In addition to consulting activities with clients, Fred Whittlesey believes it is important to devote significant resources, time, and effort to researching issues and developing new ideas -- and freely communicating these to fellow professionals.
Through the menu at the left of this page, you may explore the variety of print and online materials contributed to the professional community.
You may also visit Live to learn of upcoming educational and professional development events in which Fred Whittlesey will be participating.
Some past items are summarized and linked below:
"The Return of Cash Long-Term Incentives"
The attention given to equity-based compensation plans in recent years driven by changes in accounting, tax, and disclosure rules and fueled by shareholder concerns has resulted in cash compensation arrangements being pushed to a secondary position in the headlines. But as many companies have agonized over choices between stock options and restricted stock, experimented with adding performance features to grants, and reconsidered the role of equity in compensation strategy, cash long-term incentive plans have increased in use in some unexpected places.
"The New Era of Equity Compensation: Performance Plans"
Comprehensive changes in the regulatory and governance environment surrounding equity-based compensation have resulted in a diversity of practices not fully reported in survey data and media coverage. While some headlines portray a world in which stock options have been abandoned for restricted stock, greater scrutiny reveals a much more complex structure of grant types and provisions being used for both executive grants and all-employee programs. The most notable change is the widespread introduction of performance-based plans with a wide variety of features. Understanding the nuances of competitive practice is essential for conducting meaningful competitive assessments and making plan design decisions.
"Who are your peers? (The SEC wants to know)"
The SECs recent challenge to companies regarding the extent and quality of proxy disclosure of executive pay practices and process raises a number of issues and the peer group issue is high on the list. A companys identified peer group who is in it, how it was determined, and how it was used in pay analysis was identified as a key concern by the SEC. Compensation Committees must have a structured, data-based, and well-documented process for determining the basis of competitive comparisons. A data-intensive, iterative process is critical for meeting disclosure and governance responsibilities.
"The Corporate Governance Implications of Option Backdating"
The Corporate Governance Advisor
"The value of doing something correctly can sometimes only be measured by thecost of doing it incorrectly. We now have an emerging metric of the value of correct design and administration of equity-based compensation programs beyond the projected financial and behavioral implications. The legacy of this scandal may be a heightened appreciation for the complexity of equity-based compensation and a call for involvement of independent professionals with multidisciplinary understanding of the issues, working directly with the board of directors and compensation committee, to mitigate the tail-wags-dog mentality that led to this fiasco. That will be the ultimate governance solution to this and future situations as equity-based compensation continues to play a central role in effective global compensation strategy."
