作为外卖送餐企业DoorDash的首席执行官,徐迅的领导位置正在面临新一轮的挑战。颇具影响力的投资咨询服务机构——Glass Lewis已经向该公司的股东发出建议,希望后者对徐迅的连任投下反对票。
Glass Lewis以DoorDash的双重股权结构为例,对DoorDash的董事会结构和股票架构偏向管理层的问题表示了担忧。在这种架构之下,徐迅及公司的其他联合创始人拥有多数投票权。该公司表示,此种状况或将导致“股东权利受到限制”。
Glass Lewis在报告中称:“通过审视该公司的治理文件,我们可以发现,相关问题值得严重关切,也给了我们充足的理由反对徐迅连任。”
Glass Lewis还建议投资者对DoorDash的高管薪酬方案投反对票,认为徐迅在该公司去年12月IPO之前获得的“可观超前奖励应该受到严格审查”。DoorDash表示,2020年11月,徐迅获颁“首席执行官业绩奖”(股票为主),据该公司估计,相关奖励的价值约为4.13亿美元。
但根据DoorDash的说法,该公司的股权及董事会架构自IPO之时便已经确立,因此投资者对此应当早已清楚。该公司还为徐迅的领导能力做出了辩护,并表示徐迅是领导公司战略与发展的最佳人选。此外,徐迅的巨额薪酬与极高的业绩目标紧密相关。除非能够将公司的股票市值提高五倍,否则他不会从自己的奖励中拿走一分钱。
DoorDash在一份声明中指出:“取得现在的成绩殊为不易,而推动DoorDash下一个阶段的发展一样面临重重挑战。在设计徐迅的薪酬结构时,董事会已经将激励因素最大化,促使其为实现公司利益相关方的长期目标而不懈努力。”
不过,Glass Lewis依然可以对大型机构投资者的投票选择产生重大影响。此前也有许多大型科技公司的首席执行官面临过类似的挑战,例如Facebook和谷歌(Google)的母公司Alphabet的股权架构和董事会结构也经常遭受投资者的批评,但都收效甚微。如果这次徐迅最终被董事会除名,也算是在某种意义上的“开创先河”。
在Glass Lewis发布这份报告的两周前,DoorDash的投资者之一——CtW投资集团(CtW Investment Group,持有DoorDash不到5%股份)已经向股东发出通知,要求他们投票反对徐迅连任。CtW投资集团同样提到了DoorDash的双重股权结构和错综复杂的董事会服务条款,受其限制,长期投资者难以对该公司的战略施加影响。CtW集团表示,“除非董事会对所有股东负责,否则DoorDash将难以应对自己在竞争和监管领域面临的挑战,而在公司目前的治理机制下,想让董事会负起责任几乎绝无可能。此种情形已经让股东身处风险之中。”
在DoorDash于 6月22日举行的年度股东大会上,股东将投票决定徐迅是否能够保住他在董事会中的席位。
在新冠肺炎疫情期间,人们减少外出就餐,转而开始使用外卖送餐服务,DoorDash的业绩随之大涨。一季度,该公司的营收为10.8亿美元,同比增长198%,不过仍然处于亏损状态。虽然亏损金额较去年同期的1.29亿美元有所改善,但仍旧高达1.1亿美元。
与此同时,DoorDash也在进行全球扩张,并于最近宣布进军日本市场。据报道,DoorDash还计划打入德国市场,不过该公司尚未就此事或相关时间表予以公开置评。(财富中文网)
译者:梁宇
审校:夏林
作为外卖送餐企业DoorDash的首席执行官,徐迅的领导位置正在面临新一轮的挑战。颇具影响力的投资咨询服务机构——Glass Lewis已经向该公司的股东发出建议,希望后者对徐迅的连任投下反对票。
Glass Lewis以DoorDash的双重股权结构为例,对DoorDash的董事会结构和股票架构偏向管理层的问题表示了担忧。在这种架构之下,徐迅及公司的其他联合创始人拥有多数投票权。该公司表示,此种状况或将导致“股东权利受到限制”。
Glass Lewis在报告中称:“通过审视该公司的治理文件,我们可以发现,相关问题值得严重关切,也给了我们充足的理由反对徐迅连任。”
Glass Lewis还建议投资者对DoorDash的高管薪酬方案投反对票,认为徐迅在该公司去年12月IPO之前获得的“可观超前奖励应该受到严格审查”。DoorDash表示,2020年11月,徐迅获颁“首席执行官业绩奖”(股票为主),据该公司估计,相关奖励的价值约为4.13亿美元。
但根据DoorDash的说法,该公司的股权及董事会架构自IPO之时便已经确立,因此投资者对此应当早已清楚。该公司还为徐迅的领导能力做出了辩护,并表示徐迅是领导公司战略与发展的最佳人选。此外,徐迅的巨额薪酬与极高的业绩目标紧密相关。除非能够将公司的股票市值提高五倍,否则他不会从自己的奖励中拿走一分钱。
DoorDash在一份声明中指出:“取得现在的成绩殊为不易,而推动DoorDash下一个阶段的发展一样面临重重挑战。在设计徐迅的薪酬结构时,董事会已经将激励因素最大化,促使其为实现公司利益相关方的长期目标而不懈努力。”
不过,Glass Lewis依然可以对大型机构投资者的投票选择产生重大影响。此前也有许多大型科技公司的首席执行官面临过类似的挑战,例如Facebook和谷歌(Google)的母公司Alphabet的股权架构和董事会结构也经常遭受投资者的批评,但都收效甚微。如果这次徐迅最终被董事会除名,也算是在某种意义上的“开创先河”。
在Glass Lewis发布这份报告的两周前,DoorDash的投资者之一——CtW投资集团(CtW Investment Group,持有DoorDash不到5%股份)已经向股东发出通知,要求他们投票反对徐迅连任。CtW投资集团同样提到了DoorDash的双重股权结构和错综复杂的董事会服务条款,受其限制,长期投资者难以对该公司的战略施加影响。CtW集团表示,“除非董事会对所有股东负责,否则DoorDash将难以应对自己在竞争和监管领域面临的挑战,而在公司目前的治理机制下,想让董事会负起责任几乎绝无可能。此种情形已经让股东身处风险之中。”
在DoorDash于 6月22日举行的年度股东大会上,股东将投票决定徐迅是否能够保住他在董事会中的席位。
在新冠肺炎疫情期间,人们减少外出就餐,转而开始使用外卖送餐服务,DoorDash的业绩随之大涨。一季度,该公司的营收为10.8亿美元,同比增长198%,不过仍然处于亏损状态。虽然亏损金额较去年同期的1.29亿美元有所改善,但仍旧高达1.1亿美元。
与此同时,DoorDash也在进行全球扩张,并于最近宣布进军日本市场。据报道,DoorDash还计划打入德国市场,不过该公司尚未就此事或相关时间表予以公开置评。(财富中文网)
译者:梁宇
审校:夏林
DoorDash CEO Tony Xu is facing some new opposition to his leadership at the food delivery company: An influential investor advisory service recommends that shareholders vote ‘no’ on Xu’s re-election to the board.
