Find Solutions to Stock-Based Compensation Reconciliation Challenges
This article was updated September 17, 2024.
In today’s increasingly competitive labor market, issuing stock-based compensation is an essential tool to attract and retain talent. With the SEC T+1 stock settlement in effect, companies are now pressured to ensure timely share issuance within 24 hours of a restricted stock release or option exercise. Failure to manage this process effectively could result in errors, fines, and dissatisfaction among stock plan participants.
To help mitigate challenges, organizations can establish an equity reconciliation process and use technology to help increase efficiency and reduce errors in the data.
Risks and Consequences of Reconciliation
There are various risks and consequences associated with equity reconciliation.
Employee Time
Expanding stock-based compensation programs while complying with the T+1 settlement often requires employees to spend a significant amount of time reconciling data across multiple systems.
Impacts of Outstanding Stock Awards
The complexity is further increased by the fact that the stock awards are outstanding for several years. During this time, changes in technology, laws, and regulations can impact how these awards are affected. These constant changes can lead to a significant amount of time spent ensuring data integrity.
Reconciliation Across Systems
The equity record-keeping system, managed by a broker or internally, connects with HR systems, brokers, tax services, and other stakeholders. Reconciliation between these systems, particularly between equity records and US payroll, involves ensuring consistency across fields like year-to-date compensation and tax withholdings.
Other Hardships
When companies don’t employ effective reconciliation processes and tools, it creates risk and administrative hardship, including:
- Inefficient manual processes that are prone to human error
- Inaccuracies in data transfer between systems that could result in erroneous tax reporting
- Wasted valuable resources and increased non-value-added activities
- Unidentified issues and root causes
- A reactive environment that is prone to repeated errors
- Increased risk of exposure during high-volume periods
- Backlogged priorities
- Employee burnout
Benefits of Effective Reconciliation Processes and Tools
One way to address reconciliation risks is to implement effective processes and tools.
Developing a process that quickly identifies issues allows teams to adjust accordingly. This helps teams eliminate the problem at the source and allows for employees to conduct the reconciliation more efficiently.
A reconciliation process could offer several benefits, including:
- Reduced interruption of last-minute requests or urgent data issues
- Improved employee work quality
- Less time spent on low-value efforts and more time spent on strategic, high-value initiatives
- Dedicated problem solving and increased focus on systemic issues and big picture perspective
- Prevention of errors such as incorrect tax calculations and help maintain compliance
- Mitigation of the risk of fines due to late reconciliation of payroll and equity data
- Increased participant satisfaction
- Sustainable infrastructure
Common Reconciliation Tools and Approaches
Various tools exist for equity payroll reconciliation, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets are a common tool for tracking information and are popular for their ease of use as most employees are familiar with some sort of spreadsheet program such as Microsoft Excel or Google sheets.
Despite their popularity, spreadsheets are prone to human error due to the manual nature of inputting formulas, adding or removing columns, and other functions. Spreadsheets also get sluggish as the data within them increases, making them inefficient.
Automation Scripts
Scripts are efficient at automating repetitive tasks and handling larger data sets. They’re a significantly smaller effort to create than a full-service application, but still require some programming knowledge to maintain.
Some common scripting tools include Python, SQL, and Excel Macros.
Custom Applications
These tailored solutions offer accuracy, efficiency, and custom functionality. Full-service applications have a user Interface employees can interact with, can retain history for future reference, and any other functionality that’s required such as AI error detection.
The cost for these solutions is higher in terms of investment and implementation times.
Any of the solutions mentioned could be suitable for a company’s needs depending on the size and complexity of their stock plan. If a stock plan is small and simple, spreadsheets could be the optimal solution.
As the company grows, spreadsheets may no longer support the demands of the reconciliation process. In such cases, a more scalable tool may be needed, such as a script or custom application, to ensure efficient and accurate reconciliations.
Next Steps
With so many factors to consider, implementing the right reconciliation process and tools for your company can be overwhelming.
Leverage Existing Systems and Vendor Services
Work with your vendors to implement recommendations and best practices, streamline data flows, and automate processes where possible.
Although not all vendors provide fully automated solutions, many offer options that can significantly reduce manual efforts. For instance, a payroll system can automatically update tax information in the equity compensation platform following a restricted stock release.
Similarly, certain systems may handle mobility taxation more efficiently by offering more detailed tax segmentation for reports. To identify the specific areas where manual processes can be reduced, it's recommended to check with each system's support team. They can provide valuable insights into the functionalities that can help streamline workflows.
Conduct an Assessment
Regardless of your size, if your company has stock-based compensation, it may be worthwhile to invest in an outside assessment.
An initial assessment can provide an objective overview of your organization’s processes and help you determine where to allocate resources to help improve business operations and reduce the risks associated with reconciliations. From there, several solutions can be proposed, ranging from manual solutions to purpose-built systems.
We’re Here to Help
To have an assessment performed, or to address questions about equity reconciliation processes, contact your Moss Adams professional.