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CEO Horizon, Optimal Pay Duration, and the Escalation of Short‐Termism

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  • IVAN MARINOVIC
  • FELIPE VARAS

Abstract

This paper studies optimal contracts when managers manipulate their performance measure at the expense of firm value. Optimal contracts defer compensation. The manager's incentives vest over time at an increasing rate, and compensation becomes very sensitive to short‐term performance. This generates an endogenous horizon problem whereby managers intensify performance manipulation in their final years in office. Contracts are designed to encourage effort while minimizing the adverse effects of manipulation. We characterize the optimal mix of short‐ and long‐term compensation along the manager's tenure, the optimal vesting period of incentive pay, and the dynamics of short‐termism over the CEO's tenure.

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  • Ivan Marinovic & Felipe Varas, 2019. "CEO Horizon, Optimal Pay Duration, and the Escalation of Short‐Termism," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 74(4), pages 2011-2053, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jfinan:v:74:y:2019:i:4:p:2011-2053
    DOI: 10.1111/jofi.12770
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    Cited by:

    1. Lel, Ugur & Tepe, Mete, 2021. "Investor horizon and managerial short-termism," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 1-20.
    2. Kwon, Shin Hyoung & Kim, Joongseo & Yim, Hyunsoon (Sean), 2023. "Looking far or close: The explanatory role of myopic management in the relationship between CEO-TMT power disparity and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    3. Mayer, Simon, 2022. "Financing breakthroughs under failure risk," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(3), pages 807-848.
    4. Cetemen, Doruk & Feng, Felix Zhiyu & Urgun, Can, 2023. "Renegotiation and dynamic inconsistency: Contracting with non-exponential discounting," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 208(C).
    5. Buchanan, Bonnie G. & Cao, Cathy Xuying & Wang, Shuhui, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and inside debt: The long game," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    6. Lili Ding & Zhongchao Zhao & Lei Wang, 2020. "Executive Incentives Matter for Corporate Social Responsibility under Earnings Pressure and Institutional Investors Supervision," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-22, March.
    7. Lingfei Kong & Gunratan Lonare & Ahmet Nart, 2022. "Industry tournament incentives and corporate innovation strategies," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 45(1), pages 124-161, March.
    8. Małgorzata Janicka & Aleksandra Pieloch-Babiarz & Artur Sajnóg, 2020. "Does Short-Termism Influence the Market Value of Companies? Evidence from EU Countries," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-22, November.
    9. Aktas, Nihat & Boone, Audra & Croci, Ettore & Signori, Andrea, 2021. "Reductions in CEO career horizons and corporate policies," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    10. Michael Haylock, 2022. "Distributional differences in the time horizon of executive compensation," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 62(1), pages 157-186, January.
    11. Gryglewicz, Sebastian & Mayer, Simon & Morellec, Erwan, 2020. "Agency conflicts and short- versus long-termism in corporate policies," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(3), pages 718-742.
    12. Malgorzata Janicka & Artur Sajnog, 2021. "The European Union’s Environmental Policy and Long-Term Investments of Enterprises," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(4B), pages 335-355.
    13. Fouad Ben Abdelaziz & Souhir Neifar & Khamoussi Halioui, 2022. "Multilevel optimal managerial incentives and audit fees to limit earnings management practices," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 311(2), pages 587-610, April.
    14. Bertomeu, Jeremy & Marinovic, Iván & Terry, Stephen J. & Varas, Felipe, 2022. "The dynamics of concealment," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(1), pages 227-246.
    15. Małgorzata Janicka & Artur Sajnóg, 2022. "The ESG Reporting of EU Public Companies—Does the Company’s Capitalisation Matter?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-17, April.
    16. Xiong, Yan & Jiang, Xu, 2022. "Economic consequences of managerial compensation contract disclosure," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(2).
    17. Szydlowski, Martin & Yoon, Ji Hee, 2022. "Ambiguity in dynamic contracts," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 199(C).
    18. Fu, Xudong & Huang, Minjie & Tang, Tian, 2022. "Duration of executive compensation and maturity structure of corporate debt," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    19. Pollock, Susan & Switzer, Lorne N. & Wang, Jun, 2023. "The dynamics of CEO equity vs. inside debt and firm performance," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    20. Haylock, Michael, 2020. "Executives' short-term and long-term incentives - a distributional analysis," University of Tübingen Working Papers in Business and Economics 131, University of Tuebingen, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, School of Business and Economics.

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