Category Archives: Retention agreements

Executives Cash in as Companies March Toward Bankruptcy 

Neiman Marcus is the latest company to raise eyebrows with a generous performance- and retention-based compensation plan for a group of executives at a time when the company itself is fighting for survival.    In July, investors, furloughed employees and bankruptcy trustee Henry Hobbs howled at the prospect of a $10 million compensation package for the high-end retailer’s CEO and a … Continue reading

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Backlash Builds for Noncompetes

For a generation of workers, noncompete agreements have steadily crept into more and more facets of the working world to the point that even low- and middle-wage earners are increasingly being asked to sign the agreements as a condition of … Continue reading

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In Buc-ee’s Retention Pay Squabble, Former Manager Scores Big Payback from Appellate Court

A Texas appellate court recently stiff-armed the Buc-ee’s convenience store chain for a poorly considered retention pay provision that amounted to “unenforceable restraints of trade.” The court’s interpretation of the retention pay provision is a learning opportunity for employers who … Continue reading

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NFL lessons for the C-Suite on succession planning, Exhibit 1: Tony Romo

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has himself in an ideal succession situation. He waited to draft the perfect candidate – Dak Prescott. He and can now let potential future star quarterback Prescott learn while aging star Tony Romo still has the ball. Boards and C-Suite folks should think like Jones: Keep your stars in place, but keep an eye on the future of the company. Continue reading

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What to do when your successful business unit is sold

Success is sometimes rewarded in strange ways, such as when a company sells off a highly profitable business unit in order to raise cash (as Nestle did when it bought Cadbury and as Barnes & Noble is considering doing with … Continue reading

Posted in CEOs, Change of Control Agreements, Dodd-Frank, Executive Compensation, Executive contracts, Legal, Retention agreements | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on What to do when your successful business unit is sold