Insights
Incentive Design, Equity Usage & Grant Practices
Beyond the PSU Mandate
Has the pendulum swung too far toward PSUs? Some investors think so and, in 2026, proxy advisors have signaled greater flexibility toward alternative LTI structures. This article explores why the three-year PSU model is under pressure and provides a 2026 roadmap for Compensation Committees when evaluating LTI design for 2027.
Retaining the C-Suite After CEO Turnover
Research Report | By Marco Pizzitola, Desmond Pang, Joe Sorrentino
Ensuring stability across the leadership team is an important factor in executing proper CEO succession, particularly as it applies to high-value individuals that may have been considered as CEO candidates themselves.
After the IPO: Evolution of Equity Practices
This blog post is the second in our series analyzing equity practices of technology and technology-enabled companies that IPOed during 2020 and 2021 (excluding companies with <$100M market cap at IPO).
2025 Top 250 Report
Research Report | By Sarah Lindenberg Cohen, Tom Kohn, Rachel Chiu
The 53rd edition of the Top 250 Report explores executive long-term incentive practices at the 250 largest companies by market capitalization, with an emphasis on how prolonged 5-year market volatility and uncertainty has influenced and shaped plan design and structure.
2025 Top 250 Annual Incentive Plan Report
Research Report | By Warren Suh, Ezra Womark, Rachel Gibbons
FW Cook's 2025 Annual Incentive Plan Report provides a comprehensive review of the annual incentive plans of the top 250 largest companies in the S&P 500 by market capitalization. This report examines trends in financial and non-financial metrics, goal-setting practices, and actual payouts, comparing findings over the past 3-year and 6-year periods.
Holding Power: S&P 500 Snapshot
By Andrew Lash, Shashwat Singh
We reviewed broad-market data using S&P 500 executives to support preliminary assessments of executive Holding Power (aka retention glue)...
2025 Director Compensation Report
Research Report | By Eric Graves, Nico Braverman, Serdar Sikca, Steven Cross
FW Cook's 2025 Director Compensation Report studies non-employee director compensation practices at 300 companies of various sizes and industries to analyze market practices in pay levels and program structure.
Could Stock Options Make a Comeback?
By Michael Kenney, Erin Bass-Goldberg
Love them or hate them, everyone has a point of view on stock options. Some people credit them for driving a growth culture, while others blame them for promoting undue risk-taking in corporate America.
Executive Compensation Peer Groups: Why They Matter & How to Build Them
By Lauren Spencer, Jin Fu
Informed executive compensation decisions require market context, and good governance practice often involves benchmarking compensation using a defined peer group—particularly among public and mature private companies...
Equity Compensation in Private vs. Public Companies: Key Differences for Execs
By Lauren Spencer, Jin Fu
Equity compensation for executives is an important tool for rewarding long-term performance and alignment with shareholder interests. Differences between public and private company equity program design are primarily due to differences...
Global Top 250 Compensation Survey 2024
Research Report | By Marco Pizzitola, Stephen Hom, David Cole
This third edition of the Global Top 250 Compensation Survey presents information on compensation levels for the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, the design of long-term incentives, and share usage at the 250 largest listed companies globally.
2024 Top 250 Report
Research Report | By Lauren Shatanof, James Lutz, Voytek Sokolowski
FW Cook presents information on long-term incentives granted to executives at the 250 largest U.S. companies in the S&P 500 Index, with special focus on trends over the last five years.
