Executive Rewards and Board Advisory Services
Executive Compensation Consulting
Practice Overview
Aon is a leading provider of executive compensation consulting services, with the largest market share in North America among named compensation advisors based on a review of proxy statements in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Our team, including more than 240 professionals worldwide, supports more than 1,800 clients each year spanning boards of directors and management teams at both private and public companies across a wide range of industries.
Backed by deep subject matter expertise, our consultants work with directors and executives to design competitive executive compensation and benefits programs that attract, incentivize and retain high-performing leaders, navigate an increasingly complex regulatory landscape, align management and shareholder interests, and improve shareholder value over the long term.
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1800+
Clients, ranging from large Fortune 250 enterprises to high-growth pre-IPO companies.
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240+
Executive compensation, corporate governance, and equity strategy colleagues worldwide.
Today's Landscape: Executive Compensation Remains in the Spotlight
Organizations face a myriad of challenges related to executive compensation and corporate governance, including motivating leaders to drive profitable business growth in the face of rising market volatility and systemic risk, striking the right balance between business and shareholder needs, and navigating a brighter spotlight on executive and board of director pay practices.
Plus, new and increasingly complex disclosure requirements add to the pressure by asking companies to explain and defend peer group, pay for performance, ESG, and human capital strategy decisions in more detail, among many other topics. Finally, shareholder votes on board of director slates, say-on-pay and equity compensation plans offer more frequent opportunities for stakeholders to express concerns and require careful preparation and a strong shareholder engagement strategy.
Why Work With Aon
Aon partners with organizations at every stage of their journey to address the challenges cited above. We do this by designing executive compensation programs that are competitive, compelling, aligned with business performance goals and directly linked to shareholder value creation.
We also leverage market-leading executive compensation insights on behalf of our clients, powered by the Radford McLagan Compensation Database, to make informed, market-aligned decisions. Our practice is also directly connected to dedicated corporate governance, ESG, and equity strategy experts who can supplement your account team when needed to address critical technical and shareholder issues.
Our core services include:
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Compensation Philosophy Development
We partner with companies to develop executive compensation philosophies that determine how to pay and reward top-performing executives, ensuring the firm's executive pay structure aligns with the company’s overall business strategy.
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Executive Compensation Benchmarking
We partner with companies on executive compensation benchmarking and design including base salary recommendations for executives; valuation; performance monitoring and award tracking; communication; disclosure; risk mitigation; and annual compensation risk assessment support.
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Short- and Long-Term Incentive Plan Design
Our team partners with clients on short- and long-term executive incentive plan designs, identifying appropriate target incentives payouts tied to performance while protecting shareholder interests and remaining compliant with proxy advisor guidance. We also advise on cash and equity-based programs and metrics selection, including equity award valuation and performance tracking, equity mix and vesting schedules, performance-based equity awards, and retention analyses including stock ownership guidelines.
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Executive Benefits
We have professionals with expertise in tax, accounting, law, actuarial science and finance who focus on benefits programs for highly compensated employees and provide consulting, implementation and ongoing administration services. To learn more, click here.
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Executive Retirement Plans
In addition to traditional defined contribution plans and broad-based pension plans, our team engages with firms to create tailored executive retirement plans focused on supplemental income and navigation of retirement fund contribution limitations. Additionally, we provide guidance on employment contract review, severance and change-in-control programs and provisions, and more.
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Predictive Proxy Advisory Firm Analytics
Our team helps clients with pay-for-performance assessments and modelling, and share request proposal support; legal and regulatory compliance support, including listing exchange and tax and accounting implications; and environmental, social and governance (ESG) and human capital management support.
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Support Through Transactions and Special Situations
Our team supports companies through any stage of change — including IPO planning and readiness; global expansion or rapid growth; financial contraction or bankruptcy; and divestitures, spin-offs, and mergers and acquisitions.
Connected Services
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Corporate Governance Consulting
Supplement your executive compensation strategy with comprehensive corporate governance and ESG support from Aon, including a team of experts well-versed in pay vs. performance analysis, proxy analysis, shareholder guidelines, ESG disclosures and more.
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Equity Compensation Services
Equity awards are a vital component of executive compensation, but they can be incredibly complex to design and manage. At Aon, we provide clients with focused expertise on equity plan design, equity communication, equity valuation and financial reporting.
Client Alerts
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