Your vote: how much does a company boss earn for decade of success?

The boss of Volution Group (LSE:FAN) is to get a 17.4% pay rise after his decade in charge led to the ventilation products firm becoming an established member of the FTSE 250 index.

Ronnie George’s new salary of £555,000 reflects the increased footprint and complexity of a business that floated in 2014 and has doubled in value since then. Total shareholder returns have topped 200%, compared with the FTSE 250’s 50% over the same period.

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The company, which stages its AGM on 13 December, said the new pay packages for George and finance boss Andy O’Brien are still in the lower quartile against the FTSE 250. Its move has received backing from major shareholders, as well as voting agency Glass Lewis.

Bellway

When: 8.30am, Friday 15 December.

Where: Woolsington House, Woolsington, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE13 8BF.

How to participate: Proxy voting instructions should be returned no later than 8.30am, Wednesday 13 December. More details about Bellway (LSE:BWY)'s AGM can be found here.

Who’s in the chair? John Tutte, who previously held senior roles at Redrow, was appointed in April 2022.

How did the company do in the year to 31 July? Completions of 10,945 homes at an average selling price of £310,306 resulted in a 3.7% fall in revenues to £3.4 billion. Cost pressures meant the underlying margin fell to 16% from 18.5%, with underlying profits down by 18.1% to £532.6 million and earnings per share (EPS) off 22% at 328.1p. A final dividend of 95p a share is due to be paid on 10 January and will result in an unchanged total for the year at 140p.

How have shares performed? Down 10% at 2,216p (2,318p on Thursday).

How much is the boss paid? Jason Honeyman’s base salary has increased by 3.5% to £765,372, below the average for the workforce of 5%. His total remuneration for 2022/23 amounted to £1.1 million, down from £1.7 million the previous year after the annual bonus scheme paid £185,316 based on 20.9% of the maximum opportunity. The two previous financial years generated near maximum bonus amounts. For the second year running, long-term incentive shares did not vest.

What’s changed in this year’s remuneration approach? Within the bonus plan, an additional financial measure of adjusted capital employed will be introduced. In the long term incentive plan, there will be an increased focus on margin protection rather than setting absolute EPS targets. Bellway is also increasing the weighting on relative total shareholder return so that it accounts for half of the opportunity. 

What’s the view of voting agencies? Glass Lewis recommends shareholders vote in favour of the annual remuneration report.

How did last year’s AGM go? The annual remuneration report was approved with 96.74% of votes in favour. 

How’s the company doing on diversity? The gender split of the six-strong board is 33% female, while there are no directors from an ethnic minority background. The company said it will continue its work to improve diversity, taking into account the recommendations from the Parker Review and the FTSE Women’s Leaders Review.

Softcat

When: 11.30am, Wednesday 13 December.

Where: Solar House, Fieldhouse Lane, Marlow, Buckinghamshire SL7 1LW.

How to participate: Proxy voting instructions must be received no later than 11.30am, Monday 11 December. More AGM details can be found here.

Who’s in the chair? Graeme Watt, who was chief executive until July, has succeeded Martin Hellawell as non-executive chair. Such a move is not in line with the UK Corporate Governance Code but the board has said his deep knowledge of the business, culture and markets is beneficial to the interests of all of Softcat (LSE:SCT)’s stakeholders. 

How did the company do in the year to 31 July? Revenues at the IT infrastructure products firm fell 8.6% to £985.3 million, but operating profits rose 3.5% to a record £140.9 million and earnings per share by 1.3% to 56.2p. The total dividend for the year is 4.6% higher at 25p and includes a final dividend of 17p that is due be paid on 19 December at the same time as an unchanged special dividend of 12.6p. The payments bring the total amount returned to shareholders since becoming a public company in 2015 to £476.2 million.

How have shares performed? Up 7% at 1,500p (1,267p on Thursday).

How much was the boss paid? In his final year in charge, Watt received total remuneration of £1.84 million. This included an annual bonus of £684,400 based on 83% of the maximum opportunity and £569,400 from the 97% vesting of long-term incentives. The previous year’s total figure of £2.87 million was the highest during his five years as chief executive, with the 100% vesting of long-term incentive shares worth £1.55 million.

How much is the new boss paid? The starting salary of former chief financial officer Graham Charlton matched that of the outgoing CEO, while a subsequent 3% pay increase for 2024 has taken his base pay to £567,945. Watt’s fee as chairman has been set at £232,000, which Softcat said is slightly below the median of the FTSE 250.

How did last year’s AGM go? The annual remuneration report was approved with 97.95% of votes in favour. The resolution on the new three-year remuneration policy got 98.50%.

What’s the view of voting agencies? Glass Lewis recommends shareholders vote in favour of the annual remuneration report.

How’s the company doing on diversity? The company meets both the FTSE Women Leaders and Parker Review targets.

Volution

When: 12 noon, Wednesday 13 December.

Where: Norton Rose Fulbright, 3 More London Riverside, London SE1 2AQ.

How to participate: Proxy voting instructions should be returned no later than 12 noon, Monday 11 December. More AGM details can be found here.

Who’s in the chair? Former Diploma finance director Nigel Lingwood, who joined the board as a non-executive director in April 2020, is hosting his first Volution AGM.

How did the company do in the year to 31 July? The designer and manufacturer of energy efficient indoor air quality products lifted revenues by 6.6% to £328 million. Adjusted profits rose 6.8% to £65.1 million and earnings per share by 7.5% to 25.8p. The total dividend increased 9.6% to 8p a share, including the payment of 5.5p a share on 19 December.

How have shares performed? Down 2% at 401.6p (394.6p on Thursday).

How much is the boss paid? Ronnie George has been awarded a 17.4% pay rise and chief financial officer Andy O’Brien an increase of 15%, taking their base salaries for the current financial year to £555,000 and £380,000 respectively. The remuneration committee said the review took into account Volution’s position as an established FTSE 250 company, as well as the track record and experience of George who has been CEO since 2012 and O’Brien since 2019. It said the total remuneration package after the salary increases is still around the lower quartile against the FTSE 250. The annual report said the majority of shareholders who provided feedback recognised that salary levels had not kept pace with the increase in the size and complexity of the group and were supportive of an adjustment being made.

What about pay for 2022/23? George’s total remuneration amounted to £2.35 million, including an annual bonus of £416,000 based on 70% of the maximum opportunity. The 100% vesting of long-term incentive shares granted in October 2020 contributed £1.37 million.

What’s in the new remuneration policy? The committee believes the policy, last approved at the 2020 AGM with 95.68% of votes in favour, continues to support strategic priorities and the creation of sustained long-term value for shareholders. Proposed changes include cutting the CEO’s pension contribution to 5.5% of salary from 8.5% previously and the introduction of individual caps on the annual bonus and long-term incentive plans.

What’s the view of voting agencies? Glass Lewis accepts the rationale given for the pay rises and recommends that shareholders support the annual remuneration report as well as the binding vote on the three-year remuneration policy. 

What happened at last year’s AGM? The annual remuneration report was approved with 98.27% of votes in favour.

How’s the company doing on diversity? Over 40% of the board is female, with Amanda Mellor the senior independent director. The company meets the requirements of the Parker Review on ethnic diversity.