Options aren't panning out for CEOs - Boston Business Journal - George Donnelly Editor

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Every year we list the highest paid local
CEOs at 100 local companies, and usually there are a few eye-popping
outliers. But not this year.

The reason: The market crunched CEOs' option plans, leaving many of them with relatively little in equity compensation.

Thus, the top earner in our list, which will be published Friday,
made a paltry $10.1 million, down from Analog Devices' Jerald Fishman's
$20.9 million last year. I don't want to give away who made the number 1
spot, though it's fair to say this gentleman has significant political
connections and his firm manages a significant amount of money.

Average total compensation was down by 25 percent in 2009, driven by a
60 percent drop in value realized in stock holdings. The median total
compensation figure in 2009 for the top 100 in Boston was a shade over
$1 million, down from over $1.2 million in 2008.

We doubt tears are flooding your keyboard about this reversal of
fortune. And even if you were wondering if some economic reality was
returning to the CEO suite, consider this: The average salary and bonus
rose last year, despite the economy, by 6 percent. Non-equity incentive
plan compensation went up by 14 percent, and "other" compensation, the
perks, went up by 13 percent.

The moral of the story is you can't keep CEOs down, especially when it comes to pay.

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