Microsoft’s Top Compensated Execs In 2023; CEO Nadella Leads With $49M
CEO Satya Nadella tops the list with about $48.5 million in total compensation.
Microsoft’s top executives saw their total pay packages fall from fiscal year 2022 to fiscal year 2023 – though they still made out quite well.
CEO Satya Nadella topped the list with about $48.5 million in total compensation, according to regulatory filings. That compensation included base pay, stock awards and a bonus under non-equity incentive plan awards.
The fiscal year for Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft ended June 30.
Microsoft CEO Pay
For the 2023 fiscal year, Microsoft brought in $211.9 billion in revenue, up about 7 percent year over year. It saw operating income of $88.5 billion and $72.4 billion in net income.
Some highlights from the year include Microsoft Cloud revenue of $111.6 billion, up 22 percent year over year. Office Commercial products and cloud services revenue grew 10 percent year over year, Dynamics products and cloud services revenue grew 16 percent and Server products and cloud services revenue grew 19 percent, according to the filings.
Microsoft has one of the largest partner ecosystems in tech with 400,000 channel partners worldwide, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.
Microsoft’s other top compensated executives include:
*Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood
*Vice Chairman and President Brad Smith
*Chief Commercial Officer Judson Althoff
*Executive Vice President (EVP) Chris Young
Microsoft reports earnings for the first quarter of its 2024 fiscal year on Tuesday.
Other vendors to recently disclose their top compensated executives include Dell, Oracle, Kyndryl and Splunk.
Read on for more details on the biggest pay packages given by Microsoft during the 2023 fiscal year.
5. Chris Young
EVP of Business Development, Strategy and Ventures
Total Compensation Fiscal 2023: $9.8 million
Chris Young’s $9.8 million in total compensation for the fiscal year was down about 16 percent year over year, according to regulatory filings.
Most of that compensation came from stock awards valued at $7.4 million. That’s an increase of about 3 percent year over year. He received the same base pay as last year – $850,000.
Young’s bonus for the year was about $1.4 million, down about 32 percent year over year.
He received about $163,000 in other compensation. This included:
*$12,375 in 401(k) plan matching and other retirement plan contributions
*$536 in broad-based plan benefits, which could include payments in lieu of athletic club membership and credits for waived life insurance coverage
*$135,096 in charitable gifts
*$15,120 in one-time vacation accrual
Why Young deserved a bonus, according to the filings, includes:
*“Key role in support of AI transformation efforts”
*“Providing thought leadership for business leaders on AI transformation strategies for their organizations”
*“Drove foundational partnerships and investments for the Company in strategic new growth areas”
*“Served as a key driver in important strategic transactions and corporate acquisitions”
*“Increased M12 Venture Fund engagements with early-stage companies”
*“Provided thought leadership on the importance of diversity and inclusion in the technology industry”
Microsoft hired Young, former CEO of McAfee, in 2020.
4. Judson Althoff
EVP and Chief Commercial Officer
Total Compensation Fiscal 2023: $16.2 million
Judson Althoff’s $16.2 million in total compensation for the 2023 fiscal year was a decrease of about 14 percent year over year, according to regulatory filings.
Most of the compensation came from $12.8 million in stock awards, down about 11 percent year over year. He received $960,000 in base pay, the same as the prior year.
Althoff received a bonus of $2.2 million, down about 34 percent year over year.
He received about $152,000 in other compensation, which includes:
*$10,250 in 401(k) plan matching and other retirement plan contributions
*$1,661 in broad-based plan benefits, which could include payments in lieu of athletic club membership and credits for waived life insurance coverage
*$63,444 in charitable gifts
*$76,922 in one-time vacation accrual
The filings offered reasons for Althoff to receive a bonus, including:
*“Clear and effective leadership of Microsoft Customer & Partner Solutions (‘MCAPS’) group to help deliver strong performance contributing to revenue growth”
*“Championed customer and partner engagement across the company, including driving AI transformation across numerous engagements”
*“Continued to streamline processes and enhance deal agility to optimize customer experiences”
*“Doubled down on driving MCAPS high-performance mindset and culture, providing greater clarity and alignment of business priorities and increasing confidence in career development”
*“Steady focus on advancing diversity and inclusion efforts”
Althoff has worked at Microsoft for about 10 years, according to his LinkedIn account.
3. Brad Smith
Vice Chairman and President
Total Compensation Fiscal 2023: $18.1 million
Brad Smith’s $18.1 million in total compensation for the fiscal year was about 23 percent less year over year, according to regulatory filings.
Smith’s compensation package was mostly in the form of stock awards valued at $14.5 million, down about 23 percent year over year.
He received $2.4 million as a bonus, down about 33 percent year over year. His base pay was $1 million, a slight increase year over year from $993,333.
