Compensation consultants point out that this is how these plans are supposed to work.

At 28, she received a business degree from Harvard, then became a compensation consultant.

Because few companies identify their compensation consultant, this list is by no means comprehensive.

It is easy to see why compensation consultants are so popular - and powerful - with top executives today.

Human resources officials often work closely with the compensation consultants and report directly to the chief executives.

Research by academics and compensation consultants now shows that it is much more common than even the critics had thought.

Several compensation consultants agreed that the potential gain for the Disney executives might be a record.

But for a compensation consultant, breaking bad news to people unaccustomed to hearing it is often part of the job.

Certainly, compensation consultants say, chief executives are entitled to maintain their standard of living in retirement.

Companies are now deciding whether to tell employees and their shareholders months ahead of when they would normally find out, according to compensation consultants.