Erica Schultz
ConfluentAbout Erica Schultz
Erica Schultz, 51, serves as Confluent’s President, Field Operations, a role she has held since October 2019; on February 28, 2025 she notified Confluent of her intent to retire and will remain until a successor is appointed to ensure an orderly transition . She holds a B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies from Dartmouth College and serves on the board of Amplitude, Inc. . Company performance tied to her tenure includes 2024 subscription revenue of approximately $922 million (+26% YoY), Confluent Cloud revenue of approximately $492 million (+41% YoY), GAAP operating margin improvement of 18 points, first-ever positive non-GAAP operating margin with a 10-point YoY improvement, and 1,381 customers with $100K+ ARR (+12% YoY) . Pay-versus-performance disclosures show a 2024 value of an initial fixed $100 investment (TSR) of $62.11 and net loss of $345 million; subscription revenue was $922 million; say-on-pay support in 2024 was ~98% of votes cast .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confluent, Inc. | President, Field Operations | Oct 2019–present (retirement announced Feb 28, 2025) | Leadership of global field operations (sales, success) |
| New Relic, Inc. | Chief Revenue Officer; EVP Sales & Customer Success; EVP Commercial & Enterprise; SVP Global Enterprise Sales | 2014–2019 (roles spanning 2014–2019) | Global go-to-market leadership across enterprise segments |
| LivePerson, Inc. | EVP, Global Sales & Customer Success | 2012–2014 | Global sales and CS leadership |
| Oracle Corporation | Various leadership roles | 1995–2012 | Senior leadership roles across Oracle go-to-market |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Amplitude, Inc. | Director | Dec 2020–present |
Fixed Compensation
Multi-year compensation (Summary Compensation Table)
| Metric | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salary ($) | 410,000 | 425,000 | 437,462 |
| Stock Awards ($) | 4,493,763 | 8,256,443 | 7,520,351 |
| Option Awards ($) | — | — | — |
| Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation ($) | 389,500 | 446,250 | 429,000 |
| All Other Compensation ($) | — | — | — |
| Total ($) | 5,293,263 | 9,127,693 | 8,386,813 |
2024 base salary and bonus structure
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Base salary (2024) | $440,000 (effective Mar 1, 2024) |
| Target bonus (2024) | 100% of base salary (target $440,000) |
| Actual payout (2024) | 97.5% of target; $429,000 paid |
Performance Compensation
2024 annual bonus design and results
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout vs Target | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subscription revenue | 100% | Approximately $934 million | Approximately $922 million | 97.5% | 0% if <90% of target; max 167.5% at 120% of target |
2024 equity grant
| Grant date | Type | Shares granted | Grant-date fair value ($) | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 26, 2024 | RSU | 226,244 | 7,520,351 | 12 equal quarterly installments starting Feb 20, 2024 (36 months), subject to service |
Outstanding equity and vesting detail (as of Dec 31, 2024)
| Award | Shares unvested | Vesting schedule | Market value basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| RSU (granted 2/28/2022) | 105,019 | 50% vests Feb 20, 2025; remainder vests Feb 20, 2026, subject to service | $27.96 closing price on Dec 31, 2024 |
| RSU (granted 2/27/2023) | 343,018 | 12 equal quarterly installments from Feb 20, 2023, subject to service | |
| RSU (granted 2/26/2024) | 169,683 | 12 equal quarterly installments from Feb 20, 2024, subject to service | |
| Stock option (granted 12/5/2019) | Fully vested | 48 equal monthly installments from Oct 28, 2019; all vested by Dec 31, 2024 | Exercise price $3.41; expires Dec 4, 2029 |
2024 share activity (realized values)
| Transaction | Shares | Value realized ($) |
|---|---|---|
| Option exercises | 776,019 | 21,383,846 |
| RSU vesting | 56,561 | 1,558,816 |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
Beneficial ownership (as of Mar 31, 2025)
| Category | Shares |
|---|---|
| Class A held directly | 327,575 |
| Class A – revocable trust (co-trustee with spouse) | 92,707 |
| Class A – irrevocable family trust (investment advisor) | 200,000 |
| Class A – annuity trust (trustee) | 31,419 |
| Class A – irrevocable trust (investment advisor) | 62,374 |
| Class A – RSUs settling within 60 days of Mar 31, 2025 | 18,854 |
| Class B – stock options exercisable within 60 days (all vested) | 487,469 |
| Ownership as % of outstanding (voting power) | Less than 1% |
- Stock ownership guidelines require Section 16 officers to hold at least 3× base salary (CEO 5×) within five years; as of Dec 31, 2024, all Section 16 officers were in compliance or within the permitted timeframe to reach compliance .
