Compensating Talent: A Managerial Accounting Perspective

Designing efficient compensation schemes is important for attracting, retaining, and motivating talent over time. Through cases, homework assignments, and classroom discussion, this course provides an overview of efficient compensation schemes across industries. We discuss the economic trade-offs (and best practices) behind the compensation schemes used to reward talent across industries, including CEOs, hedge fund managers, venture capitalists, consulting partners, entertainers, and professional athletes. The learning objectives are: (1) to understand the overall structure and individual components of compensation schemes and the incentive role that each component plays, (2) to discuss the pros and cons of alternative performance measurement systems and 3) to help you design an optimal compensation scheme based on the relevant economic environment. This course combines lectures and discussions with industry specialists.