 "Salary of Infosys CEO Salil Parekh drops 21% to Rs 56.45 crore in FY23")
The Bengaluru-based IT services company, Infosys’ annual report showed that chief executive officer (CEO), Salil Parekh’s compensation for the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) took a drop of 21 per cent at 56.45 crore, down from Rs 71 crore in the previous year.
Parekh's remuneration consists of base pay, retiral benefits, and fixed salary. In addition, he also receives the value of stock incentives exercised during the period and any incentives or variable pay.
This decrease appears to be due to Parekh exercising fewer restricted stock units (RSUs) during the year.
RSUs are a type of equity compensation offered to employees. Infosys provides RSUs through two plans. Under the 2015 plan, stocks are vested mainly based on time, while the 2019 plan's benefit is based on performance. Performance indicators include total shareholder return and the company's operating metrics.
Out of the total compensation of Rs 56.45 crore, Parekh earned Rs 30.6 crore by exercising his RSUs. In the previous fiscal year, he earned Rs 52.33 crore from exercising his RSUs, making him one of India's highest-paid CEOs, according to Moneycontrol.
In FY23, Parekh received a base pay of Rs 6.67 crore, retiral benefits of Rs 45 lakh, and a variable pay of Rs 18.73 crore. His variable pay increased to 18.73 crore in 2023, from Rs 12.62 crore in 2022.
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Moneycontrol added that Parekh's remuneration was 627 times higher than the median remuneration of Rs 9 lakh received by the company's employees. Although the gap was less compared to the previous year, this year was also marked by delays in fresher onboarding, variable pay cuts, and increased uncertainty in the industry.
However, Parekh was not the highest-paid executive at Infosys. That distinction belonged to President Mohit Joshi, who resigned in March and will take over as the CEO of Tech Mahindra. Joshi earned Rs 57.32 crore in FY23 and will leave Infosys on June 9.
In his letter to shareholders, Parekh highlighted that FY23 was a strong year for the company, with a growth rate of over 15 per cent and operating margins reaching $2.5 billion. He also mentioned that Infosys returned $3.1 billion to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks, positioning the company as a leader in total shareholder return among peers over the past five years.
Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani, in his letter to shareholders, described the current world as "suffused with uncertainty," with multiple factors like inflation, interest rates, geopolitics, demand volatility, and supply chain dislocations influencing businesses.
He stated that, “the era of optionality is upon us” while stressing the need for companies to be efficient and flexible in these challenging times.
Nilekani did not receive any remuneration this year.