£8m pay deal for ITV chief: Former FA boss given £3.9m 'golden handshake' simply for taking the job
Adan Crozier previously saw his pay triple from £2.9 to £8.3 million
Has been seen as providing ITV with a renaissance with Downton Abbey
Previously stirred controversy by hiring Sven Goran Eriksson
The boss of ITV has been handed a pay packet worth more than £8million, including a £3.9million 'golden handshake' simply for agreeing to take the top job at the broadcaster.
Adam Crozier, former boss of the Football Association and Royal Mail, saw his pay deal nearly treble from £2.9million to £8.3million last year.
His basic salary was £841,000, while he also picked up an annual bonus in cash and shares of £1.4million and a long-term award in shares worth £2million.
He has since presided over a renaissance that has seen the public service broadcaster's stock market value surge from £2billion to £8billion.
His tenure has proved largely successful, in stark contrast to a more rocky record at the Royal Mail and the Football Association.
As boss of the FA, he stirred controversy by hiring the England team's first foreign manager, Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Mr Crozier garnered criticism when he handed managership of the England team to Sven Goran Ericksson
Mr Crozier was also criticised for allegedly coining the term 'golden generation' to refer to the England football team that went to the 2002 World Cup under the Swede.
England and Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard later revealed that the tag became an albatross around the players' necks.
'If it was Adam Crozier who said it, it was said much too early,' Lampard said.
'It is good to have pressure on you as individuals and on the team as a whole. But calling us a golden generation, it was almost as if people were waiting for us to fail.'
Mr Crozier was also accused of presiding over a 'car crash' seven-year reign at Royal Mail, where his efforts to modernise the service left many customers exasperated.
Under his leadership, around 5,800 post offices shut down and the second post was axed, while the price of a first-class stamp jumped by 12p.
A long-running-dispute with union leaders over pay and conditions, which triggered strikes and postal chaos, was left unresolved when he joined ITV.
On his departure, Labour MP Lindsay Hoyle said Royal Mail was 'a company that has been put through a car crash'.
But his performance at the broadcaster behind Downton Abbey and Coronation Street has been much admired in the City of London.
Realising that the TV advertising market was in long-term decline, he has invested millions in production division ITV Studios, allowing the broadcaster to sell programmes around the world.
He has also poured money into improving ITV's online presence, a strategy that has seen ITV steadily increase revenues from its digital division.
Since 2009, the year before he joined ITV, profits have risen more than fivefold to £581million, while the company's debt mountain of £612million has become a cash surplus of £164million.
