Executives Mixed on Value of Stock Options, Many Would Prefer More Cash

New York, NY (July 13, 2004) ñ As the House of Representatives prepares to vote this week on the controversial Stock Option Accounting Reform Act, job-hunting executives remain mixed on the real value of stock options in their pay packages. This, according to a survey of 728 executives in the 100k job market conducted by executive job search service TheLadders.com.

The new accounting reform bill would postpone the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal requiring public companies to treat stock options as a business expense. It has been strongly supported by technology companies such as Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) and Intel Corp. (INTC), which use stock options to attract and retain employees.

While a majority of the executives surveyed by TheLadders.com (32.5%), say they consider stock options to be ìan integral component to a competitive pay package,î 24.9% of survey respondents would ìprefer more cash.î Twenty-two percent of those surveyed perceive stock options as gravy, calling them ìa nice addition, but not a big motivator,î and 20.5% say theyíd ìprefer a package to include them, but donít need them.î

ìCompany stock options are an important recruitment tool, but they are not the talent magnets they once were,î explained TheLadders.com founder and president, Marc Cenedella. ìOur readers, who represent a cross section of the nationís top 100K talent, have been around long enough to see the upsides and the downsides to an option-heavy package. The most interesting job market commentary to be taken from this survey is that a lot of these folks would rather have the cash.î

The survey of registered 100k executives was conducted on TheLadders.com Web site from June 14, 2004 through July 8, 2004.

Now reaching over 108,000 readers, TheLadders.com addresses the specialized needs of the high-end market by turning the traditional recruitment business model upside down. Each month, the TheLadders.com team of experts reviews over 160,000 jobs to select more than 7,000 jobs for inclusion in their weekly newsletters. The company searches the Internet for job postings, or, alternatively, employers can list them free of charge ñ a critical difference from traditional job boards because it enables TheLadders.com to list every appropriate 100k job opening on the market, not just paid listings. This distinction allows TheLadders.com to filter out any questionable job listings that do not meet the companyís standards. TheLadders.com does not charge a fee for its basic job leads newsletter for job seekers. Instead, it generates revenues by offering a premium service to job seekers, which includes a greater number of job listings, more detail, early delivery, and more features for 25 dollars per month. TheLadders.comís premium service fee keeps unqualified candidates out of the applicant pool and, thus, encourages employers to look at TheLadders.com applicants first.

Marc Cenedella founded TheLadders.com in July 2003 after a tenure as Senior Vice President, Finance & Operations, at HotJobs.com, ultimately shepherding that companyís sale to Yahoo, Inc. (NASD: YHOO) in 2002. In May 2004 he was named Entrepreneur of the Year by award-winning marketing newsletter, MarketingSherpa, which cited TheLadders.comís unique business model as a key to its sustained growth.