Long-term cash incentive plans are a form of long-term award granted contingent upon achievement of previously defined performance objectives over a multi-year period (typically three years). The performance conditions placed on these awards are typically based on either operational performance (using metrics such as earnings per share or return on assets) or market performance (total shareholder return on an absolute basis or relative to peers). Grants may be made every year on an overlapping basis or every three years on an end-to-end basis. Companies may choose to include a cash-based long-term incentive plan as part of a balanced compensation strategy and/or to reduce share usage or manage share dilution, which are significant concerns to shareholders. Companies may also use cash-based incentives to retain or provide liquidity to highly talented executives who are leading a turnaround of the company by partially insulating them from market volatility that may affect stock-based pay, keeping in mind the largest proportion of senior executive pay is equity-based.