The NASPP Blog

I’m excited to announce that the program for the NASPP Conference is now available–view the agenda or read the full Conference brochure (PDF). The proposals we received this year were by far the best I’ve ever seen–due, in part, to our new Proposal Assistance Program for Conference Exhibitors–and this is surely our best program ever. Check out the program today and register by June 24 for the early-bird discount–this deadline will not be extended.

SEC Chair to Present Keynote

SEC Chair Mary Schapiro will headline the Conference with a keynote presentation on November 2. We believe this will be the first time ever that an SEC Chair has made public remarks about executive compensation–it will be a landmark occasion.

Plenary Featuring Institutional Investors

After Schapiro’s keynote, the plenary session on November 2 will feature institutional investors–AFL-CIO, T. Rowe Price Associates, Cap Re, BlackRock, CalSTRS. These are the folks that are voting on your (or your clients’) Say-on-Pay and stock plan proposals. You’re going to want to hear what they have to say.

“Must-See” Sessions

We have over 50 sessions planned for this year’s event, and, frankly, I think they are all “must-see” sessions, but, since blog entries are supposed to be brief, I’ll limit myself to highlighting just a few of the sessions I’m most excited about:

• Extreme Makeover: Equity Plan Edition:Take your stock plans from drab and outdated to simpler, sleeker, and easier to administrator, not to mention more share-holder friendly.
• Winning Shareholder Approval in the New Governance Environment: Find out if it’s possible to go up against ISS and win.
• Say-on-Pay: The New Roadmap for Equity Compensation: Find out how your stock plans need to adapt in the Say-on-Pay world.
• Payback Time: Issues and Answers on Clawback Provisions: Finally, some clear answers on the tax treatment of clawbacks, as well as design and enforcement considerations.
• Alternatives to Shareholder Approval: Tricks, Tips and Traps: Running out of shares in your plan but not ready to seek approval of a new allocation? This session might just get you out of a tight spot.
• Taking the Difficulty Out of Setting Performance Goals: Performance awards are one of the hottest trends we’re seeing in stock compensation and we expect market-based awards to be even hotter.  Find out if they can work for your company with this session.
• Equity Compensation in Mergers and Acquisitions: Step-by-Step from Term Sheet to Close: It’s hard to believe that M&A could be fun and engaging, but this session promises to make it so.
• So You Think You Can RSU? Prove it: Based on the number of questions we received for our recent Ask the Experts Webcast on Restricted Stock and Units, this is going to be a very popular session.
• How to Speak Generation Y: Adapting Stock Plan Education for Today’s Technology: As someone who can be a little, um, long-winded, I’m hoping to pick up some tips on getting to the point quicker.
• Did It Pass? Understanding Shareholder Voting Issues:This is a topic I’ve long been mystified about and I’m excited to finally have a chance to learn the difference between a no vote and an abstention and what cumulative voting is all about.
• Death, Taxes and Senior Executives: Estate Planning and Retirement Programs: Yes, the rich are different. Find out exactly how much so with this session.

Check out the rest of the 50+ sessions and register by June 24 for the early-bird discount–this deadline will not be extended.

Another Chance to Qualify for Survey Results
Due to overwhelming demand, we have extended the deadline to participate in NASPP’s 2011 Domestic Stock Plan Administration Survey (co-sponsored by Deloitte) to June 10.  Issuers must complete the survey to qualify to receive the full survey results. Register to complete the survey today–there won’t be any more extensions!

NASPP “To Do” List
We have so much going on here at the NASPP that it can be hard to keep track of it all, so I keep an ongoing “to do” list for you here in my blog. 

• Register for 19th Annual NASPP Conference (November 1-4 in San Francisco).  Don’t wait; the new early-bird rate is only available until June 24.
• Participate in the NASPP’s 2011 Domestic Stock Plan Administration Survey (co-sponsored by Deloitte, with survey systems support provided by the CEP Institute). You must complete the survey by June 10 to qualify to receive the survey results. 
• Check out the NASPP’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Come on; just do it already so I don’t have to keep bugging you about this!
• Register for the NASPP’s newest online course, “Financial Reporting for Equity Compensation.” 
• Complete the Compliance-O-Meter quiz on Transfer Agents.
• Take the “Question of the Week” challenge.
• Renew your NASPP membership for 2011 (if you aren’t an NASPP member, join today).
• Attend your local NASPP Chapter meetings in Chicago, Florida, and Philadelphia.

– Barbara