The authors also point out that, although their paper didn't study financial firms directly, the "results suggest that this sort of compensation scheme with option-like features and limited clawback provisions will provide strong incentives for corporate risk taking."

The results, they write, "provide tangible evidence that variation in compensation contracts can cause meaningful differences in corporate decisions" and "confirm the importance of boards both structuring and maintaining executives' compensation properly in order to achieve their desired corporate strategy."

But rather than there being a particular best compensation structure for all companies facing "significant tail risk," the optimal compensation structure will likely depend on a firm's specific circumstances.

"Boards can structure managers' equity compensation to encourage or discourage risk taking, according to the board's objectives," they write.