Elon Musk at Tesla isn’t the only chief executive earning a gargantuan pay packet, with a recent Equilar study finding the median CEO pay at S&P 500 has risen by 12.6 per cent last year, to $16.3 million (€15.2 million).
US executive pay is especially high, causing some British chief executives to make the argument that their smaller compensation packages are driving companies to seek listings on US stock exchanges, and that you have to pay for top talent.
However, a recent study suggests American chief executives aren’t getting better – they’re getting worse. The study, Have CEOs Changed?’, uses 4,900 assessments to study changes in the characteristics and objectives of chief executives since 2001.
Chief executives have changed over that period, and some of the changes – for example, executives have become more execution-oriented and analytical – are good.
Stealth sackings: why do employers fire staff for minor misdemeanours?
How much of a threat is Donald Trump to the Irish economy?
MenoPal app offers proactive support to women going through menopause
Ezviz RE4 Plus review: Efficient budget robot cleaner but can suffer from wanderlust under the wrong conditions
Other changes – they have become less creative and strategic – are not so good. The main point, however, is that the average chief executive has “lower overall ability” than predecessors, it notes. That’s the apparent paradox of the modern chief executive: lower competence but higher compensation.
- Sign up for Business push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Find The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Our Inside Business podcast is published weekly – Find the latest episode here
