Mike Pelletier
About Mike Pelletier
Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at b1BANK since June 2023, age 57 as of the 2025 proxy; BSBA in Finance; SPHR and SHRM‑SCP certified; active in SHRM/ASHRM/LASHRM and NASPP, with 30+ years’ HR leadership experience across executive compensation, incentive plan design, executive benefits, succession planning, training and HCM systems . Prior roles include Area Vice President at Gallagher, EVP & Director of HR Strategy & Operations at First Horizon (post-IBERIABANK merger), and CHRO at IBERIABANK since July 2003 . For company context during his tenure, BFST reported Net Income of $71.0M in 2023 and $65.1M in 2024, with Core ROA of 1.17% in 2023 and 0.94% in 2024; the pay-versus-performance table indicates total shareholder return values of 108.23 in 2023 and 115.62 in 2024 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| b1BANK (Business First’s subsidiary) | EVP, Chief Human Resources Officer | June 2023–present | Leads HR strategy; executive compensation, short/long-term incentive design, executive benefits, succession planning, training and HCM systems |
| Gallagher | Area Vice President | — | Executive compensation and incentive plan design advisory; HR strategy leadership |
| First Horizon Corporation | EVP & Director of HR Strategy & Operations | — | Post-merger integration leadership across HR strategy/operations |
| IBERIABANK Corporation | Chief Human Resources Officer | Since July 2003 | Built and led executive compensation and broad-based incentives; benefits and succession infrastructure |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana Society for Human Resource Management (LASHRM) | Board of Directors, Past State Director | — | State leadership in HR governance and standards |
| Acadiana SHRM (ASHRM) | Member | — | Regional HR practice engagement |
| Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) | Member; SHRM‑SCP | — | National HR credentialing and standards participation |
| National Association of Stock Plan Professionals (NASPP) | Member | — | Equity compensation technical expertise network |
Fixed Compensation
- Pelletier’s specific base salary and short‑term target bonus are not individually disclosed in BFST’s proxies (he is not listed among NEOs); the program for NEOs typically comprises base salary plus annual cash incentive determined as a % of base salary (CEO 65%; most NEOs 40%; President of the Bank 50% in 2024), with payouts 50–150% of target based on corporate/individual goals .
| NEO Target Annual Cash Incentive (2024) | % of Base Salary | Target ($) |
|---|---|---|
| David R. Melville (Chairman & CEO) | 65% | $504,075 |
| Gregory Robertson (CFO) | 40% | $170,000 |
| Philip Jordan (CBO) | 40% | $170,000 |
| Keith Mansfield (COO) | 40% | $170,000 |
| Jerry Vascocu (President, b1BANK) | 50% | $244,500 |
Performance Compensation
- Annual bonus framework (corporate 80%, individual 20%) uses objective goals with threshold/target/superior levels; in 2024, weighted corporate performance achieved 100.5% (Core ROA, Core Efficiency Ratio, Classified Assets Coverage Ratio), driving NEO payouts of ~130.5% of target; individual goals layered per role .
| Metric | Weight | Threshold | Target | Superior | 2024 Actual | Performance Level | Weighted % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core ROA | 50% | 0.85 | 0.92 | 0.99 | 0.94 | Above Target | 57.1% |
| Core Efficiency Ratio | 15% | 67.50 | 65.80 | 64.10 | 64.47 | Above Target | 20.9% |
| Classified Assets Coverage Ratio | 15% | 12.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 6.53 | Superior | 22.5% |
| Total Corporate Goals | 80% | — | — | — | — | — | 100.5% |
- Long-term incentives: new LTIP effective 2024 with 50% RSUs (equal annual vest over 3 years) and 50% PRSUs (three‑year cliff vest on achievement of one absolute and one peer‑relative financial goal); shareholder approval obtained in May 2024 . Prior plan granted time‑based restricted stock in February (for prior‑year performance) vesting in three equal installments over two years .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Stock ownership guidelines (adopted Jan 2024) require CEO 3x base salary, other executive officers 1.5x base salary, directors 3x cash retainer, with five years to reach compliance; pledged shares and unexercised options do not count toward ownership value .
- Hedging/derivatives strongly discouraged and require preclearance; pledging discouraged and requires preclearance; margin accounts prohibited per Insider Trading Policy .
