The 2011 proxy season was marked by considerable interest in CEO pay due to the heightened scrutiny of executive compensation and Say-on-Pay (SOP) advisory votes. As has been the practice in recent years, major media sources and compensation advisors have released studies of CEO pay in 2010 based on analyses of proxy statements of prominent Fortune 500 companies. As these studies’ data and methodologies vary, their findings tend to be inconsistent. Given the stock market turbulence in recent weeks, and in consideration of the highly critical environment regarding executive pay in particular, we believe that such studies can draw strong reactions as certain media organizations use findings to emphasize their favorite themes. Continue reading →