Is this Queensland’s highest-paid CEO?
A QUEENSLAND technology company boss is among a league of high-paid Australian CEOs with easy access to lucrative bonus pay schemes, new research has revealed.
The Australian Council of Superannuation Investors will today publish its annual review of CEO pay in listed Australian companies.
It calculates 'realised pay', the value of cash and equity received by CEOs of the nation's top 200 ASX-listed companies.
The annual review reveals Craig Scroggie, chief executive officer of Queensland data company Next DC, was the fifth-highest paid in Australia.
Mr Scroggie received $12,515,914 in realised pay in the 2018 financial year.
He was Queensland's only CEO in the top 10.
Qantas Airways CEO Alan Joyce topped the list, with $23,876,351 in realised pay.
A positive share arrangement when Mr Joyce's
Mr Joyce was closely followed by Macquarie Group's Nicholas Moore, who received $23,855,580.
More than half of the CEOs on the ASX 100 (the largest 100 listed companies) received at least 70 per cent of their maximum bonus entitlement, research revealed.
Australian Council of Superannuation Investors CEO Louise Davidson said the data showed the nation's leaders were easily accessing bonus pay at a time when public trust in institutions had been undermined.
"The way bonuses are being handed out suggests there is a culture of entitlement whereby supposedly at-risk pay is not very risky at all," she said.
"These payments occurred in a year when the Royal Commission was in full swing, revealing evidence that executives were not being held accountable for poor conduct.
"Corporate Australia is not getting the message that bonus payments should be variable and awarded for stretch performance, rather than being fixed pay under another name.
"Investors want to see a greater focus from boards on assessing whether their existing incentive schemes are truly rewarding executives for exceptional performance, or just a top-up for meeting budget."
Ms Davidson highlighted "promising trends" in executive remuneration, however.
"We have seen several leading companies lowering remuneration for incoming CEOs, reducing cash pay by deferring incentives into equity, and ensuring that incentives are subject to malus or clawback provisions where there has been poor performance," she said.
HIGH FLYERS
Ten highest paid ASX200 CEOs in FY18
Alan Joyce (Qantas Airways) $23,876,351
Nicholas Moore (Macquarie Group) $23,855,580
Michael Clarke (Treasury Wine Estates) $19,024,334
Bob Vassie (St Barbara) $13,246,088
Craig Scroggie (Next DC) $12,515,914
Sandeep Biswas (Newcrest Mining) $12,083,392
Brian Benari (Challenger Group) $11,696,001
Raleigh Finlayson (Saracen Mineral Holdings) $11,284,256
Andrew Bassat (Seek) $10,744,472
Colin Goldschmidt (Sonic Healthcare) $10,017,376
Source: ACSI
