All Management Articles

Nasdaq Errors Left it Short Facebook Stock

Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. stumbled when it found itself short 3 million Facebook Inc. shares on the day of the social media website’s initial public offering. But it was only effectively short that much stock because of previous trading glitches that plagued the ill-fated IPO.

Proxy Voting Confidentiality Gets a Closer Look

Shareholder vote tallies from corporate annual meetings could come under closer scrutiny as proxy battles intensify.

Shareholder proposals on topics such as restructuring classified boards, majority voting and reducing supermajority voting requirements have often gotten more than 50% support from shareholders this year. At the same time, other proposals that have often failed to gain majority support, such as those to separate a chairman and chief executive role or allow shareholder proxy access, are gaining prevalence, according to a study last month by Meridian Compensation Partners.

But the increasing success of shareholder proxy battles comes at the same time the security of the data surrounding those votes has been cast into doubt.

CFO Moves: Sterling Construction, China Yuchai, SuperCom

Sterling Construction named an interim chief financial officer; China Yuchai International’s financial chief will now serve as interim president; SuperCom hired its new CFO from Smile Telecom.

Vipshop CFO Seeks Land to Expand

Vipshop, a rapidly growing, online-only merchant for discounted clothing in China, won’t even turn five years old until the summer. But it already has designs on becoming that country’s version of retailer TJX Cos., which operates under T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and other brands in the U.S., its finance chief told CFO Journal. As with many toddlers, its growth isn’t without pains.

CFO Moves: Gentex, Silicon Laboratories, Giga-tronics

Gentex chose a new CFO from its internal bench; Silicon Laboratories promoted its interim CFO to president; Giga-tronics hired its new financial chief from Taulia.

Treasurers, Finance Staff See More Pay Raises

Average salaries for professionals in corporate finance departments rose by 3.4% last year, according to an annual survey from the Association for Financial Professionals.

Finance executive salaries are also growing at the fastest rate since 2008, according to the survey released this week. For finance professionals at the executive level, salaries rose 3.8% last year compared to a 3.3% increase reported in 2011. Corporate treasurers and chief financial officers reported some of the biggest salary gains, with pay raises averaging 4.3% each.

Report: Audit Committees Meet More Often Than Others

Audit committee members are the hardest working corporate board members, and also tend to be the youngest members of corporate boards with the shortest tenures, according to a new study this week.

On corporate boards of directors, audit committees have the most committee meetings by a wide margin, whether they are small-, mid- or large-cap companies, according to a report this week from the Society of Corporate Secretaries & Governance Professionals and Ernst & Young.  The study examined governance and board practices disclosed in SEC filings of Russell 3000 companies.

CFO Moves: KeyCorp, Huntington Bancshares, Halozyme

KeyCorp hired its new chief financial officer from Huntington Bancshares; Huntington named an interim financial chief to replace him; Halozyme Therapeutics chose a new CFO from its internal bench.

CFOs Expect to Focus on Change Management

In the next three years, chief financial officers expect their jobs to shift slightly away from focusing on cost management and the effectiveness of risk and controls, and move more toward change management tasks, including updating financial and other business systems, according to a survey released by Accenture and Oracle on Thursday.

GameStop CFO: Bartering Helps Fill the Gap Between New Consoles

Video game retailer GameStop Corp. is used to operating in a cyclical business, but the company has spent the last few years in an extra-long cycle as it waits for new Xbox One and PlayStation 4 game consoles to come out later this year. New consoles typically drive a jump in business for the retailer, but in the meantime, the company has focused on increasing its pre-owned video game business, GameStop chief financial officer Rob Lloyd said in a recent interview with CFO Journal.