structure, both ownership guidelines and holding requirements encourage executives to develop a sizable equity stake in the companies they lead. Ownership guidelines generally establish stock acquisition goals that executives must achieve within a specified period of time, typically over three to five years.

Holding requirements call upon executives to retain a certain percentage of shares acquired through the exercise or vesting of stock options, restricted stock, and other equity awards.

With disclosure of these policies on the rise, Equilar reviewed trends in the prevalence and design of executive ownership guidelines and holding requirements among Fortune 250 companies for fiscal years 2005 and 2006.

This report, covering numerous aspects of the design of share retention policies is an invaluable tool for compensation professionals seeking to adopt or amend ownership guidelines and holding requirements for companies of all sizes.

Click on a link below:

• Center on Executive Compensation
• Stanford Corporate Governance Wire
• The Crystal Report on Executive Compensation
• Equilar Executive Compensation Research Reports
• WorldatWork
• HR Policy Association

2010-Specific Executive Compensation Reports

• Trends in Executive Compensation: Base Salaries Reinstated, Performance Targets Adjusted
• Say on Pay Article
• The Black-Scholes Model Seems to Overvalue Options
• Consultant League Table Report
• The SEC Finally Gets It Right
• Preparing for 2010 Proxy Season and the New SEC Regulations
• Top General Counsel Executive Compensation Report

2009-Specific Executive Compensation Reports

• Committee Member and Chair Compensation Trends
• Stock Options Winners and Losers
• Fortune 100 Clawback Policy
• What Has the Recession Done to Option Grants?
• Director Stock Ownership Guidelines
• Decoupling Pay from Performance at Flextronics
• There\’s More Pay for Performance Than We Think
• Executive Stock Ownership Guidelines
• Fortune 500 Peer Group
• CEO Severance and Change-in-Control
• Wall Street Needs an Extreme Pay Makeover
• Larry Ellison Rides Again