> Huge upside with limited downside From your perspective, sure, especially if you're only considering financial downside. There are huge non-financial downsid

> Huge upside with limited downside From your perspective, sure, especially if you're only considering financial downside. There are huge non-financial downside risks, like staking your personal reputation on the performance of the 50,000 person company that you're running. Maybe you don't personally care about those other risks, but CEOs in that position do. > encourages reckless risk taking Not all CEOs take reckless risks. > encouraging short term profit over long term value This is a function of shareholders, not of CEOs. > Is the CEO not an employee? No, the CEO is an Officer of the Corporation and is literally held accountable for the performance of the company. An employee is not. The CEO and CFO of public companies can go to jail for misleading investors, insider trading, falsifying financial reports, etc. There is no such law that holds employees accountable for those things. > Why would he be owed a share of the capital gain, and other workers not? Because he owns stock. Anyone is free to buy shares of a public company. Any employee can buy stock and therefore take a share of the capital gain. There are lots of companies that give workers options and even stock grants. CEO compensation packages are designed to be heavy on stock so that the incentive to increase shareholder value becomes personal.