8-KLeadership Changes

Salesforce, Inc. 8-K Report, Executive Changes (Mar 26, 2021)

Filed March 26, 2021For Securities:CRM

Summary

This 8-K filing from Salesforce, Inc. (CRM) on March 26, 2021, details the compensation decisions made by the Compensation Committee on March 22, 2021. The primary focus is on the approval of cash bonuses for fiscal year 2021 and new compensation arrangements for fiscal year 2022 for key executive officers, including CEO Marc Benioff, CFO Amy Weaver, and other named executive officers. These bonuses and future compensation reflect performance against corporate and individual goals, aligning executive incentives with the company's success. Additionally, the filing outlines significant equity awards, including stock options, restricted stock units (RSUs), and performance-based RSUs. The stock options were granted at the fair market value of $215.17, with standard four-year vesting. The performance-based RSUs are particularly noteworthy, as their vesting is tied to Salesforce's total shareholder return (TSR) relative to the NASDAQ-100 Index over a three-year period, with a tiered payout structure designed to reward strong relative performance.

Key Highlights

  • 1Approval of cash bonuses for fiscal year 2021, totaling over $4.5 million for named executive officers, reflecting performance against corporate and individual goals.
  • 2New compensation arrangements for fiscal year 2022 were established for key executives, including updated base salaries and target bonus percentages.
  • 3Marc Benioff's FY2022 compensation includes a base salary of $1.55 million and a target bonus of 200% of base salary.
  • 4Significant equity awards were granted, including stock options with an exercise price of $215.17 (fair market value on grant date).
  • 5Restricted stock units (RSUs) were awarded to several executive officers, subject to a standard four-year vesting schedule.
  • 6Performance-based RSUs were granted with a vesting structure tied to Salesforce's Total Shareholder Return (TSR) relative to the NASDAQ-100 Index over three years.
  • 7The performance-based RSU vesting mechanism is designed to reward strong relative TSR performance, with potential payouts ranging from 0% to 200% of the target amount based on percentile ranking.

Frequently Asked Questions

The total approved cash bonuses for fiscal year 2021 for the named executive officers listed amounted to $4,533,933, after accounting for mid-year payouts. This figure includes bonuses for Marc Benioff, Amy Weaver, Parker Harris, Srinivas Tallapragada, and Bret Taylor.

The performance-based RSUs are tied to Salesforce's Total Shareholder Return (TSR) relative to the companies in the NASDAQ-100 Index over a three-year performance period. Vesting depends on the company's TSR percentile rank within this group, with a target of 100% vesting at the 60th percentile and potential payouts ranging up to 200% for top-tier performance.

For fiscal year 2022, effective February 1, 2021, Marc Benioff has an annual base salary of $1,550,000 and a target bonus of 200%. Amy Weaver, Parker Harris, and Srinivas Tallapragada each have a base salary of $1,000,000 and a target bonus of 100%. Bret Taylor has a base salary of $1,000,000 and a target bonus of 150%.

The stock options were granted with an exercise price of $215.17, which was the fair market value of the common stock on the grant date. Both the stock options and the standard restricted stock units are subject to a four-year vesting schedule.