Center Webinar Explores Real Solutions for LTI Communications

This week’s Center webinar tackled the tough questions and offered clever solutions for educating executives about complex equity plans.

When it comes to LTI plans, there’s no shortage of complexity—or confusion. In this engaging session, panelists Lynn Castrataro, Andrew Kuster, and Robyn Gay pulled back the curtain on how companies can better communicate, educate, and engage executives on the value of these incentive programs.

Start with Strategy: As Ms. Castrataro explained, while cash is easy to understand, it doesn’t create the same alignment with company performance that equity can. That alignment is key to driving long-term value. But to get buy-in, companies must clearly connect the dots between business strategy and individual impact—crafting a narrative where every executive sees themselves as a key player in overall success. According to Ms. Castrataro, the CEO and CFO play a pivotal role in reinforcing how day-to-day actions drive performance metrics and ultimately influence equity outcomes.

Break Down the “Why” Behind the Rewards: Mr. Kuster underscored the importance of anchoring communication in the company’s total rewards philosophy. Start with the ‘why’, he advised, tying incentive plans to broader pay-for-performance and market-based strategies. Even senior executives can misunderstand—or entirely miss—the nuances of equity plans. Simplify with visuals, repeat messages often, and listen carefully to gauge comprehension. Teaching others is also part of the learning journey. Leaders who can explain LTI mechanics to their teams often understand them better themselves.

Simplify, Personalize, Humanize: Ms. Gay warned against the all-too-common trap of information overload. Her advice: simplify the experience, tailor communications by role and preference, and use tools like personalized modeling to illustrate real-world value. Use focus groups to assess how well your communications are resonating.

Multi-Channel, Multi-Touch, Maximum Impact: From bite-sized webinars to Ask the Expert sessions to one-on-one coaching, the panel agreed: one size does not fit all. Effective communication must be frequent, varied, and, above all, tailored as much as possible.

The Bottom Line: When it comes to long-term incentives, communication isn’t a one-time event—it’s an ongoing effort that requires continuous enhancement.