NationStates Jolt Archive


Exxon Chief defends his retirement package.

PsychoticDan
19-04-2006, 23:02
I think he's right, except about new fuels. We'll be running on new fuels because we'll be forced to by geology. In anycase, it's clear that many who criticize the industry really don't understand it.

Former Exxon CEO defends $150M pay package (http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/19/news/newsmakers/exxon_raymond.reut/index.htm?cnn=yes)
Lee Raymond blasts critics of his retirement package, says oil industry will have its day of reckoning.

April 19, 2006: 12:47 PM EDT


NEW YORK (Reuters) - Never one to back away from confrontation while head of ExxonMobil Corp. for more than 13 years, Lee Raymond showed few signs of mellowing in retirement in his first public appearance following the controversy that erupted with the disclosure of his multimillion-dollar retirement package.

In a 90-minute talk at Columbia University on Tuesday evening, Raymond was unrepentant for any past decisions he had made and he blasted politicians, the U.S. car industry, Wall Street, environmentalists and other critics of the oil industry for what he said was their failure to understand the nature of the energy business, conceding only that he had been unsuccessful in getting his point of view across.

"People don't understand the time frame that we operate in. We operate in terms of 10-, 20-, 30-, 40-year cycles and to put that in context, that's 20 (U.S.) Congresses. A single quarter or a single year, which may mean everything from a political circus point of view, is not really all that significant in the time frame that we operate in," Raymond said.

He added later: "It's not like we didn't say it. But the only conclusion I think you can come to is, it didn't penetrate."

Raymond denied having any role in formulating his $52 million 2005 pay package, the $98.4 million lump sum retirement payment he received when he left ExxonMobil (up $0.46 to $64.00, Research) on Dec. 31, or any other compensation he received over his 43-year career with Exxon. He told his audience he had no influence over the pay decisions made by the company's board of directors.

"I have never had a conversation in my whole career about my compensation," he said.

Raymond defended the large payout, saying that it was Exxon's policy that employees' pay and incentive payments were supposed to reflect the performance of the company.

"When the company does well, the shareholders and employees should do well, and when the company does poorly, then the shareholders and employees should do poorly. The facts are that when prices of oil collapsed, the incentive program went down, substantially," Raymond said.

According to his view of the oil industry, Raymond may well have picked the best time to retire, as he continues to believe that the current oil price environment is unsustainable and an eventual fall in prices is inevitable.

"The seeds are being sown right now for another turn in the cycle of the oil industry," he said. "For those people who think there will not be a day of reckoning on the other side, and I hope I live long enough to see it ... it just takes a long time in this industry for supply and demand to react. This isn't like going out and producing a few more semiconductors."

The combative former CEO said Exxon's success during his tenure was entirely due to its focus on long-term goals and he had nothing but withering criticism for those who are proposing windfall taxes on energy companies, saying it would only serve as a disincentive to investment.

"Back in 1998, when prices went down to $10 (per barrel), I don't recall anyone in Washington calling me up and saying 'what can we do to help.' But I didn't want them to be calling up. That's our job. We are in that business. It's our job to manage the risk. I am not interested in hearing from (politicians) when prices are at $10 and I am not interested in hearing from them when prices are at $40 or $50," he said.

On the topic of alternative energy sources, Raymond poured scorn on the notion that petroleum-based fuels will be supplanted in the near future.

When President Bush's suggestion of using ethanol produced from switchgrass as an alternative to gasoline came up, Raymond shook his head and grinned sarcastically.

Yet, despite his view that gasoline is not about to be supplanted as the main motor fuel in this country - and that it was the job of the oil industry to tackle new investments over the long term without reference to the short-term price environment - he predicted that no new oil refineries would be built in the United States because, even for a company as big as ExxonMobil, "the risk of the investment would be extraordinarily high."
Straughn
20-04-2006, 08:22
I think he's right, except about new fuels. We'll be running on new fuels because we'll be forced to by geology. In anycase, it's clear that many who criticize the industry really don't understand it.
What's all this about Exxon NOT penetrating the public? :mad:
Brains in Tanks
20-04-2006, 08:38
What's all this about Exxon NOT penetrating the public?

I feel penetrated by Exxon.
Undelia
20-04-2006, 08:40
I feel penetrated by Exxon.
That's what she said.
Straughn
20-04-2006, 09:00
I feel penetrated by Exxon.
No joke. Seriously, the worst part is they're the beginning of all the petroleum products, and they don't even bother to lube us up! :mad:














*btw, i know certain penetrations shouldn't use petro, but i skipped that for comedic effect. Carry on ...*
Straughn
20-04-2006, 09:03
That's what she said.
AND, that's what the remaining LIVING class-action lawsuit participants are STILL saying.
http://news.aol.com/nation/story?id=n20060409150709990001&cid=505

:mad:
Harlesburg
20-04-2006, 09:07
Alaska will be raped beforeyou have to worry about clean efficent fuel.
Undelia
20-04-2006, 09:09
Alaska will be raped beforeyou have to worry about clean efficent fuel.
If she didn’t want it, she wouldn’t have all that oil.
Straughn
20-04-2006, 09:10
If she didn’t want it, she wouldn’t have all that oil.
Yeah, did you see that Bush? Unkempt, promiscuous hussy with *HUGE* .... tracts of land!










