A substantial number of empirical studies on the linear relationship between executive compensation and firm performance for European firms suggest that the pay-performance sensitivity is not significantly positive. We argue that a nonlinear structure fits the data better, because compensation...

n this paper we examine the agency costs of seemingly excessive pay awards to CEO's within the FTSE 100 in the last decade. Are CEOs taking a large proportion of the total pot (a big "pay slice") more, or less, able to return value to shareholders by better management? In presenting this...

Executive remuneration is often criticised as being excessive and not clearly linked to firm performance. This study further examines the link between pay and performance by examining the impact of promotion-based tournament incentives. Our hypotheses draw on tournament theory of labour...

Disclosure rules for the Korean Stock Exchange require Korean firms to disclose average executive and employee pay. These disclosures provide a unique opportunity to examine factors influencing the executive pay multiple (executive-employee pay disparity) and its effects on performance. We find...

Many companies spend substantial resources in order to be viewed as socially responsible. We argue that one reason firms do this is to create a warm glow about the firm and thereby affect employee behavior and improve performance. This proposition is tested with an incomplete contract...

Agency theory argues that pay-performance sensitivity should be negatively associated with risk. Yet, empirical studies have reported mixed findings on this relationship, which may be attributable to such confounding factors as different levels of delegation and monitoring costs. Extending prior...

This paper analyzes CEO compensation in years around and including exceptionally good and poor performance. Using compensation data from 1993 through 2003, the results suggest CEOs are able to increase their compensation before exceptionally bad performance through the timing of option...

This paper seeks to explore how an agent's incentives to perform influences her performance. We analyze this question in a simple principal-agent model, where the agent chooses how much effort to invest and which project to implement. We show that the relationship between the incentives to...

Our study presents evidence that social comparison influences both the level of pay and the degree of performance sensitivity within firms. We report pay patterns among division managers of large, multi-business firms over a fourteen-year period. These patterns are consistent with employees...

We show that CEOs of prestigious firms earn less. Total compensation is on average 8% lower for firms listed in Fortune's ranking of America's most admired companies. We suggest that CEOs are willing to trade off status and career benefits from working for a publicly admired company against...