ESG & Executive Remuneration in Europe

IF 2.1 4区社会学 Q3 BUSINESS

European Business Organization Law Review Pub Date : 2024-07-11 DOI:10.1007/s40804-024-00318-5

Marco Dell’Erba, Guido Ferrarini

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Abstract

Executive remuneration has traditionally attracted the attention of scholars, regulators, and public opinion. In recent years, especially after epochal corporate scandals and financial crises, executive remuneration has polarized the political debate, leading to consequences for the way it was theorized, structured, and ultimately quantified within corporations. This article specifically examines the relationship between executive compensation and sustainability, with a focus on the influence of Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) metrics in the context of European companies. The article provides a qualitative analysis of the historical debate on executive remuneration and considers the different theories informing corporate law. Furthermore, it offers a qualitative and empirical analysis of how executive compensation policies of the 300 largest companies by target capitalization in Europe – listed in the FTSE EuroFirst300 – take ESG parameters into account. Lastly, this article presents some policy considerations, particularly questioning whether executive remuneration is the right incentive for ESG compliance, and emphasizing the importance of a shift in corporate culture to effectively make corporate practices more sustainable.

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欧洲的环境、社会和公司治理与高管薪酬

高管薪酬历来备受学者、监管机构和公众舆论的关注。近年来，尤其是在发生了划时代的企业丑闻和金融危机之后，高管薪酬问题在政治辩论中出现了两极分化，导致企业内部对高管薪酬的理论化、结构化和最终量化方式产生了影响。本文专门研究了高管薪酬与可持续发展之间的关系，重点关注环境、社会和治理（ESG）指标对欧洲公司的影响。文章对历史上关于高管薪酬的争论进行了定性分析，并考虑了公司法的不同理论。此外，文章还对 FTSE EuroFirst300 欧洲上市公司中目标资本额最大的 300 家公司的高管薪酬政策如何考虑 ESG 参数进行了定性和实证分析。最后，本文提出了一些政策考虑因素，特别是质疑高管薪酬是否是遵守环境、社会和公司治理规定的正确激励措施，并强调了企业文化转变的重要性，以有效提高企业实践的可持续性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

European Business Organization Law Review Multiple-

CiteScore

4.60

自引率

9.50%

发文量

期刊介绍： The European Business Organization Law Review (EBOR) aims to promote a scholarly debate which critically analyses the whole range of organizations chosen by companies, groups of companies, and state-owned enterprises to pursue their business activities and offer goods and services all over the European Union. At issue are the enactment of corporate laws, the theory of firm, the theory of capital markets and related legal topics.