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The Slack-Jaw Reaction To Motorola’s Sanjay Jha’s Pay Package

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imageFallout from Motorola (NYSE: MOT) CEO Sanjay Jha’s pay package continues. Though the size of Jha’s pay package came out earlier this month causing many reporters and bloggers to ask then what had he done to deserve that level of compensation, the news that he is now the country’s highest earning CEO has sparked fresh controversy. In two separate CEO compensation surveys, one commissioned by the New York Times (NYSE: NYT) , the other by the Wall Street Journal, Jha’s pay was shown to be substantially higher than his other highly-paid peers. According to the nytimes.com, his package is $19.8 million higher than Oracle’s CEO Larry Ellison, who came second on their list, bringing home $84.6 million. On The WSJ.com’s list Jha’s compensation was double that of Occidental Petroleum’s CEO Ray R. Irani, who raked in $49.9 million.

Most reporters, bloggers and the readers commenting on the news asked again what the 46 year-old Jha, the former Qualcomm (NSDQ: QCOM) COO brought in last year to Motorola to turn things around, had actually done to earn that amount. Others found the amount staggeringly inappropriate given the economic crisis, and especially as the company is obviously still struggling. Those, just so you know, were the polite comments. As for Jha ever sitting down and actually answering what he’s doing to bring the company back from the dead, it’s clear this is just not going to happen anytime soon. Motorola, it seems, has him in lockdown, and though the nytimes asked for a number of interviews, its reporter was rebuffed on all occasions.

Still, it’s also important to point out that a vast majority of Jha’s $104.4 million—$103.5 million to be precise, is made up of restricted stock and options. Jha’s options have an exercise price of $9.82 the closing price of the company’s stock on August 4, the date they were awarded. At yesterday’s close they were trading at $4.69, making that $103.5 million currently worthless.

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Apr 7, 2009 7:33 AM ET

Posted In: Gadgets, Companies, Motorola, sanjay jha

  • Barney R

    Even talentless fools like Zander and Brown could lay people off—for a lot less money.  HOW his this guy GROWN business?  As I see it, he's just throwing people off the lifeboat so the food lasts a few weeks longer.

  • John

    So is this guy really worth this kind of money?  To date his most significant accomplishment is to fire over 8,000 employees and lose over #2.0B USD.
    We are told that companies have to pay these package to 'attract top talent.'  Seems that anyone could preside over this disaster-for alot less money.

  • Bob

    >> shouldn’t we wait ‘til he actually has gotten to a point where he can cash in above-water stock/shares before we skewer him?!

    Why put off to tomorrow what can be done today?

  • Chris

    Maybe I'm looking at this the wrong way, but is he really the "highest earning CEO?"  Currently all that he is "earning" is his salary—his restricted stock and options are deferred compensation that may or may not come to fruition.  Yes the potential pay out of $103.5 million is extremely excessive, but shouldn't we wait 'til he actually has gotten to a point where he can cash in above-water stock/shares before we skewer him?!

  • Bahmin' Brahmin

    Well, the $103 isn't exactly worthless.  There's a big difference between Restricted Stock and Options.  If the majority is restricted stock and the only restriction is time, then once the grants vest, he owns the stock outright (there is no strike price).

    It does seem excessive

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