- Hedging, short sales, trading of public options, and pledging/margin of company stock are prohibited by policy (mitigates alignment risk) .
Employment Terms
- Offer terms: Confirmatory offer letter (May 2021) provided base salary of $400,000 and target annual bonus of $400,000 under the Cash Incentive Bonus Plan . For 2024, base salary was $440,000 (effective Mar 1, 2024), with a 100% target bonus; in February 2025, base salary was increased to $450,000 for 2025, with a 100% target bonus for 2025 .
- Retirement: On February 28, 2025, Ms. Schultz notified Confluent of her intent to retire as President of Field Operations; she expects to remain until a successor is appointed to ensure a smooth transition .
Severance and change-in-control (CIC) protections
- Legacy Severance Plan (effective Dec 31, 2024 for estimates): Non-CIC involuntary termination—six months of base salary and up to six months COBRA; CIC double-trigger—involuntary termination within 3 months before to 12 months after a CIC—six months base salary, 50% of target bonus, up to six months COBRA, and 50% acceleration of outstanding unvested equity .
- Amended Severance Plan (approved Feb 12, 2025): For non-CEO executive staff (includes Ms. Schultz), CIC double-trigger—12 months base salary, 100% of target bonus, up to 12 months COBRA, and 100% acceleration of outstanding unvested time-vesting equity; outside CIC—six months base salary and up to six months COBRA .
- Estimated payments (Legacy Plan, assuming Dec 31, 2024 termination): Non-CIC total $232,751; CIC total $9,088,477 (includes $8,635,726 of equity acceleration) .
Clawback and other governance features
- Compensation recovery (clawback) policy in place for Section 16 officers in the event of an accounting restatement due to material noncompliance with financial reporting requirements (covers three completed fiscal years prior to restatement determination) .
- No single-trigger CIC payments/benefits; no excise tax gross-ups; limited or no executive perquisites .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance linkage is clear: 2024 bonus was 100% tied to subscription revenue, with rigorous thresholds and caps; the company achieved ~98% of target and paid 97.5% of target bonus, aligning cash incentives to topline performance .
- Equity-heavy compensation and guidelines enhance alignment: sizable multi-year RSU grants (e.g., 226,244 RSUs in 2024) with quarterly vesting, combined with 3× salary ownership guidelines and prohibitions on hedging/pledging, reduce misalignment and downside protection behavior .
- Potential near-term supply overhang moderated by 2024 exercises: Ms. Schultz realized value from exercising 776,019 options in 2024; options from 2019 are fully vested, while unvested RSUs from 2022–2024 continue to vest through 2026, implying a known cadence of settlements that investors should monitor for selling pressure around vest dates .
- Transition risk: Her planned retirement introduces execution risk for global field operations until a successor is appointed; mitigate by monitoring sales leadership continuity and pipeline conversion during the transition .
- CIC economics stepped up in 2025: The amended plan increases cash severance and accelerates 100% of time-based equity upon double-trigger CIC for non-CEO executives—supportive for retention through strategic alternatives, but raises potential transaction costs/dilution considerations in an acquisition scenario .
- Governance backdrop is constructive: ~98% say-on-pay support in 2024, a formal clawback, no single-trigger CIC, and no gross-ups collectively signal shareholder-friendly practices, lowering governance risk premia .