Golden Bungee

Categories: Company Management

The merger of two of the largest snack food companies (Crunchy Munchies, Inc. and GMOMG, Inc.) is big news, and we’re excited to be a part of the team handling the transition. As with most mergers, this one has resulted in some executive redundancy (we don’t need two VPs of sales now that two companies have become one), and it’s our job to deal with severance packages for the outgoing bigwigs. We’ve been handing out golden parachutes and golden handshakes left and right, but in the case of Delilah, GMOMG’s CFO, we’ve decided to switch up our precious metals game and offer her a golden bungee instead.

A golden bungee, like other golden severance packages, is a request for early retirement that comes with a nice financial incentive, like a big cash payout or enticing stock options. But unlike golden handshakes and parachutes, golden bungees also come with a “boing” factor: even though we’re asking someone to retire from their position, and we’re giving them all these financial goodies to go along with that retirement, we’re also offering them a different, usually similarly high-paying position within the same organization.

For example, Delilah might not be CFO anymore, but in addition to offering her a heap of cash, we might ask her to stay on as a financial consultant or advisor.

Find other enlightening terms in Shmoop Finance Genius Bar(f)