The advisory firm, Glass Lewis, says it’s concerned that DoorDash’s board structure and stock favors management and helps “restrict the rights of shareholders.” It cited DoorDash’s dual-class stock structure, which gives Xu and his cofounders a voting majority.
“We believe our concerns regarding the Company's governing documents are severe enough to warrant opposing the election” of Xu, Glass Lewis said in its report.
Glass Lewis also advised investors to vote against DoorDash’s executive pay package, suggesting that Xu’s “substantial, front-loaded awards” ahead of the company’s initial public offering in December “warrant scrutiny.” DoorDash said that in November 2020, Xu was granted the “CEO Performance Award,” stock-based compensation the company estimated is worth about $413 million.
But the stock and board structure were in place since the company’s IPO, and therefore investors already knew what they were buying into, according to DoorDash. The company also defended Xu’s leadership saying he’s the best person to lead strategy and development. And Xu’s hefty pay package is tied to lofty performance goals. Xu has not and will not receive any of that money unless he increases the value of the company's stock five-fold.
"Building the next phase of DoorDash will be as challenging as creating what we have thus far," DoorDash said in a statement. "The board has structured Tony's compensation to maximize the incentive towards those long-term goals on behalf of our stakeholders."
Still, Glass Lewis has a major influence on how big institutional investors vote. If Xu is voted off the board, he’ll be the exception to a number of big tech company CEOs who have faced similar opposition. Investors regularly criticize the stock and board structures of Facebook and Google-parent Alphabet for the same reasons, for example—to little effect.
Glass Lewis’ report comes two weeks after DoorDash investor CtW Investment Group sent a note to shareholders asking them to vote against Xu’s reappointment. CtW, which owns less than 5% of DoorDash's stock, also cited the company’s dual-class structure and staggered board service terms, which limits long-term investors from having an impact on company strategy. The group said shareholders “are at risk from competitive and regulatory challenges to DoorDash’s business model that may not be addressed unless the board is accountable to all its shareholders, a scenario that is nearly impossible under the company’s current governance regime.”
Shareholders will vote on the Xu's re-election to the board at DoorDash's annual meeting on June 22.
DoorDash’s business was fueled by the coronavirus pandemic, during which many people turned to delivery to avoid the virus at restaurants. In its most recent quarter, the company reported a 198% increase in revenue to $1.08 billion. But it still lost $110 million, an improvement over the $129 million it lost in the same quarter last year.
Meanwhile, DoorDash has been expanding globally, most recently announcing its entrance into Japan. It also reportedly plans to enter Germany, though it has not publicly commented on the matter or a timeline.