NetApp executive compensation filing shows $34.27 million package for CPO
NetApp paid new product chief Syam Nair $34.27 million in fiscal 2026, mostly in stock tied to equity he left behind at Zscaler.
By Dominic Okoye · Staff Writer
· 3 min read
NetApp executive compensation disclosures show Chief Product Officer Syam Nair received $34.27 million for the fiscal year ended April 24, after joining the storage company in July from Zscaler. The package matters beyond one hire because it shows how costly senior technical recruiting has become for infrastructure vendors trying to position around AI demand.
Nair succeeded Harvinder Bhela as chief product officer. NetApp said in its proxy statement for its September annual shareholder meeting that Nair’s reported pay included $30.68 million in stock awards. That figure came from a $31.85 million target equity grant that NetApp described as a “make-whole” award for equity he forfeited when he left Zscaler, where he had been chief technology officer.
NetApp also agreed to a $5 million signing bonus for Nair. Half of that amount was paid during fiscal 2026 and counted in the reported total. The second half was due after his first anniversary, with repayment conditions if he leaves within 24 months, according to the company’s filing.
Why was Syam Nair's NetApp compensation so high?
The largest driver was replacement equity, not base salary. Make-whole awards are used when a company wants to hire an executive who would otherwise lose unvested equity at a prior employer, though they can make first-year reported pay look far above the executive’s recurring compensation level.
NetApp did not frame the package as routine annual pay. It tied much of the amount to Nair’s move from Zscaler and the value of equity left behind there. The proxy filing does not make the hiring price any less material: $34.27 million put Nair above CEO George Kurian’s reported fiscal 2026 compensation.
Kurian received $22.16 million for the year. NetApp said 95 percent of his target direct compensation is at risk, through cash incentives and equity rather than guaranteed salary. His base salary remained $1 million, with increases in reported compensation coming largely through incentive payouts and long-term stock awards.
Other senior executives also received eight-figure packages. President Cesar Cernuda received $11.13 million, including the maximum 15 percent upward adjustment to his annual incentive payout under a new individual performance modifier. NetApp said the adjustment reflected customer wins and revenue growth. CFO Wissam Jabre received $11.49 million, down from $18.26 million the prior year, when his package included a $6.56 million make-good bonus after joining from Western Digital in March 2025.
How did NetApp perform while executive pay rose?
NetApp reported fiscal 2026 revenue of $6.93 billion, up 5.4 percent, and operating income of $1.67 billion, up 25 percent. Its stock price had risen roughly 60 percent year to date, supported by investor demand for companies tied to AI-ready infrastructure.
The company said it logged more than 1,100 AI and data preparation deals during the year, including 500 in the final quarter. NetApp did not disclose the total value of those deals in the compensation discussion.
Shareholders have not shown broad resistance to the pay structure. NetApp said its 2025 advisory say-on-pay vote passed with about 94 percent support, a result its compensation committee cited in keeping the overall program largely intact. Executive compensation will again be on the ballot at the September annual meeting, where investors will get a non-binding vote on pay for the company’s top executives.
This story draws on original reporting from The Register.
