"The increase in the incentive pay for CEOs and CFOs is a sign of the improving economy," says Malafis.

Overall, 83% of CFOs and 85% of CEOs, received some form of incentive compensation as part of their long-term incentive program in 2010, the report says.

In the study's look at which long-term incentive vehicles are most prevalent, the majority continue to be stock options and performance-based incentive programs, although stock options as a type have fallen over the past three years.

Some 31% of CFO incentive pay came in the form of stock options in 2010, down from 2008's 41%. For CEOs, 34% of incentive compensation was received for stock options, down from 44%.