ISS Issues 2013 Policy Updates
Institutional Shareholder Services, the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, has updated its U.S. corporate governance benchmark policy guidelines for 2013. In the aftermath of the criticism it received with respect to its new “pay for performance” methodology for evaluating the link between corporate performance and executive pay (which is a key consideration in how […]
ISS Previews 2013 Policy Updates
Institutional Shareholder Services, Inc., the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, has published a preview of some of its likely updates to its corporate governance policies for U.S. companies for the 2013 proxy season. Although it is not a comprehensive summary of all of the policy changes that may apply in 2013, the preview highlights […]
ISS Issues 2012 Policy Updates
Institutional Shareholder Services, the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, has updated its U.S. corporate governance policies for 2012. In the aftermath of the first proxy season involving a mandatory shareholder advisory vote on executive compensation (the so-called “Say-on-Pay” vote), this latest annual update addresses several significant matters, including a revised “pay for performance” analysis […]
ISS Previews 2012 Policy Updates
Institutional Shareholder Services, the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, has published a preview of certain of its likely corporate governance policies for U.S. companies for 2012. Although it is not a comprehensive summary of all of the policy changes that may apply in 2012, the preview highlights several important items for technology and life […]
ISS Issues Policy Updates for 2011 Proxy Season
In December 2010, Institutional Shareholder Services, the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, updated its “burn rate” tables, which govern its voting recommendations on equity plan proposals. As described below, burn rate levels increased significantly for technology and life sciences companies. ISS also issued several “Frequently Asked Questions” which explain various aspects of its 2011 […]
ISS Updates Burn Rate Tables for 2011 Proxy Season
Download a pdf of this article » In December 2010, Institutional Shareholder Services, the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, updated its “burn rate” tables, which govern its voting recommendations on equity plan proposals. As described below, burn rate levels increased significantly for technology and life sciences companies. ISS also issued several “Frequently Asked Questions” […]
ISS Issues Policy Updates for 2011 Proxy Season
Institutional Shareholder Services, the prominent corporate governance advisory services firm, has updated its U.S. corporate governance policies for 2011. This latest annual update addresses, among other things, the corporate governance and executive compensation policies that ISS will use to determine its voting recommendations for its proxy advisory clients during the upcoming 2011 proxy season. As […]
Comparing the Executive Compensation Reform Proposals – An Update
On May 20, 2010, the United States Senate approved its proposed legislation to reform the financial services industry, the “Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010.” (While the legislation has the same bill number as the legislation approved by the House of Representatives in December 2009, the “Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of […]
Dissecting GRId
In February, RiskMetrics Group, Inc. (“RMG”), the prominent risk management and corporate governance services firm, introduced its Governance Risk Indicators (“GRId”) system, a new tool for assessing the corporate governance-related risks, including compensation-oriented risks, of public companies. GRId replaces RMG’s previous process for evaluating the corporate governance practices of the U.S. companies that it tracks, […]
10 Tips for Navigating the ISS Equity Plan Maze
When adopting or amending an employee stock plan, companies must spend considerable time and effort addressing the numerous strategic and design issues – the plan’s purpose and objectives, award types, eligible participants, liquidity alternatives, tax and accounting treatment – that such an undertaking entails. In recent years, an increasingly important aspect of the process has […]