Align Technology

May 19

Total reported compensation for Joe Hogan, who has been CEO of Align Technology since 2015, was $15,522,289 in 2020. This represents an overall decline of 15% from his total compensation in 2019. According to the proxy statement, the decrease “was primarily due to a lower grant date fair value of his equity awards and decreased cash bonus largely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.” The proxy adds that this was “partially offset by an increase in compensation related to his required relocation to Arizona in conjunction with relocation of our corporate headquarters.” These relocation expenses paid for by the company amounted to more than $600,000.

In 2020, Hogan also realized $26,022,523 in the vesting of stock awards. I lack the capacity and time to untangle the several strands of equity pay Hogan has received but wrote in 2019 about a special one-time grant awarded in 2018. In 2019 more than 55% of Align Technology shareholders voted against the pay package and Hogan was subsequently ranked number 2 on our list of 100 most Overpaid CEOs. In the most recent report, he was ranked number 70.

One persistent concern for shareholders is that Hogan’s pay is higher than the CEOs of peer companies. The Calvert Fund, which has already recorded its vote against pay, describes the issue succinctly: “CEO pay exceeds the 75th percentile of peers and the company's performance is below the 75th percentile of the peer group.”

Finally, the company determined that the median employee was “a CAD Designer 2 position in Costa Rica in 2020” with a compensation of $11,961. Using this calculation, the CEO-to-median-employee pay ratio for 2020 was 1,298 to 1.