A Delaware Court Wrongly Stripped Billions from Elon Musk

In 2018, when the company’s market capitalization was about $45 billion, Tesla shareholders approved a new compensation package for Elon Musk. By any measure, the package was extraordinary. It came in 12 tranches, each equal to 1 percent of the company’s outstanding common stock. To receive his payments, Musk had to boost Tesla’s market cap by $50 billion for each installment—more than the market capitalization of General Motors at the time. Thus, to earn all 12 tranches, Musk, who already owned about 22 percent of the company’s shares, needed to grow Tesla’s value from $45 billion to $645 billion. If he did that, he would receive stock in the company worth about $56 billion—the largest potential compensation package in American history, but less than 10 percent of the potential $600 billion gain to shareholders. READ MORE

How Stablecoin Salaries Can Change Employee Compensation

In a time where inflation eats away at our wallets, stablecoin salaries seem like a shining light for those of us hoping for some financial certainty. These digital coins, tied to stable assets, could be just what we need to not only keep our wages intact but also make payroll smoother. So let's chat about how stablecoin salaries can shift the way we think about employee pay, what advantages they bring to both sides, and the bumps we might hit along the way. READ MORE

Want A Team That Thinks Like Owners? Variable Compensation Is The Answer

I recently tied the bonus of our VP of engineering to our ARR target. Initially, he said I was insane. But six months later, he thanked me. The distinct mindset shift — from owning a function to owning the outcome — changed everything.

Startups are under more pressure than ever to hit revenue milestones with leaner teams. Yet compensation models don’t always reflect this. It’s common for sales teams to chase bonuses while the rest of the organization operates on fixed salaries, detached from the company’s growth. That’s a missed opportunity. READ MORE

Why Gratitude In The Workplace Is Crucial—And Part Of Compensation

Gratitude is not just transactional reinforcement, it’s a connection between people. It affirms belonging, value, and shared purpose. Gratitude also humanizes work, affirming not just what someone did, but who they are and where they belong. It affirms alignment, partnership, and dignity. That is the intersection of strategy and psychology—a space too often overlooked in leadership writing. READ MORE

One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s Qualified Overtime Compensation Deduction

The Qualified Overtime Compensation (QOC) deduction rules—codified in new Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 225—provide a potential federal income tax deduction of $12,500 per year for qualifying taxpayers who file a Form 1040 individual income tax return under the “single” filing status, while qualifying taxpayers who file a Form 1040 individual income tax return under the “married-filing-jointly” status may be able to claim a maximum QOC deduction of $25,000 per year. READ MORE

Feeling underpaid at work? Here's how to navigate salary frustration in 2025.

Many American workers still feel they’re not paid what they’re worth, despite modest improvements in compensation trends in 2025. According to new data from HR tech company Energage, just 69% of employees feel their pay is fair — making pay one of the least satisfying parts of the workplace experience.

What’s behind the frustration? Economic pressures like inflation and rising costs are eroding perceived gains. “Salaries aren’t keeping up with inflation,” says Sam DeMase, a career expert at ZipRecruiter. “While workers may feel like they’re earning more due to pay increases, their purchasing power remains stagnant.” READ MORE

BLS commissioner salary: How much did McEntarfer make before Trump fired her

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is an independent statistical agency that compiles and releases key U.S. economic data, such as employment and inflation. It operates under a much larger agency of the U.S. government, the Department of Labor.

The person who oversees the statistics bureau is the Commissioner of Labor Statistics and also goes by the title of the Statistical Official for the Department of Labor. The August 2025 ouster of the statistics chief by President Trump called into question the independence of the bureau, and now many Americans are wondering what will happen next and who will be appointed. READ MORE

A Quality Exec Comp Plan Lowers The Risk Of Investing In JBSS

Incentives play a critical role in shaping behavior. When a company ties executive compensation to revenue growth or flawed metrics like adjusted EBITDA, it’s only natural that executives will prioritize those targets.

However, growing revenue or adjusted EBITDA without regard for real profits undermines the company’s long-term financial health. It also destroys shareholder value. READ MORE

Stablecoin Salaries: The New Frontier in Employee Compensation

If you’ve been keeping an eye on the evolving landscape of employee compensation, you might have noticed a rising trend that’s beginning to take shape: stablecoin salaries. As economic uncertainty continues to cast a shadow over traditional financial systems, many workers are leaning towards receiving their pay in stablecoins. Why? Because they’re looking for a little predictability in this chaotic world. READ MORE

Battles over CEO pay across the globe

Tesla (TSLA.O) on Monday granted CEO Elon Musk 96 million new shares valued at about $29 billion, reinforcing his leadership as he contends with a court ruling that voided his original, shareholder-disputed compensation package.

In 2024, a Delaware judge struck down Musk's 2018 compensation plan - worth more than $50 billion - for a second time, citing a flawed board approval process that failed to protect shareholder interests. READ MORE

Creating a winning compensation plan: How to align people, pay, and performance

When founders design compensation plans, they often take a narrow view, limiting performance-based pay to sales teams. This stems from the misguided belief that only salespeople are motivated by money. In reality, most people are driven by the opportunity to earn more through success. The problem isn’t performance pay, it’s the flawed assumption that it must come with little or no base salary. 

It’s time to rethink compensation with a simple principle: When the company wins, everyone should win.Let’s explore how top organizations apply this across every discipline. READ MORE

Tesla awards Musk $29 billion in shares with prior pay package in limbo

Tesla’s board has awarded CEO Elon Musk an interim pay package of 96 million shares, according to a filing out Monday, which would be worth about $29 billion.

The company said in the filing that Musk’s new package will include shares that vest in two years as long as he continues as CEO or in another key executive position. The award will be forfeited if the legal battle over Musk’s 2018 compensation ends with him being able to exercise shares from that package, which was valued at $56 billion when it vested. (READ MORE)

Perception Is Everything: The Path to Pay Confidence

Your employees’ views on the fairness of their pay may stem from much more than the number they see on their paychecks.

According to a 2025 Fair Pay Impact ReportOpen in a new tab by compensation software and data company Payscale, 68% of surveyed workers believe they’re underpaid — even when they’re paid at or above market rates. Among workers paid directly at the market rate, 63% think they’re paid below market; but even among employees making above market, 47% have the same belief. Payscale analyzed data from more than 325,000 respondents in an online salary survey taken between Jan. 1, 2021, and Jan. 1, 2025. READ MORE

Gallagher Predicts ‘Moderate’ Approach to 2026 Salary Increase Budgets

In response to fluctuating economic conditions, a cooling labor market, and growing expectations around pay equity and transparency, U.S. employers are taking a moderate approach toward their 2026 salary increase budgets, according to a new report from Gallagher.

The risk management and consulting firm’s “2025/2026 Salary Planning Report” revealed participating organizations are forecasting fiscal year 2026 average total pay increases of: READ MORE

The Overlooked Elements of Executive Pay: Perquisites, Retirement and Severance

While perquisites, retirement and severance are not ordinarily an annual focus of Compensation Committees, these non-core elements can play a critical role in crafting executive compensation programs that enable companies to achieve their strategic goals and objectives. This issue of the Beacon looks at these non-core elements, outlines important committee considerations and highlights the questions committees should ask when evaluating these non-core elements.

When people think of executive compensation, they naturally think of salaries, annual bonuses, and long-term incentives. While these are the foundational elements of pay that predominantly occupy Compensation Committees’ time and attention. The non-core elements play a material role in retention, motivation and governance. READ MORE