Disney’s $27 million retention deal pays its No. 2 a higher base salary than her boss

Disney’s post-succession strategy is not just about who won the CEO job. It is about converting a potential rival into a highly incentivized partner.

In most corporate succession battles, the runner-up leaves. At The Walt Disney Company, the opposite just happened, and it came with a carefully structured price tag.

After naming Josh D’Amaro its next CEO, Disney moved quickly to ensure that Dana Walden, the executive many believed could just as easily have won the job, did not become Hollywood’s most valuable free agent.