Salary shootout: Vodacom vs. MTN

Vodacom and MTN released their latest annual reports which give an overview of the remuneration of their executive directors. The total packages for the last financial year for Vodacom and MTN’s execs ranged between R6.4 million and R22.5 million.

The highest paid executive was not Vodacom CEO, Pieter Uys or MTN CEO, Sifiso Dabengwa – but rather MTN’s Group chief strategy, mergers and acquisitions officer, Khumo Shuenyane, who netted a total pay package of R56,595,000 in 2011.

When it comes to salaries in the telecommunications market, the size of the company seems to matter. MTN, with a market cap of R261 billion, and an operating profit of R38 billion, paid their executives significantly more than Vodacom, which has a market cap of R139 billion and an operating profit of R17 billion.

However, there is no reason to feel sorry for Vodacom’s top dogs. With annual remuneration ranging between R6 million and R22 million, both MTN and Vodacom’s executives should be able to put food on the table.

Chief Executive Officer
Name	Basic salary	Total package	Name	Basic salary	Total package
Pieter Uys	7,083,750	R16,523,664	Sifiso Dabengwa	R7,133,000	R22,528,000

Chief Financial Officer
Rob Shuter	R5,045,625	R12,550,205	Nazir Patel	R4,719,000	R17,177,000

Chief Technology Officer
Andries Delport	R3,495,875	R6,417,414	Jyoti Desai	R4,746,000	R13,815,000

Board Chairman
Peter Moyo	—	R1,350,000	Cyril Ramaphosa	—	R1,805,000

These executives also have hefty long-term incentives and accruals which further help to balance their personal budgets. Here are the details of the accrued termination benefits and long-term incentives granted to Vodacom’s top executives.