Rare Earth, Rare Compensation
Thanks to the combined effects of trade wars and the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence technologies, market interest in rare earth mineral and mining companies has hit a crescendo over the last few years. From AI resource demand, tariff effects on supply chains, to government investments, the attention given to these companies has been warranted. […]
ISS Finalizes Policy Changes for 2026
ISS 2026 Compensation Benchmark Policy Changes: What Boards Need to Know On November 25, 2025, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) released its final 2026 U.S. benchmark voting policy updates (Americas region), effective for shareholder meetings on or after February 1, 2026. The revisions introduce several changes to how ISS will evaluate executive and director compensation programs […]
2025 ISS Policy Survey: Key Takeaways for Public Companies
2025 ISS Benchmark Policy Survey – Initial Findings Institutional Shareholder Services (“ISS”), the global proxy advisor, recently released the results of its 2025 Global Benchmark Policy Survey. Zayla reviewed the results and has summarized key observations that may be meaningful for our clients going forward. If you have questions on any of the updates, please don’t […]
2026 Proxy Policy Pulse: A Glance at Glass Lewis Changes
Glass Lewis Pay-For-Performance Overhaul Glass Lewis has announced a significant overhaul of its Pay-for-Performance (P4P) model, set to take effect for shareholder meetings beginning in 2026. First disclosed in early summer 2025, these changes mark a substantial shift in how executive compensation alignment is evaluated. In anticipation of the new framework, Zayla has prepared a […]
Long-Term Incentive Plans in Private Companies
Long-term incentives (LTI) use within private companies continues to grow in prevalence. According to WorldatWork, the prevalence of LTIs in private companies increased from 35% in 2007 to 62% in 2019. This increase in prevalence makes sense given the paralleled trend we’ve observed in public company disclosures which noted an increase in LTI award values […]
How to Design Effective Annual Incentive Plans
At Zayla, we believe variable pay programs are essential tools for aligning a portion of employee compensation with organizational and individual performance. When thoughtfully structured, they help to motivate employees, drive business results, and retain top talent by linking pay to near-term performance outcomes. This is why understanding the key components and market best practices […]
Navigating Tariffs, Economic Uncertainty, and Market Volatility in 2025
Avoiding Compensation Whiplash in 2025 In today’s volatile market, businesses are grappling with unprecedented challenges that are affecting businesses at nearly every level – including one of the largest company investments and expenses: compensation. From tariffs and geopolitical risks to labor market shifts, inflation, and stock market volatility, companies are experiencing what can be termed […]
2025 Energy CEO Compensation Trends (Updated June)
Zayla recently completed an expansion of its previous analysis highlighting CEO pay trends in the energy industry based off data from the 2025 proxy season. Company Universe Zayla analyzed compensation data from 183 companies that filed either a DEF14A or a 10-K filing as of June 4th, 2025. Forty three companies were omitted from the […]
Telling the Compensation Story Through Reported and Realizable Executive Compensation
Executive compensation is a hot topic in the corporate governance world. The discussion and evaluation of the fairness of executive pay practices has ramped up considerably since the arrival of Dodd-Frank, evolving as investor expectations and disclosure trends among public issuers have changed. Last year, the SEC finalized disclosure rules on how companies should communicate […]
CEO to NEO Pay Index Matters
When we conducted a three year (2019 – 2022) pay and performance comparison of the top ~2,000 public companies (by market cap), we found CEO pay that was too far removed from the other named executive officers (NEOs) resulted in an inefficient relationship between the amount of compensation delivered and shareholder return generated. Specifically, companies […]
Solving Compensation Whiplash
Compensation Whiplash ™ – the movement of compensation up and/or down so rapidly it gives you a headache. The recent labor market has hit HR/Compensation departments with a nasty concoction of variables – unprecedented labor market volatility, commodity price swings, hyperinflation, the great resignation, silent resignations, remote work, DEI, and 5 generations working together at […]
2023 Energy Company First Filers Analysis
It was a great year!
Incentive Plan Decision Making
While Pay versus performance disclosures will headline most executive pay stories, the real cruxt of the matter is designing pay + performance programs. Many public, private and not for profit company boards and management are asking how to set pay for stretch and who should design the incentive plan mechanics. We provide simple guiding principles. […]
SEC’s Pay Versus Performance – 2023 Early Impressions
SEC’s Pay Versus Performance – 2023 Early Impressions As we head into March and the start of proxy season, the SEC’s newly required Pay Versus Performance disclosures are front of mind for many that deal with compensation and corporate governance. The Commission just recently released some *timely* clarifications on their rules, called Compliance & Disclosure […]
2023 Compensation Committee Priorities
2023 Compensation Committee Priorities A recent poll conducted found that 98% of CEOs expect a recession in 2023, although there is little agreement on the duration or severity. While economic uncertainty will be an influencer of compensation committee meetings and decisions on executive pay throughout 2023, there are a number of priorities Compensation Committees may […]
A New Currency: Work From Home
A New Currency in the Compensation Toolbox: Work From Home If necessity is the mother of invention, then the COVID pandemic is the mother of a new compensation currency: Work From Home (WFH). The Evolving Compensation Toolbox The total compensation toolbox has evolved rapidly over the last 30 years. For most of the 20th century, […]
What Job Seekers are Looking For
What Job Seekers Are Looking For Job seeker preferences are shifting – with candidates now indicating that the right salary/benefits takes priority over other elements (like the flexibility of remote work) when considering a new role. That’s the headline from a recent survey conducted by Sense, an AI-driven solutions provider for enterprise recruiting, which polled […]
Future State of Remote Work
Future State of Remote Work A recent study conducted by Gallup found that as pandemic-related restrictions have eased, so has the prevalence of fully remote work for “remote-capable” employees. With Gallup estimating 70M+ full-time employees in the US capable of working remotely, and the current tightness in the labor market, how companies define the “workplace” […]
Recession-Proof Compensation Strategies
Strategies for a Recession-Proof Compensation Plan The Market Background The stock market is down approximately 22% year to date (S&P 500 and Russell 2k) and US GDP has dropped in the last two quarters. By many economists’ measures, this defines the beginning of a recession. And while recessions and higher unemployment typically go hand in […]
How to Choose a Compensation Consultant
With unemployment holding at record lows – but a potential recession sitting over the horizon – companies are faced with a tricky paradigm: be able to attract, retain and motivate their workforces in the current “war for talent”, but stay agile enough to be able to respond to potential future macro challenges. To help chart […]