Citigroup is aiming to stay competitive when it comes to hiring with new compensation plans that will boost salaries to offset expected smaller bonuses. The New York Times says salaries will rise by 50 percent for investment bankers and traders. On average, people will make about the same as they did in 2008. This is certainly in keeping with what's going on at other banks.

The issue here is how all this will play with the Obama Administration, especially the new pay czar Kenneth Feinberg. He'll set pay practices for the top 100 executives. My sense is that well-conceived plans along these lines will pass unscathed. It might get tricky at the very top, however. The board would be wise to go over compensation plans very carefully. 

For more:
- here's the article 

Related Articles:
Will the pay czar ruin Wall Street?
More ideas on executive pay
Era of big exec pay over already?
A very interesting idea on executive pay
Broker retention bonuses in the spotlight