Area 05 · Retain

Executive benefits & key talent

How do I keep the people the business depends on?

CoordinateA decision that needs input from licensed or specialist professionals, with clear responsibilities and follow-through.

Connect meaningful rewards to a business that can sustain them.

Retention begins with the person, the role and the business objective. A reward that looks attractive on paper may fail if the terms are unclear, unaffordable or disconnected from what the employee values.

Why it matters to your personal wealth

Promises to key employees can affect future cash flow, ownership and a sale. Balance today’s talent needs with what you and your family need from the business over time.

Recognize the signals

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Guides for this area.

Key talent

Retention strategies for essential people

A retention strategy connects the reasons important people stay with the value they help create. It may involve compensation, career growth, decision authority, workplace conditions or long-term awards. Start with the employee and business problem. Then compare arrangements that the company can explain, administer and afford, including what happens when someone leaves.

CoordinateA decision that needs input from licensed or specialist professionals, with clear responsibilities and follow-through.Read the guide →

The broader planning agenda

More questions to put on the table.

Explore other questions to discuss with your professional team. These are planning topics, not services provided by BizWealth FP.

5.1

Arrangement types

CoordinateA decision that needs input from licensed or specialist professionals, with clear responsibilities and follow-through.
  • Executive bonus (Section 162) plans
  • Restricted executive bonus plans
  • Double-bonus (tax gross-up) designs
  • Retention bonus plans (stay bonuses, laddered payouts)
  • Retention bonus + one-way buy-sell (key employee as future buyer)
  • Split dollar: loan regime vs. economic benefit regime
  • Nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC)
  • Voluntary salary deferral plans
  • Supplemental executive retirement plans (SERPs)
  • Phantom stock and stock appreciation rights
  • Nonprofit / 457(b) and 457(f) executive plans
  • Executive disability and long-term care benefits
5.2

Comparing and implementing

CoordinateA decision that needs input from licensed or specialist professionals, with clear responsibilities and follow-through.
  • Comparison dimensions: who is selected, who owns the funding asset, vesting/forfeiture, employer control, tax timing (employee and employer), payment triggers, creditor exposure, cash-flow impact
  • Top-hat plan rules and limited ERISA reporting
  • Section 409A compliance
  • Informal funding options (corporate investments, insurance, rabbi trusts)
  • Treatment of executive plans at sale or change of control
  • Executive benefits as a recruiting and retention strategy by industry

The connections

Consider these alongside it.

03

Business continuity & risk

What keeps working if I—or someone essential—cannot?

04

Retirement plans for your business

How can I save for myself while supporting my team?

07

Exit & succession

How—and when—could I step back on terms I understand?

Before the conversation

A few useful questions.

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Do incentives have to involve equity?

No. Compare compensation, bonuses, benefits and ownership-based approaches. Each has different costs, obligations and incentives; none guarantees retention.

Should every key person receive the same arrangement?

Start with a consistent process, then understand individual roles, objectives and applicable rules. Ask counsel about eligibility and how the arrangement should be documented.

Who should review the terms?

Bring together compensation, tax and legal expertise as appropriate. Your lead advisor can connect business commitments to your personal plan.

How does this connect to an exit?

Buyers may consider employee obligations and leadership continuity. Understand how vesting, departure and a change of control would affect the arrangement before you negotiate a sale.

Your next step

Make key talent part of the whole picture.

Tell us about your business and priorities. We review your application for a possible introduction to a participating advisor. You decide whether to proceed.

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Participating advisors fund the introduction model. Compensation and conflicts.

Content reviewed: October 20, 2026 · General education

Educational information only, not personal financial, tax, legal or insurance advice.