There is a heated debate about executive remuneration in Germany. However, so far there is little more than anecdotic evidence about the structure and size of compensation packages for executives in Germany. In this paper, we provide evidence on remuneration practices in the average German Prime...

While in the US stock-based incentives are commonly used since the 50s of the last century, in Germany they were invented only some ten years ago. Even in 1996 firms faced considerable regulatory difficulties when willing to grant such incentives. In the meantime the legal environment has...

We examine performance implications of stock-based incentive programs. While agency theory makes a strong case for stock-based incentives, empirical evidence of the effect on firm performance so far is mixed. Using a novel hand-collected data-set of German Prime Standard firms, we also find that...

We present selective results of an analysis of compensation practices in German Prime Standard firms in the period between 2005 and 2007. Four results emerge. First, analyses based on DAX30 firms lead to a biased view, since the amount as well as the structure of the executive compensation is...

Are there country-level differences in the use of pay-for-performance in executive compensation contracts? We investigate how formal country-level institutions affect pay-for-performance directly and if institutions have a moderating effect on the relation between ownership structure and...