Jim Anderson, CEO of Coherent in Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, has topped the list of highest-paid CEOs in the United States for 2024 with a staggering compensation of over $101 million, primarily through stock awards.
Jim Anderson, CEO of Coherent Corp, a technology company headquartered in Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, that specializes in optical networking and laser systems, has officially become the highest-paid CEO in the United States for the year 2024, according to a report by Equilar.
The study revealed that Anderson received a total compensation package of $101,497,009, making him the only CEO in the top 10 list to surpass a nine-figure salary. This figure dwarfs the earnings of tech heavyweights like Apple’s Tim Cook and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella.
While Anderson’s base salary was $1.06 million, he only received $81,538 in cash due to joining the company in June 2024. He was also given a signing bonus of $500,000, but more than 90% of his earnings came from long-term stock awards, which totaled over $100 million.
Despite his massive pay, Jim Anderson remains relatively unknown to the public. The 52-year-old executive previously served as CEO of Lattice Semiconductor and as Senior VP at Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). He holds degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Purdue University, and the University of Minnesota.
Following Anderson on the Equilar list is Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol, who earned $95.8 million in 2024.
While Anderson currently tops the list, the rankings could change as more companies release their final proxy statements for 2024.
