IBM CEO Arvind Krishna’s earnings for 2023 revealed
Arvind Krishna
IBM’s Indian American Chairman and CEO, Arvind Krishna, received a significant increase in compensation in 2023 for meeting key financial objectives set by the tech giant’s board.
The Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur alumnus’ total compensation rose by 23 percent year-on-year to $20.398 million. This figure includes an unchanged base salary of $1.5 million, stock awards totaling $11.483 million, and the remaining amount consisting of non-equity incentive plans, as well as travel and security expenses.
These compensation details were disclosed in a proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ahead of the Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 30. It was first reported by The Register.
Shareholders will have the opportunity to vote on executive pay, as well as other matters such as appointing an independent accounting firm and requesting a report on lobbying activities.
READ: Arvind Krishna elected to New York Fed Board of Directors (May 5, 2022)
While Krishna’s salary was substantial, it pales in comparison to fellow Indian American Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and its parent company Alphabet.
Pichai earned $226 million in total compensation in 2022, making him one of the world’s highest-paid corporate leaders.
The 50-year-old Pichai received more than $218 million in the form of stock awards, according to a company securities filing. The Google boss also earned $2 million in base salary and $6.3 million in other compensation.
While IBM fell slightly short of its revenue goal for 2023, generating $61.9 billion against a target of $62.3 billion, it exceeded expectations in operating cash flow, reaching $12.7 billion compared to the targeted $12.3 billion. These metrics determined the payout under the Annual Incentive Plan.
The Performance Share Unit payout, embedded within the stock awards, was evaluated based on revenue, operating earnings per share, and free cash flow targets from 2021 to 2023.
Additionally, other IBM executives received substantial pay awards, with CFO James Kavanaugh receiving $11.68 million, Chief Commercial Officer RD Thomas receiving $10.3 million, and Vice Chairman Gary Cohn being paid $9.53 million.
