Microsoft's New CEO Could Earn Almost $18 Million This Year Microsoft has set the base salary of its new CEO, Satya Nadella, at $1.2 million, but with incentives and stock options he could earn as much as $18 million during his first year on the job.
By Geoff Weiss
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Satya Nadella's appointment as Microsoft's new chief will come with a hefty pay raise, one that is considerably higher than his previous salary -- as well as that of departing CEO Steve Ballmer.
Nadella's base pay will be set at $1.2 million, up from the $675,000 he received as head of Microsoft's servers and tools division, and a noted increase over Ballmer's salary of $700,000.
But that's not all. Nadella's package includes participation in an executive incentive program that could allow him to triple his base salary by the end of 2015, reports The Wall Street Journal. And his annual stock awards will be $13.2 million, Microsoft said in a regulatory filing, meaning he could take home as much as $18 million in his first year on the job.
Related: Microsoft's Safe Bet: Nadella Named CEO, Gates Appointed Tech Advisor
At the same time, it was also announced that Microsoft has committed to a multimillion dollar investment in the New York startup Foursquare, a location-based app that allows users to "check in" to various locations.
Foursquare's CEO, Dennis Crowley, confirmed to the Journal that Microsoft will contribute $15 million as an equity investment, and has also signed a multi-year contract to become the biggest licensee of Foursquare's data -- or the "more than 60 million restaurants, shops and other points of interest within cities, much of it entered by the app's 45 million users."
Though Crowley would not disclose the value of the contract, it is expected that Microsoft could integrate the expansive and highly valuable information into its Windows Phone operating system and Bing search engine.
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