Jim A. Swanson
COLUMBIA SPORTSWEARAbout Jim A. Swanson
Jim A. Swanson is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Columbia Sportswear, age 50 as of the 2024 10-K filing. He joined Columbia in 2003, was named Vice President of Finance in 2015, promoted to Senior Vice President and CFO in 2017, and to Executive Vice President and CFO in 2020 . During FY 2022–2024, company net sales declined from $3.46B to $3.37B, operating income declined from $428.7M to $270.7M, and diluted EPS moved from $4.95 to $3.82, reflecting margin pressure and lower sales; compensation outcomes were aligned with the Company’s Adjusted Operating Income (AOI) metric and multi-year PRSU frameworks . Columbia’s cumulative TSR over the five-year PVP window ranged from $87.50 to $98.56 per $100 initial investment, underscoring moderate equity performance variability .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Sportswear Company | Vice President of Finance | 2015–2017 | Finance leadership prior to CFO promotion |
| Columbia Sportswear Company | Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer | 2017–2020 | Led finance function through multi-year growth and margin cycles |
| Columbia Sportswear Company | Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer | 2020–present | Executive leadership of global finance; oversight extended to Digital Technology in Jan 2025 on an interim basis |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arthur Andersen | Senior tax and business advisory associate | Not disclosed | Tax and advisory experience foundational to CFO role |
| Freightliner Corporation | Senior financial analyst | Not disclosed | FP&A experience in industrial sector |
| Tality Corporation | Senior financial analyst | Not disclosed | FP&A experience in technology sector |
Fixed Compensation
| Year | Salary ($) | All Other Compensation ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 566,331 | 68,701 | Includes 401(k) and Excess Plan matching; disability insurance |
| 2023 | 616,431 | 51,884 | Includes 401(k) and Excess Plan matching; disability insurance |
| 2024 | 693,539 | 50,422 | Includes 401(k) and Excess Plan matching ($17,250 + $27,438) and disability insurance ($5,734) |
Performance Compensation
Annual Incentive (Executive Incentive Compensation Plan)
| Item | Metric | Weight | Target | Actual | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate metric | Adjusted Operating Income (AOI) | 100% | $371.5M AOI | $312.4M AOI | 60.3% of target |
| Individual payout (Swanson) | Bonus | — | $485,477 | $292,743 | Paid per AOI result |
Target bonus % and target total direct compensation (2024 planning): Salary $706,000; target bonus 70%; target equity $1,085,004; target total direct compensation $2,285,204 .
Long-Term Incentive Framework
| Component | 2024 Weighting | Performance Metric | Key Terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock Options | 20% | Stock price appreciation | 4-year vest, typically 25% annually; exercise price at grant closing price |
| Time-Based RSUs | 40% | Service | 4-year vest, 25% annually; retirement-eligible executives vest semi-annually |
| Performance RSUs (PRSUs) | 40% | 50% 2-year COI + 1-year service; 50% 3-year Relative TSR | COI PRSUs threshold payout 50%; TSR PRSUs payout: 25th=25%, 50th=100%, 75th=150%, ≥90th=200% |
2022–2024 PRSU outcome: EBIT Margin percentile 61st versus peer group; Swanson vested 1,122 PRSUs at 60% of target in March 2025 .
2024 Grants (Swanson)
| Grant Type | Approval Date | Grant Date | Amount/Quantity | Exercise/Base Price | Grant Date Fair Value ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RSUs | 1/25/2024 | 2/29/2024 | 5,383 units | — | 420,062 |
| Options | 1/25/2024 | 2/29/2024 | 10,038 options | $82.69 | 210,007 |
| PRSUs – TSR | 3/5/2024 | 3/5/2024 | 686 thr / 2,744 tgt / 5,488 max | — | 244,902 |
| PRSUs – COI | 3/5/2024 | 3/5/2024 | 1,372 thr / 2,744 tgt / 5,488 max | — | 210,033 |
Vesting schedules: RSUs 25% annually; Options 25% annually; PRSUs COI earned over 2024–2025 with service through 2026; PRSUs TSR earned over 2024–2026 .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership | 105,105 shares; less than 1% of outstanding |
| Options | 76,630 exercisable; 36,461 unexercisable (12/31/2024) |
| Unvested RSUs | 11,240 units; market value $943,373 at $83.93/share (12/31/2024) |
| Unearned PRSUs | 8,970 units; payout value $752,852 at $83.93/share (12/31/2024) |
| Ownership guidelines | EVPs/NEOs encouraged to hold stock valued at 3x salary; includes direct holdings, in-the-money vested options, unvested time-based RSUs; compliance within 5 years |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited for directors and senior officers under Insider Trading Policy |
