Why would businesses sign the Statement of Purpose of a Corporation without apparently following through with changes that elevated “stakeholders”?
What’s your opinion on the insider stock sales? Should it be changed at this company (e.g., with blackout periods)? Why or why not? Are there legal issues?
How does Berkshire’s ownership structure affect its operations? Its financial reporting? How will more institutional ownership change this?
Shareholders are complaining about online shareholder meetings. Do (would) you share the sentiment? What would be your opinion if you were a member of the C-suite?
How can you reconcile concern for shareholders with concern for stakeholders? If you were CEO, what would be your chief focus?
If you were on the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors, would you avoid hiring a diligent auditor, one that had a history of discovering internal control weaknesses in other auditees?
Traditional audit firms, in particular the Big 4, have become more of a consulting firm. Do you believe this could compromise their audits of clients? How?
Lowe’s CEO has announced retirement. If you were on the search committee for a replacement, what would you look for in a candidate? How directly does the person in the top spot affect the overall firm’s performance?
Tim Cook received $102 million in total compensation for the latest fiscal year. Is this about right? Too much? Too little? How would you determine what is the optimal amount and the optimal components of his pay?
If tax laws affect executive compensation in unexpected (and adverse) ways, why do you think special tax rules are imposed? If tax laws are changed again, can you make any predictions about how firms will react and change the way their execs are compensated?
What are solutions to the perceived problems of executive compensation being based on faulty performance measures and inappropriate peer firms? If you were CEO, would you agree to the changes in how your compensation would be calculated? Why or why not?
In your opinion, should all shares of publicly traded companies have equal voting rights? Should all directors be voted on annually? Why do you think Google and other tech firms have dual class shares?
Do you think it is appropriate to hold individuals (such as a named CFO) liable for errors in financial reporting? Why or why not? What are the consequences for bringing talented individuals into CFO roles?
If you were on the compensation committee of your firm’s board, would you require indexing equity based compensation? If you were CEO, would you be against it? If so, how would you argue against it?
If you were CEO, and if you believe the results of the research that suggests that explicitly mentioning “shareholder value” in your annual letter to shareholders affects your compensation, how would you write your letter?(!)
Do you think the SEC is right to require firms to disclose gender and race of board members? Why or why not?
