Minimum Pay for top CIOs $2.7 million
by Rachael King
The 10 highest-paid chief information officers needed a minimum total compensation of $2.7 million to make the list. Companies are attracting new CIOs with significant stock options and bonuses
Minimum Pay for top CIOs $2.7 million - Procter & Gamble Co. 's Filippo Passerini topped a list of the highest-paid CIOs, according to an upcoming report from consulting firm Janco Associates. CIOs needed a minimum of $2.7 million in total compensation to qualify in the top 10.
Updated to the latest data. Read On...
This year's list excluded two CIOs with broad corporate responsibilities - and commensurately high salaries - who were included in previous lists by Janco. So, it's not possible to compare median salaries to previous years. However, Mr. Passerini's compensation rose 20% to $4.9 million during the 12 months ended June 30.
These CIOs are managing major initiatives and restructuring corporations, said Victor Janulaitis, CEO of Janco Associates. Failed information technology projects can have an expensive and negative effect on an organization, he says. It is worth paying $2 million or more for the best leaders, he said, as the cost of failure in information technology projects is so high.
P&G says that its compensation programs emphasize pay for performance and long-term success. Mr. Passerini's compensation is mostly in long-term, stock-based compensation, said a P&G spokeswoman. Aside from his role as CIO, Mr. Passerini also holds the title of group president for global business services.
Typically CIOs don't reap millions in compensation until just before they retire, said Victor Janulaitis, CEO of Janco Associates. Yet, the top 10 list includes four executives new to their roles in 2012. Companies are offering big stock-based signing bonuses and major relocation expense reimbursements to woo new CIOs, he said. For example, AutoZone Inc. CIO Ron Griffin's base salary was $84,615 but his bonus and perks accounted for about $2.7 million.
The list includes CIO pay in publicly traded companies in 2012 as reported to the SEC in 2013.
The following list looks at CIO pay in publicly traded companies in 2012 as reported to the SEC in 2013.
| Rank | Name | Base Salary | Bonus & Perks | Total |
| 1 | Filippo Passerini, CIO and Group President, Procter & Gamble Co. | $837,500 | $4,966,894 | $4,966,894 |
| 2 | Robert B. Carter, CIO, FedEx Corp. | $762,960 | $4,104,483 | $4,867.443 |
| 3 | Deborah Butler, CIO and Executive Vice President, Norfolk Southern Corp. | $600,000 | $4,048,070 | $4,648,070 |
| 4 | Anil Cheriyan, CIO and Executive Vice President, SunTrust Banks Inc. | $375,000 | $3,331,200 | $3,706,200 |
| 5 | Suren Gupta, Executive Vice President, Allstate Corp. | $537,404 | $3,032,595 | $3,569,999 |
| 6 | Matt Carey, CIO and Executive Vice President, Home Depot Inc. | $666,192 | $2,815,119 | $3,481,311 |
| 7 | J. David Thompson, CIO and Executive Vice President, Western Union Co. | $344,700 | $3,097,999 | $3,442,699 |
| 8 | David Barnes, CIO and Senior Vice President, United Parcel Service Inc. | $436,866 | $2,693,664 | $3,130,530 |
| 9 | Stephen Gillett, Executive Vice President, Best Buy Co. | $683,173 | $2,278,066 | $2,961,239 |
| 10 | Ron Griffin, CIO and Senior Vice President, AutoZone Inc. | $84,615 | $2,654,716 | $2,739,331 |
