Compensation Advisory Studio · Executive Compensation

Director Compensation

Board retainer, committee fees, equity grants, and ownership requirements for non-employee directors.

What this analysis does

Inventory non-employee director compensation — cash retainer, committee retainers, equity grants, onboarding grant, and stock-ownership requirement — with peer-set positioning.

Required data

Approved director compensation policy, peer-set director comp benchmarks (Equilar / ISS Director Pay).

Key outputs

Per-element annual dollar value, supporting notes, and aggregate annual director comp envelope.

Data caveats

Director comp is reviewed every other year typically; over-frequent adjustments raise ISS questions. Confirm last review date.

Advisor takeaway

Total annual director comp (cash + equity for a board-member-only director) is $290K — at the upper end of mid-cap industrials but within tech-sector norms. Lead-director and committee premiums are right-sized.

Next recommended action

Schedule the next director-comp benchmarking with Equilar data; ensure the Annual Meeting filing reflects current policy.

Base director TDC
$385K
cash + equity, no committee
Annual equity
$195K
RSUs, 1-year vest
Ownership requirement
5× retainer
$475K target
CategoryAnnual valueNotes
Annual cash retainer (board member)$95KPaid quarterly in arrears.
Lead independent director additional$35KAbove base retainer.
Audit committee chair retainer$25KAbove base retainer; committee members get $12.5K.
Comp committee chair retainer$20KAbove base retainer; committee members get $10K.
Nom/Gov committee chair retainer$15KAbove base retainer; committee members get $7.5K.
Annual equity grant (RSUs, 1-yr vest)$195KGranted at annual meeting; FMV at grant.
Initial onboarding equity (new directors)$100KOne-time at appointment; 1-yr cliff.
Stock ownership requirement$475K5× annual cash retainer; 5-yr build window.
Advisor takeaway
Low
What we found

Director comp structure is conventional and defensible: cash + equity at-market, double committee premiums (chair + member), 1-year vesting on equity grants, and a 5× ownership requirement.

Why it matters

Director comp is a low-attention area until it's not — a single mis-set committee chair retainer can attract ISS commentary. Annual benchmarking discipline is the right safeguard.

Recommended action

Run a 2-yr biennial director-comp benchmarking; document the rationale in the proxy DCT (Director Compensation Table) footnotes.

Risks

Independent-director term limits or annual-meeting changes can shift the population; recalibrate aggregate spend each cycle.

Questions to ask the client
  • Are there any directors approaching or past mandatory retirement age, which could shift the comp population?
  • Does the Lead Independent Director role currently have additional ad-hoc responsibilities not reflected in the $35K premium?
Data caveats

Annual equity grant value is at-grant FMV; vested value depends on share price at vesting.

Suggested next module

Open Proxy Disclosure Support to confirm the Director Compensation Table is on track.