Christina Medland and Matthew Isakson, Partners at Meridian Compensation Partners, are the featured experts on this episode of The Executive Compensation Podcast. Christina is the head of Meridian’s Canada practice and has more than 30 years of experience in compensation plan design. Matthew, based in the US, has over 15 years of experience advising on a broad range of compensation topics.

This episode focuses on how compensation committees are evolving as ESG and human capital metrics become more important to shareholders and stakeholders. A major trend is increased emphasis on human capital and employee wellness. The pandemic accelerated this trend, creating pressure on corporations to take action.

Christina and Matthew discuss the effects of this trend on how compensation committees function within organizations. The process is growing in complexity as committees now require significant data and analytics to understand performance. They also offer advice for committees undergoing this evolution in their companies.

After you listen, connect with Christina Medland and Matthew Isakson on LinkedIn. Visit MeridianCP.com to learn more about Meridian Compensation Partners.

This episode is brought to you by Meridian Compensation Partners. Learn more by visiting MeridianCP.com.

Jared Berman, Partner at Meridian Compensation Partners, is the featured expert on this episode of The Executive Compensation podcast. Jared has more than 15 years of consulting experience in executive compensation and corporate governance matters.

This episode focuses on ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) metrics, non-financial factors that help companies measure sustainability and social impact. Investors are increasingly prioritizing these initiatives, especially in light of recent social and cultural events.

Jared discusses the challenges companies face in compensating for these initiatives. Some metrics (e.g. carbon emissions) are easy to track and compare on a regular basis. Social initiatives like diversity and inclusion are more difficult to quantify, making it difficult to measure progress and compensate accordingly.

He also provides an overview of how ESG metrics might fit into annual and long-term incentive plans, including the benefits and drawbacks of each approach. The episode wraps with some advice on choosing which metrics to measure. Rather than going with what’s trending, he recommends companies look inward, identify specific problems, determine desired outcomes, and develop performance metrics accordingly.

After you listen, connect with Jared Berman on LinkedIn and learn more about Meridian Compensation Partners by visiting MeridianCP.com.

This episode is brought to you by Meridian Compensation Partners. Learn more by visiting MeridianCP.com.

Andrew McElheran, Partner at Meridian Compensation Partners, is the featured expert on this episode of The Executive Compensation Podcast. Andrew consults on the full range of executive compensation matters, including strategy, short- and long-term incentive program design, and performance analyses. He has nearly 15 years of experience with companies in Canada and the US.

This episode focuses on trends in performance measurement. Andrew discusses the challenges organizations face in designing compensation strategies in the wake of Covid-19, such as public perception of executive compensation during an economic downturn. He also addresses the growing importance of ESG metrics and non-financial performance indicators.

Andrew explains the difference between financial and non-financial performance metrics, provides some guidance as to how these metrics might be used in annual and long-term incentive plans, and proposes some considerations for companies trying to choose the right metrics to inform compensation decisions.

After you listen, visit MeridianCP.com to learn more about Meridian Compensation Partners.

This episode is brought to you by Meridian Compensation Partners. Learn more by visiting MeridianCP.com.

Daniel Rodda, Partner at Meridian Compensation Partners, is the featured expert on this episode of The Executive Compensation Podcast. Daniel consults with compensation committees and senior management on all aspects of executive and director compensation to develop customized programs that align with business strategies.

This episode focuses on using discretion in executive compensation plans. Daniel provides some background information on how compensation programs have been designed historically. He also explains why organizations are considering incorporating some level of discretion into their compensation strategies.

He discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using discretion, the three primary approaches to incorporating discretion into compensation plans, and strategies for using discretion effectively. This includes preparing for negative reactions from proxy advisors.

After you listen, connect with Daniel Rodda on LinkedIn and learn more about Meridian Compensation Partners by visiting MeridianCP.com.

This episode is brought to you by Meridian Compensation Partners. Learn more by visiting MeridianCP.com.

The Executive Compensation podcast from Meridian Compensation Partners is a vital resource for compensation committees, seasoned compensation professionals, or curious learners to explore all aspects of executive compensation. In this debut episode, Jon Szabo and Jim Kirian discuss differences between traditional IPOs and SPAC mergers and how they affect compensation strategies.

Both IPOs and SPACs have the same outcome: a company moves from privately held to publicly traded. These transactions are executed differently, but both still require a compensation strategy that minimizes the risk of turnover, compares favorably to similar organizations, and achieves strategic alignment between investors and senior executives.

Jon and Jim also address how companies should prepare a public compensation structure. Companies should establish market reference groups, transaction peer groups, and aggregate data from multiple sources (e.g. compensation research from HR consulting firms) to create a program that is competitive and incentivizes executives to stay.

This episode is brought to you by Meridian Compensation Partners. Learn more by visiting MeridianCP.com.