Advisory firms tell Amazon shareholders to reject 'excessive' exec pay

Two investor advisory firms – ISS and Glass Lewis – encouraged Amazon shareholders to vote against “excessive” executive pay packages in the company’s annual meeting on May 25.

ISS – the largest investment advisory firm in the world – wrote in a Thursday report that new CEO Andrew Jassy’s hefty 2021 compensation package was divorced from any performance criteria.

“The value of the new CEO’s $214 million award is excessive in the context of an internal promotion,” ISS said. “The compensation program lacks any connection to objective, pre-set performance criteria.”

Jassy, who ascended to Amazon’s top role in July, received $214 million in total compensation in 2021, with nearly the entire amount composed of shares that would vest over the next 10 years.

Jassy joined Amazon in 1997 as a marketing manager and helped launch AWS in 2006, which he led until his promotion to CEO last year.

ISS also highlighted the high compensation of new AWS head Adam Selipsky, who received $81 million in 2021, and consumer division head David Clark, who received $56 million.

Glass Lewis, another investor advisory firm, echoed ISS in urging shareholders to reject Amazon’s unreasonable pay packages.

ISS is based in Rockville, MD and provides consulting solutions in corporate governance, responsible investment, market intelligence, fund services, and events and editorial content. The firm’s 2,600 global employees work with leading corporations and institutional investors.

Glass Lewis is headquartered in San Francisco and focuses on research and recommendations for shareholder votes by institutional investors. The firm – which has 360 employees – is the second largest proxy advisory firm in the mutual fund market, behind ISS.