Marissa Mayer could earn $100m – if she hits targets for Yahoo

By DOMINIC JEFF
Published on 21/07/2012 00:00

New Yahoo boss Marissa Mayer could earn as much as $100 million (£64m) if she hits bonus targets and capitalises on share options over the next five years.

The firm, which has gone through two chief executives in the last year as it seeks a leader capable of restoring its fortunes, lured Mayer from Google earlier this week.

The 37-year-old was a surprise choice, edging out presumed front-runner and acting chief executive Ross Levinsohn.

She further surprised the market – although not her new employer – by announcing she was six months pregnant and would take several weeks maternity leave in the autumn.

Yahoo has now revealed that Mayer’s compensation package could total more than $70m in salary, bonuses, and share options over five years.

The package is made up of $1m in annual salary, as much as $2m in an annual bonus, and $42m in stock options and other awards, as well as a further $14m in “restricted options” offered for forfeiture of compensation from Google.

Yahoo said a separate set of share grants meant Mayer could earn up to $20m a year in total.

As the first female Google engineer and one of its earliest employees, Mayer is already worth an estimated $300m.

Analysts saw her appointment as a coup for Yahoo, struggling to find a niche that will restore some of its former glory.

One of the big names of the early internet era, the firm has divested its once popular search engine and been squeezed out of some of the most lucrative areas of the web by rising powers such as Facebook and Google.

Industry observers believe Mayer’s selection over Levinsohn is a signal that Yahoo is likely to renew its focus on web technology and products rather than beefing up online content.