“You can make your entire [executive] compensation plan discretionary, but obviously investors will not like that,” said Deborah Lifshey, managing director, Pearl Meyer.

“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.