While business has started to feel a bit more like usual in the past few months, Equilar’s second consecutive virtual Executive Compensation Summit in June 2021 was a reminder that today’s world is heading more toward unfamiliar territory than back to the way things have always been. The way we work is changing permanently.
For the past 12 years, the Summit has hosted hundreds of senior-level professionals to explore the complex, interrelated issues around executive pay and corporate governance. From participant Q&As to lively roundtable sessions, the key themes at this year’s conference focused on how to push forward with HR and compensation initiatives in the “new normal,” which will be anything but normal.
The following segment features key takeaways and insightful quotes from Summit participants covering major topics such as the post-COVID work environment, incorporating ESG into strategic compensation philosophies, and the future of incentives and benefits.
There was never a more interesting or challenging time to be in human resources than in 2020. The events of the past year accelerated an elevation of HR leadership that had been underway for years, and human capital management is now clearly a strategic priority for companies, signaling good governance and organizational health to investors and other stakeholders.
Key Takeaways
Key Quote
“No good crisis should go to waste. As organizations, we’ll be figuring out how people work and whether remote working makes some job opportunities more or less attractive. That’s the next chapter that we’re going to write, and HR practitioners of all sorts are going to be at the center.”
COVID-19 changed the workplace dramatically, but changes were already simmering in 2019. The events of 2020 pressed down on the accelerator, and organizations are finding themselves struggling to figure out how to attract and retain employees in this new world.
“Virtual work has been one of the most impactful disruptors that I’ve seen in my career. This aspect of digital transformation and how that’s unfolded has really impacted employees and how their roles are defined, and the entire HR paradigm has to reframe its strategy for the virtual environment.”
As ESG issues become critical to corporate stakeholders, the topic permeates executive compensation circles. But questions still surround how to incorporate non-financial goals into incentive plans in a way that shows a clear impact on organizational health and the bottom line.
“Long term, your company is at risk if it’s losing talent because you’re not inclusive. That’s also true of companies not good in the ‘E’ [environmental] area, because people don’t want to work for them.”
While tried and true compensation strategies are still valid, paying executives solely based on financial performance and providing general stock purchase plans for employees are no longer sufficient on their own.
“Investors are looking at metrics tied to material areas of risk, and it’s really helpful to see that tied together with intentionality on the part of management and the board.”
For more information on this year’s virtual Summit, please visit bit.ly/2V9jg4W. The 2022 Equilar Executive Compensation Summit will take place June 6–8 in San Diego, California. Visit www.equilar.com/executive-compensation-summit-june2022 for more information.