This finding, in the face of the current economic climate and coinciding employee distrust of corporations, should come as no surprise. However, what may be surprising is the fact that the survey's respondents were executives in major U.S. firms.

"The message we are sending to underperforming CEOs is ludicrous," said Jeffrey Christian, chairman and CEO of the executive search firm. "Anyone who hasn't returned value to shareholders should be only minimally compensated, at or below current salary, for the time it takes to find a new job, not to exceed one year."