
IT services firm HCL Technologies Ltd.'s President and CEO C. Vijayakumar may earn around $10.8 million per annum over the next five years, making him the highest-paid IT executive among peers in the Indian software services companies.
The pay leap also signifies that the country's third-largest software exporter has ditched its decades-old way of being a conservative paymaster.
Vijayakumar, who has been HCL's CEO since October 2016, was not a part of the company's board. Founder Shiv Nadar had stepped down from the board last month, paving the way for Vijayakumar to be named Managing Director along with the title of CEO and MD for five years with effect from July 20.
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The Noida-based company revealed its CEO's remuneration in its annual report for the first time, Mint reported, adding that Vijayakumar will take home an annual base salary of $2 million for the year ending March 31, up to $2 million in variable pay, as well as $384,000 in perquisites and other benefits, taking his total compensation to $4.38 million.
Furthermore, he will also get $31.5 million in stock options and restricted stock units in the five years till March 31, 2026. HCL, however, did not divulge details regarding the break-up of stock options and restricted stock units (RSUs) Vijayakumar will get every year.
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The Noida-based company's annual report also did not fully disclose the framework of variable pay and vesting duration for employee stock options, the report added.
Wipro paid its CEO Thierry Delaporte $8.8 million last year, whereas Infosys paid $6.78 million to its CEO Salil Parekh. Tata Consultancy Serivces' (TCS) CEO Rajesh Gopinathan took home $2.8 million last year.
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