Employment Terms
| Provision | Terms |
|---|---|
| Employment contract | No individual employment contracts; Company policy “What We Don’t Do” includes employment contracts |
| Clawbacks | 2017 policy (fraud/misconduct contributing to restatement) applies to compensation paid/vested after 12/31/2017; 2023 policy compliant with Nasdaq Rule 5608 requires recovery of erroneously awarded incentive-based compensation post-10/2/2023 regardless of misconduct |
| Change-in-control (double trigger) | If terminated without cause or for good reason within 12 months post-CIC: cash severance 3x base salary; 18 months health benefits; option and time-based RSU full acceleration; PRSUs at target pro-rated |
| Estimated CIC amounts (12/31/2024) | Cash $2,118,000; Insurance $30,853; Options $12,447; RSUs $943,373; PRSUs $418,727; Total $3,523,400 |
| Termination without cause (non-CIC) | Cash severance 2.25x base salary; 18 months health benefits; no equity acceleration |
| Estimated non-CIC amounts (12/31/2024) | Cash $1,588,500; Insurance $30,853; Total $1,619,353 |
| Death/Disability | RSUs accelerate; options pro-rate (pre-7/25/2024 grants) or accelerate (post-7/25/2024 grants); PRSUs/long-term cash pro-rate or pro-rated at target depending on grant date; 2024 EICP pro-rated |
| 280G cutback | Payments capped to maximize after-tax benefit; no excise tax gross-up disclosed |
Deferred Compensation and Benefits
| Item | 2024 Amount ($) |
|---|---|
| Executive contributions (Excess Plan) | 76,895 |
| Company matching (Excess Plan) | 27,438 |
| Aggregate earnings (Excess Plan) | 114,993 |
| Aggregate balance (12/31/2024) | 1,233,168 |
| Disability insurance premium (executive excess) | 5,734 |
Company Performance Context (FY 2022–2024)
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues ($) | 3,464,152,000 | 3,487,203,000 | 3,368,582,000 |
| Operating Income ($) | 428,704,000* | 335,284,000* | 270,741,000 |
| EBITDA ($) | 483,456,000* | 393,347,000* | 326,685,000* |
| Net Income ($) | 311,440,000 | 251,400,000 | 223,273,000 |
| Diluted EPS ($) | 4.95 | 4.09 | 3.82 |
Values retrieved from S&P Global for metrics marked with an asterisk.
Additional PVP context: TSR value of $100 initial investment over five fiscal years — 2020: $87.50; 2021: $98.56; 2022: $89.90; 2023: $82.90; 2024: $88.77 .
Compensation Peer Group and Benchmarking
Columbia’s Talent and Compensation Committee uses published survey data and a peer group for CEO/CFO pay benchmarking. The 18-company Executive Compensation Peer Group approved in April 2021 remained in use for 2024, including Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, Carter’s, Deckers, G-III, Guess?, Hanesbrands, Kontoor, Lands’ End, Levi Strauss, Lululemon, Oxford Industries, Ralph Lauren, Skechers, Steven Madden, Under Armour, Urban Outfitters, Wolverine . For PRSU TSR measurement, a separate 25-company comparator group was adopted for 2024 (e.g., Nike, PVH, VF, Skechers, Deckers, Tapestry, Crocs, Ralph Lauren, Levi Strauss, Under Armour), with payouts per percentile grid noted above .
Risk Indicators and Governance Practices
- No option repricing; double-trigger CIC only; capped incentive programs; independent compensation consultant; clawbacks in place .
- Hedging and pledging of Company stock prohibited for directors and senior officers .
- “Employment contracts” discouraged; executive pay significantly “at risk” via AOI-based annual bonus and multi-year PRSUs .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment: Swanson’s annual bonus paid at 60.3% of target on 84.1% AOI achievement, demonstrating sensitivity of cash incentives to profitability; multi-year PRSUs vested at 60% on relative EBIT margin performance, indicating balanced use of profitability and peer-relative outcomes .
- Equity overhang and potential selling pressure: As of year-end 2024, Swanson had 11,240 unvested RSUs and 8,970 unearned PRSUs, with options vesting annually; watch vesting cliffs around 2026 for PRSU and RSU tranches that can increase supply from insider settlements .
- Retention and change-in-control economics: Double-trigger CIC benefits (3x base salary plus equity acceleration at target/pro-rata) and non-CIC severance (2.25x salary) provide meaningful protection without single-trigger risk; clawbacks reduce misconduct risk, while hedging/pledging bans support alignment .
- Performance trajectory: Revenues and operating income contracted in FY 2024, aligning with moderated payouts; continued focus on PRSU metrics (COI and Relative TSR) should tie future realizations to both internal execution and market-relative performance .