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by dvt 335 days ago
I don't necessarily mean financial risk (though tbh, even the golden parachutes you cite are often a drop in the bucket compared to the market cap of these companies), but there's a lot of legal risk involved: think testifying to Congress, embroilments with the FTC/FCC, etc., dealing with a board of directors, navigating potential hostile takeovers or activist investors, etc. My point is that it's just a different ball game and being a CEO of a public company simply isn't the same thing as being an accountant that works 9-5.

I personally have significantly more of a problem with Congress having no term limits and being able to trade on the very market they're regulating.
3 comments
buerkle 335 days ago
I disagree with term limits. I'd prefer to see the number of representatives vastly increased (no increase since 1929) and gerrymandering removed. I do agree they should not trade on the market.

I think you misunderstand the risk that non-CEO employees are exposed as cycomanic pointed out. CEOs that make this much money are more capable of defending themselves than a regular employee, not only from their wealth but from their network. It's rare that a CEO has to testify to Congress, or deal with FTC/FCC, etc. And dealing with BOD, hostile takeovers, or activist investors pales in comparison to what many people deal with day to day. A CEO is not going to go homeless from a hostile takeover.

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mattmanser 335 days ago
Where are these CEO convictions then? If there's this "risk"? And please don't cite deliberate fraudsters like Holmes or SBF.

And what conviction length do those tiny few who get convicted of aomething actually get?

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dvt 335 days ago
> Where are these CEO convictions then?

Not sure if this is rhetorical, but there are Wiki entries, investigative articles, documentaries, and even entire books dedicated to corporate malpractice and its consequences over the past century.

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cycomanic 335 days ago
But now you are talking about malpractice. I would argue a regular employee is just much exposed to legal risk. I would argue that their risk is actually higher, because they don't have a full office of corporate lawyers to defend them.

Take the VW Diesel scandal, several engineers went to jail over this. In contrast Winterkorn has been charged, but AFAIK the case has been suspended and I'm not sure if it will ever go forward.

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gitremote 335 days ago
Non-CEO employees like lawyers and corporate accountants have legal risks too and could be subpoenaed.
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