High-flying HR man’s $20m paypacket

HR professionals are often referred to as the un-sung heroes of the workplace – working behind the scenes to make sure everything is ticking. So who’s making more than $20m?

BY HCA 16 Jul 2013

With Daniel E. Walker, chief talent officer at J.C Penney Co. Inc., resigning in April of this year, it’s timely to look at what Walker and other HR highflyers earn.

In 2012, Walker’s salary was US$145,833, with a bonus of US$8m. Factoring in stock awards and other benefits, his total hit US$20,201,219, US-based HRE Online reported.

Walker didn’t get such a pay-check from sitting around – he held management responsibilities for a total of 159,000 employees in the embattled retail sector. Regardless, Walker’s pay-check sits at more than US$15m above than the next highest-ranking HR professional (see below).

Walker has worked for a number of other organisations, including Think Passenger, Inc. He also lectures in universities across the US and Europe.

How do some of the other high-rollers break down? Based on HRE’s report, some of the world’s HR heavyweights (after Walker) are*:

Benito Cachinero-Sanchez, snr VP, HR at DuPont – $5,068,383
Martha A. Burger, snr VP, human and corporate resources at Chesapeak Energy Corp. – $4,824,165
Lawrence J. Pope, executive VP, administrator & chief HR officer at Halilburton – $4,687,979
Gregory J. Besio, executive VP & chief HR officer at Aon – $3,777,065
Anthony G. Ambrosio, executive VP Hr & administrator at CBS Corp. – $3,652,333
John M. Murabito, executive VP, HR & services at Cigna – $3,419,620
Melvin L. Stephens, snr VP, communications, HR & investor relations at Lear Corp. $3,177,613
Joseph B. Ruocco, snr VP, HR at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. – $3,173,575
David K. Kenhardt, executive VP, store operations HR & information systems at PetSmart Inc. – $3,090,005