Pampered Lot

From global family insurance to minimum tenure, India Inc. is going out of the way to keep its honchos happy. But not all perks are in black and white.

- Rashmi Pratap And Aprajita Sharma

GUENTER BUTSCHEK, the CEO of Tata Motors, draws an annual basic salary of 2.5 crore. But his perks and allowances total about 13 crore. With incentives and retirement benefits, his remuneration adds up to a little over Ì€ 26 crore. That’s not all. In case the company initiates termination of his service before the end of his term (for reasons other than the violation of the Tata Code of Conduct), he will be entitled to severance pay for 12 months or the balance term of the agreement, whichever is less. HUL Managing Director Sanjiv Mehta’s annual salary is 6.96 crore but he received profits of 5.6 crore in lieu of salary in 2017/18, besides other perks worth over 1 crore. He also has stock options valued at Ì€ 5.43 crore. In all, the amount comes to over 19 crore.

Clearly, when you are in the driver’s seat of marquee names in India Inc., pampering G is inevitable. And the bigger the company, the higher the benefits — which were traditionally defined as perquisites but now encompass everything the company does to keep the person at the helm happy and healthy.

“CEOs need to be taken care of. Corporate boards think CEOs must be completely immersed in work and not worry about exigencies or future requirements. Perquisites are a way to plug the gaps in creating the best support system for CEOs,” says R. Suresh, the founder of boutique search and consulting firm INSIST Executive Search. “Perquisites are a way to make the top job lucrative and hold back CEOs by giving benefits in kind,” says Pankaj Dutt, Managing Partner of Alexander Hughes’ India and Malaysia operations.