Following “a period of uncertainty,” Suncorp Group has reorganised a bonus scheme for its chief executive officer linked to staff satisfaction.

The change meant a 5% weighting would be linked to the creation of an “organisational cultural measure” each time the company measures performance for the bonus pay of Suncorp chief executive officer Michael Cameron, according to a report from The Courier Mail.

Originally, the CEO bonus was partly weighed against staff “engagement,” or satisfaction levels. When last conducted, Suncorp’s engagement result was at 77.

Current results now sit at 62, but the insurance-banking outfit deemed the result better than average for Australian and similar global firms and said the latest survey, conducted by a new firm, used different methodology and scoring.

“It’s like comparing an imperial outcome with a metric outcome. You can’t actually compare the two scores,” Cameron told The Courier Mail.

However, some were sceptical about the company’s bonus and survey changes.

It was not unusual for companies, when expecting trouble, to create a new survey format so the “excuse is (you) can’t compare apples with oranges,” Finance Sector Union state secretary Wendy Streets told The Courier Mail.“I think the change to the CEO short-term bonus structure is nothing more than finding a way to ensure he receives it.”

According to the report, Suncorp rejected such assertions and said the survey was brought in to provide “greater alignment to the organisational culture measure.”


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