Who says Microsoft isn’t innovative? They’re changing their compensation so that employees are rewarded with actual shares of stock rather than stock options. I don’t know enough finance to know what the greater implications of this are, but it feels very important to me, especially in light of the ongoing debate over how stock options are expensed by companies.

Here’s an article that discusses some of the ramifications. I’m still waiting for a detailed breakdown from a financial publication. Maybe the Economist will come through in the next week or two.