- Executive Clawback Policy compliant with SEC Rule 10D‑1 and Nasdaq: recovery of erroneously awarded incentive compensation for accounting restatements; no indemnification or reimbursement for clawback losses .
- Non‑Qualified Deferred Compensation Plan adopted Aug 1, 2024: executives may defer up to 80% of salary, 100% of cash bonus, and 100% of equity grants; no discretionary company contributions in 2024 .
- Beneficial ownership: proxies present individual holdings for certain executives, but Pelletier’s individual share count is not broken out; “Other Executive Officers (17)” group totals 125,033 shares as of March 17, 2025 (5.68% held by directors/executive officers as a group) .
Employment Terms
- No excise tax gross‑ups in employment or change‑in‑control agreements per Compensation Committee best‑practice disclosures .
- Recent 8‑K exhibits show standard EVP change‑in‑control agreements: double‑trigger benefits of 2x current base salary plus average bonus (prior three calendar years) and 18 months of COBRA premiums; 280G cut‑down to avoid 4999 excise tax; Good Reason and Cause defined; restrictive covenants incorporated via Exhibit A . Pelletier’s specific agreement was not filed in these exhibits; his employment terms are not individually disclosed in the proxies or 8‑Ks reviewed .
Performance & Track Record
- Company pay‑versus‑performance context (selected metrics): TSR value increased from 108.23 (2023) to 115.62 (2024); Net Income declined from $71.0M (2023) to $65.1M (2024); Core ROA moved from 1.17% (2023) to 0.94% (2024) .
| Year | TSR (value) | Peer Group TSR (value) | Net Income ($M) | Core ROA (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 115.62 | 111.53 | 65.1 | 0.94 |
| 2023 | 108.23 | 101.77 | 71.0 | 1.17 |
| 2022 | 94.65 | 106.02 | 54.3 | 1.05 |
| 2021 | 118.63 | 117.08 | 52.1 | 1.22 |
| 2020 | 83.73 | 87.90 | 30.0 | 1.09 |
- Revenue trend (last 8 quarters; USD): Values with an asterisk have no embedded document citation and were retrieved from S&P Global.
| Metric | Q4 2023 | Q1 2024 | Q2 2024 | Q3 2024 | Q4 2024 | Q1 2025 | Q2 2025 | Q3 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues ($) | 6,413,000 | 9,386,000 | 12,176,000 | 10,774,000 | 11,857,000 | 12,596,000* | 14,415,000 | 11,671,000 |
| Values retrieved from S&P Global.* |
Compensation Committee and Governance
- Independent compensation consultant: Aon’s Human Capital Solutions (McLagan); independence verified; McLagan assists with peer group development and compensation design .
- 2024 peer group includes regional banks such as Veritex, Stock Yards, Seacoast, National Bank Holdings, Amerant, Southside, etc.; criteria include public BHCs with $3–12B assets, Southeast/Southwest footprint, >60% commercial loans, >10 branches .
- Say‑on‑pay support improved to 92.4% in 2024 from 59.9% in 2023 following program changes (ownership guidelines, option repricing prohibition, expanded goal‑setting disclosure, new LTIP with RSUs/PRSUs) .
- Perquisites remain limited (auto allowance and club dues for certain NEOs); retirement program includes 401(k) match up to 4% and SERP participation for NEOs .
Investment Implications
- Alignment levers: Robust ownership guidelines (1.5x salary for executive officers) and clawback policy reduce misalignment risk; hedging/pledging discouraged with exclusions from ownership calculation—positive for long‑term alignment .
- Retention and vesting pressure: The 2024 LTIP’s 3‑year RSU and PRSU schedules create multi‑year holding/vesting cliffs, which typically moderate insider selling and support retention; Pelletier’s individual equity grants are not disclosed, limiting a direct assessment of his personal vest‑related pressures .
- Change‑in‑control protections for certain EVPs (2x salary+average bonus; 18 months COBRA; cut‑down) imply competitive retention economics at the senior level; Pelletier’s specific agreement is not on file, which constrains precision on his severance/CIC exposure .
- Execution risk context: Company performance metrics used in compensation—Core ROA, efficiency and asset quality coverage—tie incentives to credit discipline and profitability amid margin compression, aligning HR leadership with prudent growth; improving say‑on‑pay support suggests stronger investor confidence in pay design overseen by HR and the committee .