Mergers and Acquisitions Executives Get Biggest Raises, Watson Wyatt Data Services Reports

Total cash compensation for executives jumps 9.3 percent this year. Northeast Region executives enjoy highest prevalence of bonus payments.

ROCHELLE PARK, N.J., August 23, 2007 – Watson Wyatt Data Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Watson Wyatt Worldwide, today announced the publication of its 2007/2008 Survey Report on Top Management Compensation, now in its 58^th edition. The report covers a full range of top management/executive personnel, including banking and finance, human resources, general executive, e-Commerce/information technology/Internet services, operations/logistics, retail, international, marketing/sales/public relations, engineering/research and manufacturing, legal, operations/logistics, insurance, utilities and not-for-profit.

On average, salaries and total cash compensation for top management personnel rose 5.4 and 9.3 percent respectively within organizations responding both to this and last year’s (2006) survey.

A total of 16 individual positions (within the overall sample) received salary and/or total compensation increases that exceeded the overall salary/total compensation increase by 25 percent or more.  A total of 12 positions received salary increases of 11.4 percent or more:

• Chief Executive Officer
• Top Sector/Group Executive
• Top Mergers and Acquisitions Executive
• Top Real Estate Executive
• Top Tax Executive
• Top Training and Organizational Development Executive
• Top Diversity Executive
• Top Enterprise Resource Planning Executive
• Top Sales Executive (excluding Marketing)
• Top Legal Executive
• Top Supply Chain Executive
• Top Logistics Management Executive

Of all executives, those leading mergers and acquisitions activities received the largest increase in total cash compensation with an averaged 20.6 percent.

Only small differences existed among the five geographic regions regarding salary increases. The South Central Region, at 5.7 percent, showed the highest salary increase. Total pay increases were the highest in the Northeast and South Central Regions, where total cash compensation averaged more than 10.0 percent.
Within the industry sectors, the largest salary increase occurred in the Utilities and Energy Sector, where salaries grew by 5.9 percent. Total pay increases were the largest in the Retail and Wholesale Trade Sector, where increases in total cash compensation averaged 13.0 percent.

Bonus prevalence varied among industry sectors, as 57.9 percent of the Services Sector and 86 percent of Insurance Sector executives received bonuses in 2006. The largest bonus amount paid as a percentage of salary (100.9 percent) was earned by the Banking and Finance Sector.

This report is based on responses from 1,375 organizations, encompassing 2,309 locations and reporting data on 16,521 incumbents. A total of 131 geographic areas and 136 industry classifications are reported on in this year’s edition. 

The 2007/2008 Survey Report on Top Management Compensation is available online, on CD or in a printed book format.

About Watson Wyatt Data ServicesWatson Wyatt Data Services (WWDS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Watson Wyatt Worldwide, is a leading provider of compensation, benefits, and employment practices information to the global employer community.  From offices around the world, we solicit, analyze, and publish an extensive library of printed, interactive and online survey reports. Our compensation databases are recognized worldwide as the most reliable source of current data for compensation planning.

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Covering more than 80 countries across six continents, our data centers in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia, and Latin America annually compile reports on the remuneration, benefits, and employment practices of local and multinational companies.  Our “in-country” experts apply their local knowledge of the varied employment markets, practices, and customs to deliver a complete compensation picture that can be used to create sound, market-based pay programs for entire organizations. Our international databases contain compensation information covering millions of employees based on the annual survey participation of organizations ranging from emerging growth companies to many of the world’s largest conglomerates. 

In addition to compensation surveys, WWDS also publishes references that help HR practitioners attract, retain, and reward exceptional employees. These guides cover a wide variety of subject areas, including variable pay, performance management, and personnel policies on a local, regional, and global basis. For more information, visit our Web site at WWDS.com.