THE REIGN CHECK
Cash, perks pouring down for jobs that rule
America’s got talent — and it’s making out handsomely in today’s tight labor markets.
The most-in-demand are earning the faster-growing salaries, bigger signing bonuses and greater job perks — from lavish housing allowances to countryclub memberships.
In short, the sky’s the limit, as major employers across the US from Silicon Valley to Wall Street drive up compensation to lure coveted talent, according to industry insiders and studies.
And it’s a no-holds-barred competition.
“My friend at a big bank in New York was asked to manage a division in Europe, so they raised his salary, bought him a real big house in Europe, and are paying his mortgage back in New Jersey,” one veteran finance pro told The Post. “They just didn’t want him to leave.”
“That is what you end up having to do today,” added Jed Hughes, an executive recruiter at Korn Ferry. “When you are recruiting top talent, you have to go the extra mile to attract them. The offer at times has to be overwhelming so that person says yes.”
With the median CEO salary surging by nearly 10 percent last year, according to a Conference Board’s survey — and pay for some company’s top executives rising to as much as thousands of times larger than that of the median worker — talented executives and key professionals are clearly in demand.
And while salaries and benefits for many Americans barely grew after the Great Recession, the nation’s top talent is in the catbird seat.
The highest-paid CEOs pull down millions. Hock Tan of Broadcom earned total compensation of $103 million last year, almost all in stock awards, The Conference Board notes.
Other pros are not far behind on annual compensation, according to industry sources such as Glass- door and Robert Half Technology.
Chief financial officers can expect as much as $500,000 — and $1 million-plus at major companies. If you can design algorithms, prepare for offers as much as $700,000 or more a year at major high-speed trading firms. A physician has a median base salary of nearly $200,000.
The key to success is rare talent, experience and some plain luck.
“In New York, the war for tech talent has grown, and will continue to grow in 2019,” Jason De- neu, metro market manager for recruiter Robert Half Technology, told The Post, adding that perks such as an on-site gym and childcare facilities are sweetening the pot.
If you want your luxury auto and country club membership, the Fortune 500-type companies are more likely to fold that cash into your compensation these days, according to recruiting expert Rick Spann of Spann Consulting.
“Smaller companies are bigger on those perks,” Spann said.