Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Apple Puts $383 Million Handcuffs On CEO Tim Cook

Posted by timothy on from the I'll-take-those-odds dept.

theodp writes "There are bonuses. And then there are bonuses. Apple's board, led by sadly frail-looking chairman Steve Jobs, signaled its long-term confidence in Tim Cook as the company's new leader, disclosing in a regulatory filing that it's awarding the new CEO one million restricted stock units that will vest over the next decade. Apple shares closed at $383.53 Friday. From the SEC filing: 'In connection with Mr. Cook's appointment as Chief Executive Officer, the Board awarded Mr. Cook 1,000,000 restricted stock units. Fifty percent of the restricted stock units are scheduled to vest on each of August 24, 2016 and August 24, 2021, subject to Mr. Cook's continued employment with Apple through each such date.'"

2 of 170 comments (clear)

  1. Re:not like it's real money by bmo · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I feel ya, bro, I feel ya.

    She was of the same school as Scully. "We sell a brand, not products." We need to find the business schools where they learn this shit and burn them to the ground.

    --
    BMO

  2. Incentives are hard by sjbe · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I might be naive on this, but isn't this how bonuses already work? I thought that bonuses were tied to performance or meeting other goals...

    Not necessarily. Sometime bonuses are given out for no immediately obvious reason. Sometimes they are given out because the company board's compensation committee are a bunch of buddies who give the CEO a bonus even when the company loses money. Even if there are performance goals attached, all too often they are too easy reach. Goal oriented bonuses are difficult. Make them too easy and you don't accomplish anything. Make them too hard and they serve no incentive purpose - no point in reaching for a goal you can't actually achieve. In fact incentives in general are difficult to align with the goals of the company. For example, many salesmen are on commission based on revenue. The problem is that this motivates them to sell as much as possible, regardless of profitability. Companies have been ruined by misaligned incentives and management pay is no exception. There is an old saying that if you tell me someone's incentives I'll tell you their behavior.

    I'd like to see an example of someone getting a bonus when they've been doing a shitty job (excluding the easy google result of the banks after the bailout).

    How about Carly Fiorina who was given $180 million for what can generously be termed uninspired performance and a declining stock price. How about AIG awarding $165 billion in bonuses AFTER receiving bailout money. It's not remotely difficult to find examples of executives being handsomely rewarded for mediocre or even terrible performance.