Insights
Research Report
2019 Director Compensation Report
Research Report | By Andrew Platt, Ted Simmons, Tahmid Ali, Sara Salzbank
FW Cook’s 2019 Director Compensation Report studies non-employee director compensation at 300 companies of various sizes and industries to analyze market practices in pay levels and program structure. Key findings include:
- Total compensation increases were similar among large-cap, mid-cap, and small-cap companies, with changes more varied at the industry level.
- Energy companies had the largest increase in median total compensation (+14%), while other industries generally fell within a 4%-6% range.
- Director compensation structure remains consistent with prior years, with an average mix of 58% equity and 42% cash across the entire sample.
- The prevalence of companies with annual limits on director compensation increased from 55% to 68% of companies.
- This year’s report includes information around the prevalence of women on Boards: 90% of companies in the study have at least one woman on the Board, with approximately 50% of large-cap companies having three or more women on the Board.
Andrew Platt
Consultant
Andrew Platt works with public and private companies across a variety of industries to design and assess executive compensation programs. He has strong experience in post-M&A pay design, executive transitions, and turnaround situations.
Ted Simmons
Principal
Ted Simmons advises public and private companies on all aspects of executive compensation strategy and design. He partners closely with his clients’ Compensation Committees and management teams to arrive at effective solutions for the organization that appropriately balance the interests of all key stakeholders. Ted’s clients encompass a wide range of industries, sizes and ownership structures. He is a frequent contributor to the firm’s publications and has managed the firm’s research efforts on the pandemic’s impact on executive compensation.
Tahmid Ali
Consultant
Tahmid Ali supports clients in all areas of executive and director compensation, including compensation reviews, peer group development, short-and long-term incentive design analyses, corporate governance, and navigating Say-on-Pay. He has experience with companies across industries of all sizes and stages of development, including private, pre-IPO, and mature public companies.
Sara Salzbank
Consultant
Sara Salzbank plans and manages executive compensation and board advisory projects for public and privately-held companies across a variety of industries. Her work covers a broad range of topics including executive and director compensation benchmarking, peer group development, short- and long-term incentive plan design, and realized/realizable pay studies.
Additional Publications
By Ted Simmons
June 29, 2023
Weighing Director Pay Deferral Programs
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October 5, 2020
Lessons Learned from Early Filers: Insights into Incentive Compensation Decisions in the COVID-19 Environment
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June 25, 2020
Compensation and the COVID-19 Crisis
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November 6, 2019
2019 Director Compensation Report
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November 8, 2016
Institutional Shareholder Services Rebrands and Releases Updated Governance “QualityScore” Model
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January 1, 2015
Aggregate Share-Based Compensation Report
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By Tahmid Ali
November 11, 2024
Type and Magnitude of Non-Employee Director Compensation Increases – Observations from FW Cook’s 2024 Director Compensation Report
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September 16, 2024
2024 Director Compensation Report
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November 4, 2020
2020 Use of Environmental, Social, and Governance Measures in Incentive Plans
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November 6, 2019
2019 Director Compensation Report
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