Hariolf Kottmann, CEO of Swiss specialty chemicals maker Clariant, has made headlines by deciding to forgo half of a €3 million Swiss franc bonus he is due for the integration of Süd Chemie, the German company acquired in 2011.

"A CEO of a listed company must have the sensitivity to follow the wishes of shareholders," Kottmann said in an interview with a Basel newspaper. Major Clariant shareholders, he revealed, were unhappy with plans by the supervisory board to reward the CEO as well as a number of top managers with a special bonus.

The bonus paid to the Clariant CEO for reaching the company's targets in a certain year amounts to 100% of the executive's total salary, in Kottmann's case 6.2 million Swiss francs.