*retch*
Straughn
20-04-2006, 09:13
Alaska will be raped beforeyou have to worry about clean efficent fuel.
Not while that f*cking lunatic senator of ours Ted "The Hulk" Stevens keeps feigning "clinical depression" in public and getting into "coot-offs" on extremely popular shows.
Tactical Grace
20-04-2006, 22:59
"That's our job. We are in that business. It's our job to manage the risk. I am not interested in hearing from [politicians] when prices are at $10 and I am not interested in hearing from them when prices are at $40 or $50"
Hahaha, people never seem to grasp what the energy industry is like, even though it never pretends otherwise. :D
The Black Forrest
20-04-2006, 23:09
"When the company does well, the shareholders and employees should do well, and when the company does poorly, then the shareholders and employees should do poorly. The facts are that when prices of oil collapsed, the incentive program went down, substantially," Raymond said."

So when exactly does an executive of a major corporation ever suffer?

I thought I saw an example once where a President slashed his salary in hard times. When things got better he received a grant that gave him 50 times more then what he "gave up."

I have met only 2 Presidents that never lumped themselves in with the employees while talking about hardship.
Free Mercantile States
20-04-2006, 23:17
I haven't the slightest problem with his exit package. Exxon made the biggest profit of any corporation in history last year (I think), and under him the company grew hugely over his time in his position. He absolutely deserves the money he got.
Kyronea
20-04-2006, 23:33
Hahaha, people never seem to grasp what the energy industry is like, even though it never pretends otherwise. :D
The more I hear about it, the more fun it sounds like. To be involved in, I mean. =/
Myrmidonisia
20-04-2006, 23:34
I find it incredibly amusing how people that can't seem to make sound financial decisions themselves care so deeply about what's in someone else's pocket.
Myrmidonisia
20-04-2006, 23:36
"When the company does well, the shareholders and employees should do well, and when the company does poorly, then the shareholders and employees should do poorly. The facts are that when prices of oil collapsed, the incentive program went down, substantially," Raymond said."

So when exactly does an executive of a major corporation ever suffer?

I thought I saw an example once where a President slashed his salary in hard times. When things got better he received a grant that gave him 50 times more then what he "gave up."

I have met only 2 Presidents that never lumped themselves in with the employees while talking about hardship.
A CEO probably works ten times harder when the company is on the rocks. They don't just sit on mahogany row and watch the Dow go up and down, you know.
Tactical Grace
20-04-2006, 23:40
The more I hear about it, the more fun it sounds like. To be involved in, I mean. =/
It's awesome. :D

Screw the big cheeses, everyone is part of the project and even the army of tech guys gets to bask in the glory of the Death Star. ;)
New Granada
20-04-2006, 23:41
To be fair, he's made an enormous ammount of money for his company and his employers, so he deserves it a lot more than many of the CEOs who get paid that much.
Kyronea
20-04-2006, 23:44
It's awesome. :D

Screw the big cheeses, everyone is part of the project and even the army of tech guys gets to bask in the glory of the Death Star. ;)
...out of curiosity, what kind of degrees should I pursue in order to obtain a job in the energy industry/business/whatever?
Tactical Grace
20-04-2006, 23:52
...out of curiosity, what kind of degrees should I pursue in order to obtain a job in the energy industry/business/whatever?
Physics/Mechanical/Electrical/Systems/Power/Civil/Construction/etc. A route through Management/Economics is also possible, but bear in mind the Applicants:Positions ratio increases from 4:1 to 100:1. Internships are great, obviously in addition to the degree you need to demonstrate an appropriate aptitude for the area.
Kyronea
20-04-2006, 23:57
Physics/Mechanical/Electrical/Systems/Power/Civil/Construction/etc. A route through Management/Economics is also possible, but bear in mind the Applicants:Positions ratio increases from 4:1 to 100:1. Internships are great, obviously in addition to the degree you need to demonstrate an appropriate aptitude for the area.
I rarely use emoticons like this. But I feel this is one of those appropriate times: :eek:

Anyway, thank you. It'll be one of my career options. =/
H N Fiddlebottoms VIII
20-04-2006, 23:59
Reminds me of the CNN story on this guy's retirement package, in which the anchorwoman said (with the perfect honesty that makes CNN so precious): "How can Raymond justify the size of his severance pay at a time when national gas prices at record highs?"
Well, dumb ass, I'd say the fact that he's managed to get you paying more for gas than ever before is a pretty good justification for him to get a nice, fat reward.
PsychoticDan
21-04-2006, 01:19
Physics/Mechanical/Electrical/Systems/Power/Civil/Construction/etc. A route through Management/Economics is also possible, but bear in mind the Applicants:Positions ratio increases from 4:1 to 100:1. Internships are great, obviously in addition to the degree you need to demonstrate an appropriate aptitude for the area.
I think you forgot geology and chemistry.
Free Mercantile States
21-04-2006, 01:27
...out of curiosity, what kind of degrees should I pursue in order to obtain a job in the energy industry/business/whatever?

It depends on what part. Geology and chemistry are good if you want to actually look for oil deposits, management, business, and economics if you're looking for a management position, and electrical, mechanical, nuclear, chemical, etc. engineering or physics if you want to work on the actual power-generation systems.