Pay Meets the Real World | Farient Briefings

April 29, 2026

Pay Meets the Real World

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As Proxy Season 2026 wraps, compensation committees are getting squeezed from every side: tariff uncertainty, tougher investor scrutiny, and AI-driven questions about what “pay for performance” even means.

In a recent conversation, Farient Advisors COO R.J. Bannister and Frazer Jones Principal Recruiter Alfredo Liro break down why target-setting is tougher, why one-off retention grants draw proxy-advisor heat, and why the CD&A now needs real storytelling – not a check-the-box framework.

Bottom line for compensation committees, CHROs, and Total Rewards leaders: sharpen the analytics and the narrative.

Scrap the Bird’s Nest: Farient Recommends SEC Slim Down PvP

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After two bruising proxy seasons, Farient Advisors is urging the SEC to stop debating repeal and start cutting: keep the one metric that can expose whether CEOs win when shareholders do—then strip the rest of the “bird’s nest” disclosure down to its bones.

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In the News

 

Could US-style 1,000% Bonuses Be Heading to the City—The Sunday Times

Simon Patterson, partner at Farient Advisors in London, sizes up the widening UK–US executive pay gap. UK leaders typically have fewer plans, less upside, and longer waits for payouts; US peers often have multiple vehicles and quicker access to rewards.

The result: a growing perception that London pays less – raising the stakes for competitiveness and global talent.

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The View From Our Canadian GECN Partner

 

A Question of Enforcement

Across markets, enforcement rules vary widely – clawbacks are a prime example. In Canada (unless dual-listed in the US), clawbacks are typically contractual and voluntary, making enforceability – and reputational risk – key considerations, reports an analysis by Southlea Group, Farient’s partner in the Global Governance and Executive Compensation Network (GECN).

About 190 of the 200+ companies in the S&P/TSX Composite Index have adopted a clawback policy (based on public disclosure). The open question: when a crisis hits, will those policies hold up?

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Madam Chair Retreat Recap

 

Farient CEO Robin Ferracone and Partner Angela Moe recently joined 25 public company chairs and lead directors at Madam Chair’s coveted retreat.

Alicia Syrett, the collaborative peer network’s founder and CEO, focused this year’s program in the Hamptons on CEO succession planning and related issues. The Farient team led a discussion on linking executive compensation to the talent agenda, detailing Farient’s holistic, data-driven, predictive approach to its global client engagements. 

Madam Chair supports women’s executive leadership by providing an off-the-record environment for candid exchanges among its 250-plus public company chairs and lead directors.

Stay updated on the latest topics shaping compensation and remuneration committee agendas in the new year. Follow us on LinkedIn and share Farient Briefings with your colleagues.

About Farient Advisors 

Farient Advisors LLC, a GECN Group company, is an independent premier executive compensation, performance, and corporate governance consultancy. Farient provides a full array of services linking business and talent strategy to compensation through a tailored, analytically rigorous, and collaborative approach. Farient has locations in Los Angeles, Newport Beach, New York, Louisville, and London and works with clients globally through its partnership in the Global Governance and Executive Compensation (GECN) Group. Farient is a certified diverse company and is recognized by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.

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