GEO’s Global Share Plans Ranking Project is the first of its kind, offering a country-level snapshot of the appetite, support, and provision of employee share ownership - and now includes insights from even more countries!

With insights from senior equity compensation issuers and service providers across a growing number of countries, this expanded report paints the bigger picture of employee equity worldwide. This session will dive into key report highlights, uncovering the countries leading the charge in employee equity adoption as well as those with untapped potential.

KEY LEARNINGS:

        • Explore key findings, including emerging trends and barriers to implementing share plans
        • Learn how to leverage the report to strategically extend plans into new countries or boost participation in your current regions
        • Discover actionable insights to enhance your global equity strategies

As remote and location-independent work continues to rise, managing tax and social security implications for employees working in different countries presents unique challenges for both employers and employees.

This session will explore how location-independent workers impact the tax and social security sourcing for equity-based compensation and how companies can navigate these complexities.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Understand the tax and social security challenges faced by location-independent workers and how they affect equity compensation.
• Learn about the impact of vesting periods on tax sourcing and the administrative burdens for both issuers and employees.
• Explore the solutions companies are implementing in response to these challenges within the EU and OECD framework.

As Boards of Directors strive to refine the goal-setting process for short-term and long-term incentive programs, many are turning to advanced financial modeling techniques like Monte Carlo simulation.

In this session, explore how heightened macroeconomic volatility over the past five years has reshaped goal-setting practices and delve into the processes companies use to set and communicate performance goals effectively.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Understand how recent economic instability has influenced goal-setting methodologies for incentive programs.
• Discover best practices for setting and communicating performance goals in alignment with organizational objectives.
• Learn how Monte Carlo simulations can provide actionable data for evaluating performance metrics and optimizing incentive payouts.

This session is designed to introduce stock plan administrators to the key principles of share-based compensation accounting, equipping them with the foundational knowledge necessary to support financial reporting teams and ensure compliance with IFRS 2 and ASC 718.

While deep accounting expertise isn't required, understanding the intersection between stock plan administration and financial reporting will enable smoother collaboration and more efficient processes.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Learn how stock plan data feeds into financial reporting and why its accuracy is essential for compliance with accounting standards.
• Gain insight into grant date fair value, valuation models, amortization methods (graded vs. straight-line), and how they impact financial statements.
• Explore how performance awards, forfeiture rates, and termination processing affect both stock plan administration and financial reporting, and understand the differences between IFRS 2 and ASC 718.

Long-term incentive (LTI) design is becoming increasingly complex as organizations face shifting macroeconomic conditions. Companies are tasked with incorporating ESG metrics, managing relative performance awards, and setting meaningful goals amidst market volatility.

This session will explore the latest trends in LTI vehicles, metrics, and structures, offering actionable strategies for adapting LTI plans to meet current and future challenges.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Explore recent trends in LTI design, with a focus on the growing importance of ESG metrics and relative performance awards.
• Learn effective strategies for setting performance goals in an unpredictable economic environment.
• Understand how emerging trends are shaping the structure and impact of long-term incentive plans.

Hear from respected industry leaders as they share their experiences and insights into working in the equity compensation field. This session will cover their personal motivations, the highs and lows of their careers, and what the next generation can expect in this evolving industry. Gain a deeper understanding of the dynamic interactions between issuers and providers, and learn valuable lessons from their professional journeys.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Discover why leading professionals chose to work in the equity compensation field and their career highlights
• Understand the challenges and rewards of the industry from experienced voices
• Learn about the evolving expectations for the next generation and the issuer-provider dynamic

In this mini-workshop, explore how to manage your energy effectively to enhance both your professional and personal life. With stock administrators facing increasing workloads and blurred work-life boundaries, learn strategies to identify energising versus depleting activities. 

Drawing on research from organisational behavior and positive psychology, and insights from Elena’s experience with McKinsey & Company’s Women in Leadership program, you’ll create an energy action plan tailored to boost your personal energy resources and improve overall well-being.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Discover how to identify and leverage energising activities both at work and home
• Learn strategies for managing energy levels to handle professional and personal challenges effectively
• Develop a personalised energy action plan to enhance your productivity and well-being

Explore how to effectively communicate share plans during an IPO in this insightful fireside chat. As companies grow, equity becomes a key part of compensation, yet many face challenges in ensuring employees understand their equity, especially in Europe. With the London IPO market showing signs of recovery, it’s crucial for late-stage companies to prepare for how employees will respond to equity in their new public phase. 

Join Ledgy and Melanie Oakley, an experienced senior people leader, as they share strategies for engaging employees, executives, and investors through clear, thoughtful communication plans. Learn how to use share plans to educate and involve all key stakeholders during this pivotal transition.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Understand the challenges and strategies for communicating share plans effectively during an IPO
• Learn how to engage employees, executives, and investors with clear and thoughtful communication
• Discover ways to use share plans to educate and involve stakeholders through the IPO transition and beyond

AI: coming for a job near you! Or is it? In this full and frank fireside chat, GEO's Gabbi Stopp will moderate a discussion with two highly-experienced, leading lights in the global equity space, Mark Higgins of WPP and Julie Shepherd of Sage Group. Both these firms are already harnessing the transformative power of AI across their businesses, and are actively exploring AI's potential for aspects of equity compensation. Both these speakers have charted highly successful careers in global equity issuance. Join us to engage with the biggest challenge and opportunity for our industry, and come away informed, inspired and hopefully, illuminated!

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Discover how WPP and Sage Group are integrating AI into their equity compensation strategies
• Gain insights into the opportunities and challenges AI presents for the global equity industry
• Learn from the experiences of leading experts in global equity issuance on harnessing AI's transformative power.

Amidst the transformative landscape of work, where flexibility is the new currency, join our expert panel to navigate the intricate intersections of emerging hybrid and remote working models with equity-based compensation. As these models redefine the post-pandemic workforce, it's crucial to grasp their impact while mitigating potential tax compliance risks and red flags. Delve into a general overview and comparison of evolving working models, including GEOs, PEOs, and remote/hybrid arrangements. Take a deeper dive into Global Employment Organizations (GEOs) and People Employment Organizations (PEOs)/Employer of Record (EOR). Uncover equity-related risks associated with each model and gain practical insights into implementing remote work policies, achieving a delicate balance between risk, employee experience, and administrative efficiency.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

• Gain insights into the general overview and comparison of evolving working models, such as GEOs, PEOs, and remote/hybrid arrangements
• Take a deeper dive into the concepts of Global Employment Organizations (GEOs) and People Employment Organizations (PEOs)/Employer of Record (EOR)
• Uncover red flags and risks associated with each employment model, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of potential challenges in equity-based compensation

CPE CREDIT: 1.0
Field of study: Tax
Level: 0
Delivery method: Group internet-based
Advanced preparation: None

CEP CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDIT (CE): 1.0

*CPE credits are provided for live webcasts only. Please visit our Continuing Education and Event Policies pages for more information.