Infosys board okays stock plan for workers; CEO to get shares worth $1.4 mn

Software services firm Infosys has said that its board of directors has approved the Infosys Expanded Stock Ownership Program 2019, under which 50 million shares will be given to employees, or 1.15% of total stock.

Salil Parekh, chief executive officer and managing director, will get shares worth Rs 10 crore ($1.4 million at current exchange rate) under the plan, while chief operating officer and whole-time director UB Pravin Rao will receive stock worth Rs 4 crore ($570,000 at current exchange rate).

Under the 2019 programme, grants will be vested based on performance over a period of seven years, in order to attract and retain key talent.

The company stated that the criteria would be based on 1) the relative total shareholder return (TSR) against an industry peer group, 2) relative TSR against domestic and global indices and 3) operating lead performance metrics such as total revenue and digital revenue growth, as well as operating margins.

“Our employees are our biggest asset, and through this programme we aim to recognise and reward individuals who are committed to driving value creation for all stakeholders through their continued and consistent performance,” said Parekh.

Parekh added that employees will get an opportunity to be beneficiaries in the long term and realise the results of their hard work and dedication.

Infosys has had stock ownership programmes since 1994 and in 2015 had deployed an incentive compensation plan for its employees.