This week’s web-poll of CEOs and business leaders explored the legal system’s treatment of corporate crime and the separate issue of the appropriate compensation for the CEOs of public corporations.

In the wake of the 15 and 20 year sentences given the founding father and son of Adelphia Communications, Canada’s CEOs and business leaders believe that the U.S. legal system is dealing effectively and justly with corporate crime. Virtually none believe that the American authorities are over-reacting; some believe that the American authorities are not going far enough. Canada should be following suit. The vast majority of the panel (83%) feel that it is vital for Canadian authorities to learn from the U.S. example and treat corporate crime with greater seriousness.

On the matter of executive compensation, the business leaders and largely private company CEOs on the panel believe that public corporation CEOs tend to be overpaid. They welcome the Sarbanes-Oxley requirement for independent directors deciding CEO compensation but are not convinced that this obligation provides adequate protection against avaricious executives. Furthermore, they perceive CEO compensation to be driven by the wrong considerations—the compensation paid to other public company CEOs and board friendships rather than the CEO’s performance in providing strategic positioning, acquiring executive talent, and delivering profitability.

These are some of the key findings from this week’s web poll of business leaders and CEOs, sponsored by BDO Dunwoody LLP and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

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