During the past year, executive compensation packages have come under increased scrutiny at organizations across the country. While many companies are making efforts to cut back on the overall cost of executive compensation, offering perquisites that ensure the effectiveness of their employees is gaining momentum.

The newly released Executive Compensation 2009/2010 survey found supplemental medical coverage is offered to 32.7 percent of Chief Executive Officers, nationally. Supplemental coverage is also provided to Chief Financial Officers and Chief Operating Officers at a rate of 23.5 and 20.6 percent, respectively.

“Ensuring the health of a company’s top executives is of growing importance at organizations across the country,” said Amy Kaminski, manager of marketing programs for Compdata Surveys, the nation’s leading compensation and benefits data provider. “Executives are spending more time hard at work, both in and out of the office, and the stress they encounter can take its toll on their health and by extension, their productivity.”

Although offering perks of a practical nature has become a popular trend in recent years, the use of more traditional perks remains prevalent at many companies. In the utilities industry, 50.7 percent of Chief Executive Officers receive a company car. This is followed closely by CEOs in banking and finance at 47.7 percent and manufacturing, 32.2 percent. Chief Executive Officers at not-for-profits receive access to company cars at a rate of 27 percent, while hospitality only offers them at 5 percent.

The newly released results report that perquisites also vary by region, with Top Human Resource Executives in the Midwest receiving club memberships at a rate of 11.4 percent, followed closely by those in the South Central region, 8.6 percent. Memberships are offered least to HR executives in the Southeast at 3.2 percent.

Other perks mentioned in the Executive Compensation 2009/2010 study were housing allowances, supplemental life insurance, and spousal travel allowances. Below is a list of some other executive perquisites:

• 17.4 percent of Chief Financial Officers are provided with supplemental disability programs.
• 20.4 percent of Treasurers receive annual physical exams.
• 16.9 percent of Chief Operating Officers are offered voluntary deferred compensation programs.
• 9.7 percent of Vice Presidents are provided with supplemental executive retirement plans.
• 15.9 percent of Chief Information Officers receive a car allowance.

About the Survey
Executive Compensation 2009/2010 analyzes national and regional data by base pay and total cash compensation for over 65 executive and senior management positions. Information was collected from nearly 5,000 organizations across the country with almost 25,000 incumbents.

Compdata Surveys is the nation’s leading compensation and benefits survey data provider. Thousands of U.S. organizations provide data each year ensuring the reliability of our results. Compdata Surveys has been providing comprehensive data at affordable prices to organizations from coast to coast since 1988. For further information about the compensation and benefits surveys, contact Amy Kaminski at (800) 300-9570.