Jeff Harmening, General Mills Inc. chairman, CEO
Total compensation: $4,056,798 for the year ended May 27, 2018
Salary: $1,200,000
Nonequity incentive pay: $1,163,520
Other compensation: $86,651
Exercised stock options: $319,835
Value realized on vesting shares: $1,286,792
New stock options: 270,173
Total fiscal 2018 shareholder return: -21.7 percent
CEO pay ratio: 145:1
Median pay: $54,828
Note: Harmening took over the CEO role at General Mills on June 1, 2017, and the chairman role on Jan. 1. Harmening received an increase to his base salary to $1.2 million that accounts for his new role as CEO. According to the proxy, the compensation committee "took into account CEO median pay within our industry peer group, including for newly hired and internally promoted CEOs, when setting Mr. Harmening's base salary for fiscal 2018."
Harmening's annual incentive pay of $1.2 million was 61 percent of the annual incentive target, and Harmening and other executives earned 66 percent of the award target for performance-share units on company performance over the previous three fiscal years.
The industry peer group for General Mills includes 16 companies ranging from Campbell Soup Co. and Kellogg Co. to the Kraft Heinz Co. and PepsiCo Inc.
The board set Harmening's total direct compensation including salary, annual incentives and long-term equity awards at a level that was below the median of CEOs in its peer group and will increase Harmening's total direct compensation in relation to peers as Harmening "matures" in his roles as chairman and CEO.
Ken Powell, the man Harmening replaced as chairman and CEO, realized $5.7 million in total compensation, including $4.1 million from previously issued restricted stock that vested during his partial year at General Mills. Powell also retires having accumulated $28.7 million in pension and supplemental retirement plans of which he has started taking distributions.