Video Transcript
As we discussed in a previous video, back in 1901, Andrew Carnegie made headlines for selling Carnegie Steel for $480 million and famously rewarded his top executives with massive bonuses — one of the earliest examples of using incentives to drive business growth. In that earlier video, we also talked about deferred compensation plans and supplemental executive retirement plans (SERs) as powerful ways to help reward and retain key people.
Today, business owners have more sophisticated tools to motivate and retain top talent — without giving up ownership.
Hi, I’m Ken Hargreaves, President of WealthGen Advisors. In this video, I share even more options business owners have to motivate top talent while keeping full ownership intact, such as Phantom Stock, Stock Appreciation Rights (SARs), and long‑term incentive plans.
Phantom stock and SARs reward growth without diluting ownership by providing key employees with shares that mirror the value of actual company stock, letting them participate in the upside as the business grows while you maintain control.
Long‑term incentive plans tie significant bonuses to multi‑year performance goals like revenue growth, profitability or major business milestones. These plans keep your leaders focused on the bigger picture, driving real, sustainable growth.
From a tax standpoint, these structures can also offer advantages: payouts are typically deductible for the business, while executives defer income tax until they receive their compensation. However, careful planning is essential, especially if your business grows faster than expected and large payouts come due.
At WealthGen Advisors, we help business owners design compensation strategies that reward key people, protect ownership, and support long‑term vision — building not just a business, but lasting value for the future.
