What a huge CEO salary would buy you

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Barry Diller, chief executive of IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI, news, msgs), oversees the company that runs Home Shopping Network -- where thousands of consumers tune in every day to spend (and thus save) money.

What do they buy? One popular item on HSN.com now is a cool digital camera that's small enough to fit on a keychain and sells for -- you guessed it -- $19.95(!) at the Home Shopping Network Web site.

Diller, we assume, doesn't have the $20 camera rattling around in his pocket. The IAC CEO, after all, took home $295 million last year in total compensation, making him one of the highest paid CEOs in the world.

But what do such numbers really mean? It's easy enough to figure out what you can do with a $50,000-a-year salary (not much, in most cities). Diller's $300 million? Not so easy.

So here it is, the MSN Money guide to what over-the-top CEO salaries will really buy.

And it starts with Diller and his $20 camera. He earned enough before taxes last year to buy every person in New York and Los Angeles one of those keychain digital cameras. The total of 14.7 million cameras would almost put one in the hands of every resident of Chicago, too.

Bringing up babies

Diller isn't the only CEO who last year raked in what, for the average worker, would be unfathomable buying power. Capital One Financial (COF, news, msgs) Chairman and CEO Richard Fairbank earned $280 million, according to Salary.com's CompAnalyst Executive. As with Diller's bloated pay package, Fairbank's pay was the result of a huge windfall from cashed-out stock options. Here's a look at his buying power:

* Americans are piling up credit card debt at Fairbank's company, some to help meet the rising costs of bringing up their children. Fairbank made enough money last year, before taxes, to raise 1,467 children through the age of 18, based on an Agriculture Department estimate that it takes $190,980 to do the job.

* His pay last year was enough to cover four years of public-university education -- with an average total tuition bill of $21,964 -- for 12,752 students.

* Fairbank earned enough to pay off the credit card debt of 32,000 Americans, based on an average outstanding balance of $8,536 in the country.

"What are they, kings? It's crazy," says Don Hodges, president of the Hodges Fund (HDPMX, news, msgs), a money manager who looks closely at CEO pay when assessing potential investments. "I just don't understand how these guys can even rationalize themselves. How can they look their employees in the eye?"

Hodges says the problem of excessive CEO pay usually comes about because boards of directors are too weak to stand up to pay demands from top executives. "Any board that would let this kind of thing happen is made up of wimps."

Minimum wage for 26,000 years

Here's another way to think about these enormous pay packages. Becoming a millionaire will probably only ever be a distant dream for the average American. But for these two CEOs, it was a dream that came true every single day last year, when each of them pulled in more than $1.1 million a day, before taxes. This assumes they worked all weekdays and took little vacation time -- as you might expect from a busy CEO.

Breadwinners in the average American household would have to work more than 51 centuries just to make what either of these two top execs earned last year alone. The average American household brought in $54,453 in 2004, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Inves...ouldBuyYou.aspx

[Fandango 1,439]

So?

[mawilson 2,133]

Yeah, yeah, they're rich and we're not. That's why they are CEO's of multi-billion dollar

corporations -- because they are out there busy thinking up new ways to make money

while we're sitting here posting messages on VJ all day long.

[Fandango 1,439]

Yeah, yeah, they're rich and we're not. That's why they are CEO's of multi-billion dollar

corporations -- because they are out there busy thinking up new ways to make money

while we're sitting here posting messages on VJ all day long.

LOL!!!

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

Thing about Diller is that all his employees -- from the secretary to the EVP are all really well paid and get huge bonuses. He's kind of unusual like that.

[almaty 19]

Thing about Diller is that all his employees -- from the secretary to the EVP are all really well paid and get huge bonuses. He's kind of unusual like that.

good for him on that

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

i'd buy me a huge flat screen monitor so i can surf vj more better.

Daniel

:energetic:

*scans around for alex*

Edited October 26, 2006 by AnaAndDaniel

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

"What are they, kings? It's crazy," says Don Hodges, president of the Hodges Fund (HDPMX, news, msgs), a money manager who looks closely at CEO pay when assessing potential investments. "I just don't understand how these guys can even rationalize themselves. How can they look their employees in the eye?"

They usually don't.

Hodges says the problem of excessive CEO pay usually comes about because boards of directors are too weak to stand up to pay demands from top executives. "Any board that would let this kind of thing happen is made up of wimps."

I'd disagree on this one. The boards are usually made up of them. They (or their buddies) sit on each other's boards and that's how this ####### happens. It's a clan and they simply fill each other's pockets.

Breadwinners in the average American household would have to work more than 51 centuries just to make what either of these two top execs earned last year alone. The average American household brought in $54,453 in 2004, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Seems plenty fair, doesn't it? [/sarcasm]

And those guys then sit there crying about being burdened with an unfair share of the cost to run and keep up the country? That's adding insult to injury. Really.

[Alex+R 0]

Yeah, yeah, they're rich and we're not. That's why they are CEO's of multi-billion dollar

corporations -- because they are out there busy thinking up new ways to make money

while we're sitting here posting messages on VJ all day long.

Yes, they are also CEOs of these companies because of their ability to manage money so well. 300 million dollars. You know, if I were in that position, I'd probably just blow it all on those keychain cameras...

[almaty 19]

i'd buy me a huge flat screen monitor so i can surf vj more better.

Daniel

:energetic:

*scans around for alex*

capital plan

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

i'd buy me a huge flat screen monitor so i can surf vj more better.

