ISS 2026 equity plan assessment methodology
ISS has updated the EPSC effective for plans voted on at annual meetings occurring on or after Feb. 1, 2026. Key changes include a new negative overriding factor, a new factor in the plan features pillar, tweaks to the scoring of factors, and updated burn-rate benchmarks.
This article provides an overview of how the EPSC works and situations where ISS assesses equity plan proposals outside of the EPSC, as described in its 2026 equity compensation plans FAQs.
is a Partner and Senior Legal Consultant in Mercer's Law & Regulatory Group (L&R) based in New York. She specializes in technical legal and regulatory issues affecting executive compensation and corporate governance. She focuses on SEC disclosure, tax, employment and change in control agreements, equity programs, and employee benefit issues that arise in the context of corporate transactions and initial public offerings.
is a Senior Legal Consultant in Mercer's Law & Regulatory Group (L&R) based in Washington DC. She provides expert analyses on a variety of US and Canadian compliance and policy matters, and advises clients on securities and corporate governance issues affecting executive pay in North America.
is a Parter and the Head of Mercer’s US & Canada Executive Rewards Practice. He advises US and Canadian companies’ Compensation Committees and senior leadership teams on a wide variety of executive compensation topics and Board of Director pay issues. In addition, he leads the go-to-market strategies, as well as the development of intellectual capital and technical solutions, for Mercer’s Executive Rewards Practice in the US and Canada.