Discover how Sage transformed its global Save & Share plan by tapping into the power of its people. This session explores how Sage revitalized its communications strategy, enhanced the colleague experience, and implemented a financial education and wellbeing program that empowered employees to make informed decisions at maturity.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Strategies to boost participation and engagement in employee share plans
• The role of financial education in driving confidence and informed decision-making
• How to measure success beyond numbers—real stories and testimonials from employees

This session will dive into the unique landscape of equity compensation in India, examining best practices and emerging trends that are shaping the market. Attendees will gain a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities companies face when structuring equity plans, including tax implications, legal frameworks, and employment laws specific to India.

The session will also explore how cultural factors influence plan adoption and participation, offering insights into how global companies can effectively tailor their equity compensation strategies to the Indian market.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Understand the tax, legal, and employment law considerations unique to India in equity plan design.
• Explore cultural factors and their impact on plan adoption and employee participation.
• Learn how to align global equity strategies with India's evolving corporate and regulatory environment.

As global companies continue to compete for top talent, equity compensation has become a key tool in attracting and retaining employees.

This session provides a unique opportunity to explore how equity incentives are structured and implemented across Central and Eastern Europe, with a special focus on the Czech Republic, Ukraine, and Poland. The session will also address considerations specific to private companies, providing insights into how they can effectively leverage equity compensation in competitive markets.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Gain an understanding of the legal landscape for offering equity compensation in the Czech Republic, Ukraine, and Poland, including common pitfalls and red flags.
• Explore the practical implications of managing equity awards for employees working across multiple jurisdictions, including the unique case of Ukrainian employees relocating throughout Europe.
• Learn about current trends in equity compensation, including stock options, RSUs, and strategies tailored for private companies to optimise employee engagement and impact.

In a globalised business environment, offering equity plans that cater to diverse workforces across multiple jurisdictions presents unique challenges. While global share plans provide a consistent framework, many companies adopt local tax-approved sub-plans to align with regional tax incentives and regulations. This dual structure offers significant benefits but also introduces operational complexities.

This expert panel will delve into the intricacies of implementing global equity plans alongside local sub-plans, offering practical strategies and tools to help organisations strike the right balance between global consistency and local relevance. Attendees will gain actionable insights and tools, including frameworks for aligning objectives and managing complexities.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Understand the benefits of local tax-approved sub-plans in enhancing participation, delivering tax efficiencies, and boosting engagement by tailoring benefits regionally.
• Explore strategies for harmonising global equity plan objectives with local regulations, tax laws, and cultural considerations.
• Learn practical approaches to managing the operational impacts of running global plans with local variants, including streamlined administration, effective communication, and accurate reporting.

In 2022, ErsteGroup launched WeShare by ErsteGroup, an annual employee share plan with a five-year holding period that achieved an impressive 88% participation rate across seven countries. This session will explore the strategies behind the programme's success, including creative plan design, effective financial education, and approaches to addressing challenges during its multi-country rollout.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Explore how well-structured plan design, including an annual offering model and a five-year holding period, boosted participation rates.
• Understand how targeted financial education campaigns improved employee knowledge, engagement, and confidence in the programme.
• Gain insights into tackling cross-country implementation challenges and fine-tuning post-launch processes to enhance programme outcomes.

Join S&P Global and Moss Adams for an insightful session on leveraging technology and specialized software to enhance corporate stock plan administration. Learn how these tools can reduce manual efforts, boost accuracy and efficiency, and improve the participant experience.

The session will cover business drivers for these technological investments and provide specific examples of how advancements are transforming stock plan management.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Explore advanced equity platform-to-payroll reconciliation tools, including open-source and purpose-built applications that surpass manual spreadsheets.
• See how Generative AI can accurately and swiftly address participant questions, ensuring error-free information.
• Understand how AI and machine learning enhance error detection, improving the reliability of stock plan administration.

Innovative plan designs can lead to administrative challenges, but there are ways to streamline operations while keeping everyone satisfied.

Join this session to uncover hacks and best practices for smooth administration, including managing RSU acceptance, handling leaves of absence, addressing expiring options, and optimizing ESPP tax deductions.

Learn how to set reasonable deadlines and align equity awards with employees' risk tolerance to enhance overall satisfaction.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Implement practical solutions for administrative challenges, such as RSU acceptance and managing leaves of absence
• Reduce issues with expiring options, set reasonable deadlines, and align equity awards with employees’ risk tolerance
• Maximize tax deductions and minimize administrative headaches for ESPPs, benefiting both the company and employees

Equity compensation has always been hardwired into the Prysmian business model and operations approach. Join this session to explore how Prysmian transformed employee ownership with their YES and BE IN Employee Share Purchase Plans (ESPP). Discover the journey from launching the BE IN plan for blue-collar workers in 2023 to expanding ownership across 30 countries.

In this case-study panel, you'll learn how Prysmian designed, implemented, and managed these plans to cater to diverse employee demographics, achieving 46% employee ownership globally. Hear about their strategic approach, including educational initiatives and overcoming cultural and language challenges.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Learn how Prysmian successfully segmented and managed share plans for different employee groups, increasing global ownership
• Discover effective strategies for educating employees about share plans to ensure understanding and engagement
• Understand how Prysmian navigated cultural and language differences to implement share plans in 30 countries.

Join this session to explore how private companies leverage share plans strategically to drive growth and enhance employee engagement. These plans serve as potent incentives, aligning employees' interests with the long-term success of the company. They foster a sense of ownership and commitment that can be challenging to achieve with non-equity-based rewards.

The panel will cover navigating the use of equity in private equity-backed portfolio companies, exploring pathways to achieve liquidity for private companies, and understanding the mechanics of growth shares and their potential for tax efficiencies. They will also examine how traditional tax-advantaged plans can be optimised to maximise benefits and discuss fostering an employee ownership culture through initiatives like employee ownership trusts (EOT) and broader employee plans. Additionally, considerations for private companies when extending equity on an international scale will be covered.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• A clear understanding of how share plans align employee interests with company growth
• Insight into effective strategies for achieving liquidity in private companies
• Knowledge of the benefits and tax efficiencies associated with using growth shares.

Join this session to uncover how Allianz and EY teamed up since 2018 to expand the Employee Share Purchase Plan (ESPP) globally, now reaching 43 countries from an initial 30, and see how employee ownership at Allianz soared from just 9% to over 70%.

You’ll learn firsthand how EY navigated tax and legal landscapes while tailoring plans to fit each country's unique needs, balancing consistency with local relevance. Discover Allianz’s approach to boosting participation rates above 29% through centralised communication and innovative initiatives like employee investors days and a customised plan administrator platform.

Plus, delve into the Free Share program integrated with the ESPP, which underscores Allianz’s commitment to sustainability and its core mission of securing the future.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Learn how Allianz grew their Employee Share Purchase Plan to 43 countries, boosting employee shareholder rates
• Discover EY's approach to maintaining tax and legal compliance while tailoring plans for different countries
• Understand how centralised communication and customer-friendly initiatives increased participation in Allianz's ESPP