THE HIGHEST-PAID EXEC — AGAIN
Stantec CEO tops our annual list
Stantec CEO Bob Gomes sits atop the Journal’s annual survey of the best-paid senior executives in the city, with a total compensation package of more than $3.56 million for 2015.
It was the second straight year that Gomes — who has headed the big Edmonton-based engineering and design consulting firm since 2009 — has led the local rankings. His overall pay last year was down 4.5 per cent from 2014.
The Journal’s review of executive pay is based on data compiled from the filings of publicly traded companies in the region, as well as government-owned firms such as Epcor Utilities and ATB Financial.
The survey doesn’t include major private companies such as PCL Construction or Katz Group, which don’t disclose their financial results or executive compensation levels.
Gomes’ 2015 remuneration package included a base salary of $850,000, an annual incentive bonus of $935,000 and $1.7 million in long-term compensation. The latter comprised share and stock option-based awards.
Under Gomes’ leadership, Stantec has completed dozens of acquisitions while successfully navigating one of the worst economic downturns in recent Alberta history.
The company’s recent $1-billion purchase of Colorado-based MWH Global is expected to boost the firm’s annual revenues by nearly 60 per cent, while vastly expanding its global footprint and giving it a major stake in the global water infrastructure business.
Capital Power CEO Brian Vaasjo, who ranked fourth last year, was the second best-paid executive in Edmonton for 2015, with a total pay package of nearly $2.8 million. That was down about $106,000, or four per cent, from the previous year.
Dave Mowat, CEO of ATB Financial, the provincially owned bank, ranked third with a 2015 compensation package of $2.68 million. That was down more than $450,000, or 14.5 per cent, from 2014 when the bank posted record profits.
The prolonged downturn in the oilpatch has squeezed many of ATB’s energy-focused clients, forcing the bank to boost its loan loss provisions more than five-fold as it braces for possible defaults over the next year or two.
Those provisions — which reflect an accounting charge, and not an actual cash loss — slashed ATB’s net earnings by more than 70 per cent for the latest fiscal year. Mowat expects ATB’s ultimate loan defaults to be lower than the $387.6 million it has booked to date in loan loss provisions.
Christopher Fowler, CEO of ATB rival Canadian Western Bank, holds down fourth spot in the local pay parade for 2015, with total compensation of just over $2.4 million. That’s up marginally from the previous year.
Stephen Bebis, who heads Liquor Stores N.A., the country’s largest publicly traded liquor, wine and beer retailer, pocketed total compensation of more than $2.35 million last year, good for fifth spot. His pay dipped slightly last year.
Other executives who were among the 10 best-paid executives in the city last year include: Martin Ferron, CEO of North American Energy ($2.07 million); Rich Allen, COO of Stantec ($2.05 million); Linda McCurdy, CEO of K-Bro Linen ($1.76 million); Stuart Lee, CEO of Epcor Utilities ($1.46 million); and Bogac (Bogie) Ozdemir, an executive vice-president at Canadian Western Bank ($1.34 million).
In all, 23 local executives earned $1 million or more in total pay last year. That compares with 33 last year.
At Stantec, five senior officers earned at least $1 million for 2015. Epcor had four senior executives in the $1 million-plus club, while Capital Power had three, the same as Canadian Western Bank.
Auto Canada, the country’s largest publicly traded auto dealership network, paid its two top executives more than $1.1 million apiece. Melcor Developments CEO Brian Baker, meanwhile,
Although compensation levels for Edmonton’s best-paid senior executives are (substantial), they are well below the levels paid to Canada’s top CEOs.
earned just under $1.1 million.
Alberta Investment Management Corp. (AIMCO) boss Kevin Uebelein, who oversees $90 billion in pension and endowment fund assets, is not included in this year’s executive compensation survey.
Although he succeeded former AIMCO boss Leo de Bever in January 2015, the Crown corporation has yet to release its annual report for the year. The report normally includes compensation levels for senior officers.
De Bever, who is now retired, earned over $3.4 million in his final year at AIMCO.
Although compensation levels for Edmonton’s best-paid senior executives are light years above median wage levels for regular workers, they are well below the levels paid to Canada’s top CEOs.
John Chen, CEO of Waterloo, Ont.-based smartphone maker Black Berry, received total compensation of $89.7 million for 2014, making him by far the bestpaid executive in Canada. Don Walker, CEO of auto parts giant Magna International, pocketed more than $23 million, and Suncor Energy boss Steve Williams earned more than $12 million.
The Toronto-based national newspapers, which conduct annual surveys of executive compensation levels across the country, are expected to soon release their results for 2015.
Pay levels for top executives in the U.S. are even higher. Expedia boss Dara Khosrowshahi earned a whopping US$94.6 million last year, according to a recent survey conducted by The Associated Press and Equilar, a firm that tracks executive compensation levels.
The top 10 best-paid U.S. executives earned at least $33.4 million last year, according to the survey, and the median pay level for all those included in the survey topped $10.5 million.