http://www.watsonwyatt.com Latest Watson Wyatt Compensation Articles and News en-us Copyright 2008 Watson Wyatt Worldwide http://backend.userland.com/rss091 5/9/2008 1:52:59 PM 20 Executives at high-performing companies realize greater compensation than counterparts at underperforming companies. Further, they receive long-term incentive (LTI) award payouts that are more than 50 percent above targeted goals. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18849Corporate directors and institutional investors disagree over whether the U.S. executive pay model is changing for the better and whether it has helped corporate performance. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18851Fewer Than Half Show How Pay Reflects Corporate Performance. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18939Corporate directors are considerably more optimistic than institutional shareholders about the effectiveness and future of the U.S. executive pay model. Both groups think the new proxy disclosures have improved transparency but need more work. These and other findings are from a new study by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, <I>2008 Report on Directors’ and Investors’ Views on Executive Pay and Corporate Governance</i>. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18889Separate Proxy Analysis Finds Stock Option Profits for CEOs Declined 13 Percent in 2007. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18834For sales professionals, shifting two hours of administrative tasks per week to time with customers can be worth as much as $225 million in additional expected revenue for a company with 1,800 new-business developers, a recent Watson Wyatt study has found. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18848In January, the IRS released a private letter ruling (PLR) calling into question the tax deductibility of pay-for-performance plans that pay out at target at “not for cause” or “good reason” terminations or at retirement. Had that ruling been the last word, many companies would have had to scramble to change their financial statements and their plans. Thankfully, the IRS subsequently issued a revenue ruling that ratchets down the urgency. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18828The U.S. executive pay-for-performance model is not only viable, it is essential to the continued success of corporations and the U.S. economy. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18797Watson Wyatt Study Finds Groups Agree That Executive Pay Disclosure Rules Are Helpful but Need Improvement. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18727Chief executive officers whose companies financially outperformed their peers over a three-year period received long-term incentive award payouts that were more than 50 percent above their target, according to an analysis by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, a leading global consulting firm. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18668The government has revised the way its wealth tax is calculated, subjecting a greater amount of individual net worth to the tax. [ARGENTINA]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18642Most Companies to Make Other Changes to Their Proxy Disclosures for 2008. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18567Pension fiduciaries may not engage in politically motivated proxy activity, according to an opinion letter released by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The letter states that fiduciaries may not introduce or support proxy resolutions unless doing so would provide a clear economic benefit to the plan. The DOL was responding to an inquiry from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce about whether a shareholder activism campaign organized by an employee organization to promote its health care agenda – and reportedly to seek disclosure of political contributions from corporate directors and officers to candidates who oppose that agenda – was compatible with ERISA. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18554Mental health parity. 401(k) fees. Deferred compensation. COBRA. Carried interest. Medicare. Expatriate taxation. These are just some of the benefit and compensation issues Congress discussed last year. During 2007, lawmakers evinced a continuing desire to enact legislation that would affect employer-sponsored health, retirement and compensation programs – yet very little of that legislation passed. The year also marked the emergence of new issues that would affect plan investments. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18555Watson Wyatt Study Outlines Key Differentiators of Sales Success. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18523Broad-Based Stock Option Reductions Continue, While Forfeitures Increase. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18413Succeeding in the Chinese market is of the highest strategic importance for most German multinationals, but human resources issues present the greatest challenge to conducting business there, a new survey finds. [CHINA]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18378In what is becoming an annual ritual, the IRS delayed the requirement for companies to report nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plan deferrals on Forms W-2 and 1099 for another year. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18384On October 25, House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D-New York) introduced the Tax Reduction and Reform Act of 2007, which he describes as the most comprehensive tax legislation since the Tax Reform Act of 1986. The bill would permanently repeal the alternative minimum tax (AMT), treat most tax-carried interest as ordinary income, modify the unrelated-business-income tax rules and reduce the corporate tax bill. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18349During the past few months, the IRS has issued three notices extending the deadlines for complying with various rules under section 409A. Because the guidance has been issued piecemeal and the effective date for the final regulations has been delayed, it is difficult to reconcile all the implications. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=18352