Daniel

:energetic:

*scans around for alex*

capital plan

i know it.

Daniel

:energetic:

[Heracles 417]

Yeah, yeah, they're rich and we're not. That's why they are CEO's of multi-billion dollar

corporations -- because they are out there busy thinking up new ways to make money

while we're sitting here posting messages on VJ all day long.

[Carol&Marc 0]

Barry Diller, chief executive of IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI, news, msgs), oversees the company that runs Home Shopping Network -- where thousands of consumers tune in every day to spend (and thus save) money.

What do they buy? One popular item on HSN.com now is a cool digital camera that's small enough to fit on a keychain and sells for -- you guessed it -- $19.95(!) at the Home Shopping Network Web site.

Diller, we assume, doesn't have the $20 camera rattling around in his pocket. The IAC CEO, after all, took home $295 million last year in total compensation, making him one of the highest paid CEOs in the world.

But what do such numbers really mean? It's easy enough to figure out what you can do with a $50,000-a-year salary (not much, in most cities). Diller's $300 million? Not so easy.

So here it is, the MSN Money guide to what over-the-top CEO salaries will really buy.

And it starts with Diller and his $20 camera. He earned enough before taxes last year to buy every person in New York and Los Angeles one of those keychain digital cameras. The total of 14.7 million cameras would almost put one in the hands of every resident of Chicago, too.

Bringing up babies

Diller isn't the only CEO who last year raked in what, for the average worker, would be unfathomable buying power. Capital One Financial (COF, news, msgs) Chairman and CEO Richard Fairbank earned $280 million, according to Salary.com's CompAnalyst Executive. As with Diller's bloated pay package, Fairbank's pay was the result of a huge windfall from cashed-out stock options. Here's a look at his buying power:

* Americans are piling up credit card debt at Fairbank's company, some to help meet the rising costs of bringing up their children. Fairbank made enough money last year, before taxes, to raise 1,467 children through the age of 18, based on an Agriculture Department estimate that it takes $190,980 to do the job.

* His pay last year was enough to cover four years of public-university education -- with an average total tuition bill of $21,964 -- for 12,752 students.

* Fairbank earned enough to pay off the credit card debt of 32,000 Americans, based on an average outstanding balance of $8,536 in the country.

"What are they, kings? It's crazy," says Don Hodges, president of the Hodges Fund (HDPMX, news, msgs), a money manager who looks closely at CEO pay when assessing potential investments. "I just don't understand how these guys can even rationalize themselves. How can they look their employees in the eye?"

Hodges says the problem of excessive CEO pay usually comes about because boards of directors are too weak to stand up to pay demands from top executives. "Any board that would let this kind of thing happen is made up of wimps."

Minimum wage for 26,000 years

Here's another way to think about these enormous pay packages. Becoming a millionaire will probably only ever be a distant dream for the average American. But for these two CEOs, it was a dream that came true every single day last year, when each of them pulled in more than $1.1 million a day, before taxes. This assumes they worked all weekdays and took little vacation time -- as you might expect from a busy CEO.

Breadwinners in the average American household would have to work more than 51 centuries just to make what either of these two top execs earned last year alone. The average American household brought in $54,453 in 2004, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Inves...ouldBuyYou.aspx

Steve, just givem a call and ask for a few bucks

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Boards of directors are responsible for setting CEO pay. Too often, directors have awarded compensation packages that go well beyond what is required to attract and retain executives and have rewarded even poorly performing CEOs. These executive pay excesses come at the expense of shareholders as well as the company and its employees.

Excessive CEO pay takes dollars out of the pockets of shareholders—including the retirement savings of America’s working families. Moreover, a poorly designed executive compensation package can reward decisions that are not in the long-term interests of a company, its shareholders and employees.

For example, recent scholarly studies have linked CEO stock options to accounting fraud and other financial restatements.[2] Stock option grants promise executives all the benefit of share price increases with none of the risk of share price declines. For this reason, stock options can serve as powerful incentive for executives to cook the books.

Some CEOs may have far greater control over their pay than anybody previously suspected. According to new research, certain CEOs may be backdating their own stock option grants to maximize their value. According to The Wall Street Journal, “Year after year, some companies’ top executives received options on unusually propitious dates.”[3]

Excessive CEO pay is fundamentally a corporate governance problem. When CEOs have too much power in the boardroom, they are able to extract what economists’ call “economic rents” from shareholders—the equivalent of monopoly profits. These rents are known as “agency costs,” and arise from the separation of ownership and control.

The board of directors is supposed to protect shareholder interests and minimize these agency costs. However, at approximately two-thirds of companies, the CEO is the board’s chair. When one single person serves as both chair and CEO, it is impossible to objectively monitor and evaluate his or her own performance.

CEOs also dominate the election of directors. The vast majority of directors are hand-picked by incumbent management. Because of the proxy rules, it is cost prohibitive for shareholders to run their own director candidates. Moreover, even if a majority of shareholders withhold support from directors, they are still elected to the board at most companies.

Ultimately, shareholders have to be able to trust their boards of directors to set responsible CEO pay packages. For this reason, CEO pay will be reformed only when corporate boards are made more accountable. Until then, CEOs will continue to influence the size and form of their own compensation, and CEO pay will continue to rise.

http://www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/paywatch/pay/index.cfm

[Carol&Marc 0]

Steve your thinking backwards heres a little inspiration

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12978802/

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/...articleID=12776

http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar.../609140301/1046