He received about $213,000 in other compensation. That compensation included:
*$11,250 in 401(k) plan matching and other retirement plan contributions
*$1,368 in broad-based plan benefits, which could include payments in lieu of athletic club membership and credits for waived life insurance coverage
*$100,000 in charitable gifts
*$100,159 in one-time vacation accrual
Reasons for Smith’s bonus offered in the filings include:
*“Championed Microsoft efforts on responsible AI practices, messages and public policy issues, including publishing a blueprint for ‘Governing AI’”
*“Continued leadership in combatting disinformation and foreign cyber influence operations”
*“Continued efforts to protect fundamental rights including access to the internet with a new strategy for the Airband program through new partnerships and broader focus to a wider range of technologies”
*“Led efforts to close the Activision Blizzard acquisition”
*“Drove strong performance for Microsoft Philanthropies in supporting products and services for non-profits”
*“Led progress on environmental sustainability and strengthened capabilities across the Company to connect the Company’s product strategy, data & reporting, and our public policy efforts”
Smith has worked at Microsoft for about 30 years, starting in 1993 as associate general counsel in Europe, according to his LinkedIn account.
2. Amy Hood
EVP and Chief Financial Officer
Total Compensation Fiscal 2023: $20 million
Amy Hood’s $20 million in total compensation for the fiscal year was a 24 percent decrease year over year., according to regulatory filings.
Most of that compensation came from $16.5 million in stock awards, down 24 percent year over year.
Hood received a bonus of $2.3 million, down about 36 percent year over year.
She received $1 million in base pay, the same as a year prior.
Her compensation included $157,000 in other compensation, including:
*$11,250 in 401(k) plan matching and other retirement plan contributions
*$1,229 in broad-based plan benefits, which could include payments in lieu of athletic club membership and credits for waived life insurance coverage
*$50,000 in charitable gifts
*$94,467 in one-time vacation accrual
Praise for Hood’s performance during the year in the filings include:
*“Delivered solid financial performance and cost management, while returning over $38 billion in cash to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and dividends”
*“Drove effective resource reallocation to fund AI transformation”
*“Continued intense focus on building efficiencies through process simplification, improvement and execution to drive operating leverage and align our cost structure with our revenue growth”
*“Demonstrated leadership on ESG (environmental, social and governance) efforts in sustainability, the Company’s racial equity initiative, and affordable housing investments”
*“Championed for diversity and inclusion driving increased representation across the Finance organization”
Hood has worked at Microsoft for more than 20 years, starting in 2002. She joined with the title of investor relations director.
1. Satya Nadella
CEO, Executive Chairman
Total Compensation Fiscal 2023: $48.5 million
Satya Nadella saw his total compensation fall by about 12 percent year over year due in part to a decreased value in his stock awards and a lower bonus.
Nadella received $48.5 million in total compensation for the fiscal year ended June 30, according to regulatory filings.
Most of that compensation came in the form of $39.2 million in stock awards. However, that value was about 7 percent lower year over year.
For 2023, Nadella received a bonus of about $6.4 million. That bonus was about 36 percent lower year over year.
Nadella also received his typical $2.5 million base salary and about $362,000 in other compensation.
That other compensation included:
*$11,250 in 401(k) plan matching and other retirement plan contributions
*$100,000 in charitable gifts
*$250,400 in one-time vacation accrual
Nadella’s compensation was 250 times that of the median Microsoft employee, according to the filings.
The filings included a list of reasons why Nadella deserved some of his target bonus, including:
*“Vision, decisiveness, and leadership enabled Microsoft to excel in product and strategy during fiscal year 2023 and positioned the Company to be the acknowledged leader in AI for a changing world”
*“Establishing leadership in AI infrastructure and capturing early AI market momentum through achievements such as the launch of Microsoft 365 Copilot, Azure OpenAI Service, and the new Bing and Edge”
*“Launching Microsoft Fabric as the most unified and AI-enabled analytics platform with over 8,000 active customer trials”
*“Critical Security leadership, as evidenced by increasing customer adoption of Microsoft security services and solutions and the innovation and thought leadership in Security AI with Security Copilot”
*“Growing total revenue by 7% year-over-year, with a significant portion of growth being delivered by new investments and innovation”
*“Furthered Microsoft’s success as the preferred or primary cloud partner for an increasing number of premier, global organizations while also expanding Microsoft’s share among Digital Natives”
*“Directed a substantive and thought-leading approach to AI governance and continues to represent Microsoft in leading the commitment to responsible AI across the private and public sector”
*“Successfully navigated new cybersecurity regulations while also sustaining strong cybersecurity support for Ukraine and NATO and adding to its influence and capability around foreign cyber operations”
*“Directing the enhancement of sustainability on Microsoft’s own properties – including reducing, reusing, and recovering waste on campus and in data centers”
*“While Microsoft was not immune to the workforce reductions experienced by many technology organizations, Mr. Nadella’s leadership encouraged a focus on dignity and respect for impacted employees throughout the process”