Executive Compensation
Executive Compensation Outlook
What senior packages are actually clearing at offer stage, drawn from live mandates rather than published survey data.
Published compensation surveys describe what organisations pay their incumbents. Our data describes what it took to move an executive who was not looking — a materially different number, and the one that determines whether a search closes on time.
Across the last twelve months, fixed pay has moved modestly while long-term incentive value has widened sharply, particularly in private-equity backed businesses where equity is the primary lever. Boards that benchmark base salary alone are consistently surprised at offer stage.
The report sets out ranges by function, sector and geography, together with the structures that closed and the structures that were declined.
What the report finds
- Base salary movement is no longer the deciding factor in most C-suite moves.
- Equity and long-term incentive structures account for the majority of the increase required to move a sitting executive.
- Counter-offer activity has risen in scarce functions, extending offer-to-acceptance timelines.
- Benchmarking against incumbents rather than movers is the single most common cause of a failed offer.
Coverage