For those of you that find some of my blogs somewhat technical at times, you should attend the Global Equity Organization Annual Conference and experience the world I live in. Just this morning’s sessions were enough to demonstrate how complex it can be to pay employees around the world with equity. If you’re really paying attention, your head will hurt at the end of each day, but it’s a good kind of hurt.
I wish I could summarize every session but until I pick others’ brains at tonight’s GEO Awards ceremony I’ll have to limit my comments to the sessions I attended.
Beyond the Great Wall – Case Studies
John Bagdonas and Warren Miles (Computershare) plus Cheryl Spielman (Ernst & Young) discussed the complexities of equity compensation in China. If you thought learning the language was the most challenging aspect of venturing to this nation, you haven’t designed and implemented an equity compensation plan there. For many years employers have faced uncertainties due to the lack of regulation there, and recent introduction of some rules hasn’t made things much better.
Ironically, PRC - with its communist worker-oriented philosophy - somehow overlooked in its recent legislation the need for accommodating all-employee share plans. Recognizing the critical role that equity-based compensation can play in encouraging growth and profitability of enterprises, the government is (finally) addressing the topic in its securities and tax laws to help companies understand the rules but their clarification is thus far limited to executives and “key” employees. Of course, many global equity professionals would argue that all employees are key employees, thus the basis for all-employee equity plans. There is still the challenge that PRC prohibits Chinese nationals from owning shares of foreign companies but one cannot find a law stating such restriction, which is somewhat funny until you have to deal with it.
Key points learned: What I also found humorous is that the PRC treats the Hong Kong Stock Exchange as a foreign exchange. Go figure.
Key terms you’ll need to know to converse on this topic: CSRC, Circular 35, SOE, Red Chips, SASAC.
The Impact of Section 409A on Global Equity Plans
This panel - Bill Dunn (PriceWaterhouseCoopers) and Frederic Singerman and David Weiner of Seyfarth Shaw - discussed how the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 and resulting US tax code Section 409A (the experts pronounce this “Four Oh Nine Cap A) continue to create jobs for lawyers, tax specialists, and consultants. Companies and their advisors are grappling with the complexity of a law intended to stem the abuse in nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements but resulted in unintended effects on equity compensation programs here and around the world. As difficult as this new set of rules has been for companies based and operating in the US, the implications for global firms are truly overwhelming. Mr. Dunn gave the example that a US citizen working in France and subject to taxation in the US who receives a non-discounted stock option there may receive what, under 409A, is a discounted option and have that option taxed at vesting (rather than at the time of exercise) as a result of the employer’s compliance with French law stating how options must be priced. Whew.
Key point learned: Continued uncertainty over the details of 409A creates an amazing minefield for companies pursuing even the simplest global equity plan designs. It’s ironic that many US firms failed in their attempt to export US-based equity plan designs to other countries, and now we are inadvertently exporting our tax rules, creating failures of otherwise successful plans.
Key terms you’ll need to know to converse on this topic: Four Oh Nine Cap A, transition rules, service recipient stock, permitted distribution, offshore funding.
Pleasing Institutional Investors – A Worldwide View
Damian Carnell and James Matthews of Towers Perrin (UK and US, respectively) presented a global perspective on a topic we read about every day in the US media: corporate governance - which is often manifested in stories about excessive executive pay. They point out, however, that the corporate governance movement had its roots decades ago in corporate scandals and actions unrelated to pay. In the US we are now accustomed to dealing with the influence of ISS and various institutional shareholders when seeking shareholder approval of equity plans. As one crosses international borders, the governance framework changes with varying reliance on legislation, regulation, stock exchange rules, and investor pressure, and disclosure. Also, I really liked their term “executive comp rehab” - not that any of my clients would ever need such intervention…
Key point learned: Interestingly, while many countries have incorporated their governance requirements into a single set of rules, the US has not, relying on a combination of stock exchange listing requirements, investors and proxy advisory firms’ guidelines, and various “blue ribbon” panels making it more difficult to understand just what the “rules” are particularly since many of them are in conflict with one another. You have to love the US’s free market approach to this!
Key terms you’ll need to know to converse on this topic: In the UK, ISS/RREV, Cadbury Code, Greenbury Code, Hampel Code, Combined Code, ABI, NAPF. There’s another set for each country and the list goes on.
Keynote: The Medici Effect: Groundbreaking Innovation
Frans Johansson (US)
I often miss the keynote general sessions but how could one not attend a session for which the introduction includes the teaser: “What do termites and architecture have in common? Music records and airlines? And what does any of this have to do with health-care, card-games or cooking? Most of us would assume nothing. But out of each of these seemingly random combinations have come groundbreaking ideas that have created whole new fields.” I thought I knew the unfortunate answer to the termites-architecture piece but found there was another angle I missed.
Mr. Johansson’s topic is particularly well-suited for a group of global equity professionals who come from a variety of technical backgrounds – accounting, tax, law, administration, human resources - and often stay siloed in their area as they think through equity compensation issues. We saw this over the past couple of years with the introduction of new accounting requirements for share-based payments (often labeled “option expensing”) that unfortunately have had a disproportionate impact on some companies’ equity plan designs to the exclusion of other financial considerations, strategic factors, and behavioral drivers. (Why, that’s exactly what I’m covering here in my presentation tomorrow at 2pm!) Diverse teams are the solution (Diversity Drives Innovation was a slide shown several times) says Mr. Johansson so I think that means that the accountants, lawyers, administrators, and even we consultants. need to step out of our siloes if we are going to provide innovative solutions for our clients and employers.
Key point learned: (1) All new ideas are combinations of existing ideas (2) People and teams that break new ground innovate and execute more ideas – the relationship between quantity and quantity of innovation.
Key terms you’ll need to know to converse on this topic: I think Mr. Johansson would prefer that you purchase his book to find this out (which you get for free if you attended this Conference). I already gave away his two key points and shouldn’t tell you his five key ideas for innovation.
Cops, Robbers, and Priests: Stock Plan Fraud and Ethics
Well didn’t these two - Carine Schneider (Smith Barney) and Emily Cervino (Certified Equity Professional Institute) - get lucky; one must choose one’s speaking topic many months in advance of the Conference and while stock plan fraud and ethics were already hot topics a few months ago, the recent scandals on stock option timing and backdating must have boosted interest in this session. Hopefully people didn’t misinterpret the fraud part of the title and think this was a “how-to” session as so many of the other Conference sessions are.
It actually was an excellent how-to session on the steps for avoiding becoming another poster child for stock plan fraud, a group which included in their session Cisco Systems, US Wireless, Mercury Interactive and HMT Technologies. I came away thinking that there is going to be a lot of blogging to do on this topic in the not-so-distant future.
Key Points Learned: I may be a bit sensitive on this point but the highest-fraud age group is 41-50 yet we, I mean they, are only third in the median value of frauds committed. The older the perpetrator the higher the median fraud amount – the over-60 group are the high performers here.
Key terms you’ll need to know to converse on this topic: Ends-based, acts-based, and duty-based principles; Section 302, Section 404, and – of course – SOX.
Someone will undoubtedly complain that while I listed the “key terms” I didn’t spell out the acronyms or define the terms. This is a blog, and if you were at the Conference today you’d already know!
Blog you tomorrow.
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