“Newer [insurance] companies tend to focus more on equity compensation and be conservative on salary so they can reinvest that cash into the business,” said Ed Steinhoff, managing director, Pearl Meyer.

According to Pearl Meyer, an executive compensation consultancy, 5% to 20% of employers have increased or plan to increase competitive positioning for one or more pay components, like base salary, cash bonuses, or equity-based incentives.

“As long as the stock price went up, investors had very little to say [about tech companies doling out equity instead of cash for compensation] because it was part of the company's growth strategy,” said Aalap Shah, managing director, Pearl Meyer.

The Pearl Meyer survey found that 44 percent of employers cited “retention concerns” as the primary reason for higher raises this year; 30 percent said “cost of living.”

“Many companies are still actively recruiting and know the employee mindset has changed, particularly for younger folks,” said Bill Reilly, managing director.

"Ultimately, compensation decisions should be based on your business goals and talent management strategy," said Bill Reilly, managing director at Pearl Meyer.

“You need to talk about your philosophy on pay structure and define the story around it,” said Beth Florin, CEO, Pearl Meyer. “There are going to be bumps in the road, but [pay] transparency needs to be more than showing a number.”

“A number of CEOs tell me that when they get promoted into that CEO role, one of the first questions their board has for them is, ‘OK, who’s going to be your replacement?'” said Jan Koors, senior managing director at Pearl Meyer.