Pay For Fiat's Marchionne Down In 2010 To $4.8M
Fiat SpA Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne received $4.77 million (3.47 million euro) in total compensation last year, according to the Italian automaker's annual report.
Marchionne is also CEO of partner Chrysler Group LLC, which, as a private company, is not required to disclose executive salaries. Spokesman Gualberto Ranieri said Marchionne gets a small stipend as a member of Chrysler's board but does not draw a salary as chief executive.
"The man works exceptionally hard, crisscrossing the globe, managing two companies," said analyst James Bell of Kelley Blue Book in Irvine, Calif. "He is pushing his philosophies and work ethic into Chrysler and employees speak highly of him."
Ranieri noted Marchionne's pay from Fiat will likely continue to lag those of top executives at Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co., which have yet to disclose 2010 compensation figures, reported The Detroit News.
In 2009, Ford CEO Alan Mulally's compensation totaled $17.9 million, and Marchionne earned about $6 million from Fiat.
GM has said CEO Dan Akerson will be paid about $9 million annually in total compensation, the same as his predecessor, Ed Whitacre Jr.
There is a $500,000 salary cap on Chrysler's top 25 executives as one of the conditions of its government bailout. Fiat executives who have a management role with Chrysler as well can continue to be paid by Fiat.
In Italy, Marchionne earned a base salary of $4.2 million (3.05 million euro) last year, unchanged from 2009. But his compensation declined overall, in part because he earned a $1.87 million bonus in 2009, but was not paid a bonus in 2010.
In 2006, the Fiat board approved an eight-year stock option plan for Marchionne, including 5 million in options that could be redeemed over four years at 13.37 euro if performance targets were met.
Marchionne started 2010 with 19.42 million options, but many expired and he ended the year with 16.82 million. He has until November 2016 to exercise them at an average price of 9.09 euro, higher than today's trading price of about 7 euro.
Marchionne's term as CEO of Fiat expires in 2012. He has said he will not continue to hold the top job at both automakers indefinitely but has not said which set of responsibilities he plans to give up.
Chrysler recently provided performance awards to its workforce: $750 on average for unionized hourly employees and $10,000 on average to salaried employees. The top 50 earners did not receive a bonus.
Chrysler lost $652 million in 2010, but made $763 million on an operating basis.
More Industry

Penske Auto Group Deal a Record
The deal to take the dealership and transportation services company private sets a new pace for industry buy-sell transactions.
Read More →
War Toll a Damper on Used Auto Prices
Cox Automotive found wholesale depreciation to be elevated in September amid high fuel prices and this year's unusual hurricane season.
Read More →
Bridge the Maintenance Gap
With many drivers missing recommended maintenance, service departments offering transparency and efficiency have a better chance of reaching financially strained consumers.
Read More →
California Store Has New Owner
The longtime dealership in the northern part of the state is known for robust fleet sales and has served the state capital for 115 years.
Read More →
BMW Plant Pursues Cleaner Energy
BMW Group Plant Leipzig has utilized hydrogen to help power its production since 2013, but a new pipeline is planned to take it to another level.
Read More →
Auto Affordability Inches Up
The latest Cox Automotive and Moody’s Analytics index shows a slight increase in new-vehicle affordability despite high prices.
Read More →
Ohio Auto Group Under New Ownership
After 79 years with the Schluter family, Mansfield Auto Group has been acquired by Missouri-based Clement Auto Group.
Read More →
RV Group Expands Carolina Footprint
Blue Compass RV Columbia Northeast is the 13th RV dealership owned by Blue Compass in the Carolinas.
Read More →
Agent Acumen
An Agent Summit panel of people who’ve been supporting auto dealers for years gave both timely and timeless advice for those starting out or mulling the prospect.
Read More →
Missed Maintenance Creates Opportunity
As families get back on the road and into daily school routines, service drives have an opportunity to capture customers who are behind on recommended vehicle maintenance.
Read More →