Fiduciaries, investors and boards alike have been looking for the antidote to Wall Street excess when it comes to executive incentives.

C-suite searches for transparency

Many C-suite executives may have found their answer on-line in the growing acceptance of performance shares, thanks to the concentrated efforts of executive coach Charles “Chuck” Steege of SFG Wealth Planning Services, Inc.

“Strengthening how companies oversee their incentive compensation programs just makes good business sense,” said Mr. Steege.

The Bucks Country, PA RIA recently released a definitive report: Five Reasons to Like Performance Shares (and One Reason to Think Twice).

Mr. Steege has been meeting the increasing needs of C-suite executives for leadership and information about performance shares through his blog, SFG Executive Compensation Forum, developed by financial social media agency, Advisolocity.

“By aligning compensation strategies with business outcomes, companies are more likely to send a clear message to the shareholder about their commitment to transparency and sound business practices,” Mr. Steege concluded.

By D. Bruce Johnston, President and CEO, Advisolocity

Last week I sat on a social media panel at the “Innovation and Growth In A Post Economic Crisis Era” Conference.

Social media = client conversation: Bernstein on FINRA

The event, sponsored by Spectrem Group and Financial Advisor Magazine, identified a wide range of issues affecting advisors and investors in the shifting wealth management landscape.

One of those issues centers around how best to restore transparency and clarity between the securities industry and beleaguered investors through the creative use of social media and networking.

Interest in this area has been intensifying since the release of FINRA’s 10-06 ruling removed the last impediment to utilizing the the cost-efficiencies of these new communications technologies.

I believe that more frequent, transparent communication can do a lot to put back the heart in the securities industry. Now, should an advisor or money manager implement a social media strategy, they may do so  providing they meet the additional standards for archiving and retrieval of published content.

Without a robust archiving initiative, firms can receive admonishments — and fines — from FINRA.

If we are to become engaged, active social media practitioners who routinely post content, send Tweets, and banter back and forth on Linkedin, we need to pay as much attention to how the message is stored as to how the message is developed.

In fact, according to Market Counsel’s Daniel Bernstein, social networks are increasingly viewed  by FINRA as no different than an in-person meeting or written client communication.

The pace of change will only accelerate: Dow Jones’ Christopher Young  informed the audience that social media growth has surpassed the rate of adaptation for the Internet, personal computer and the cell phone.  Most recently, The Wall Street Journal made a similar point by contrasting  their 2.2 million subscriber list with the 400 million individuals on Facebook.