Mark Haley
Designer BrandsAbout Mark Haley
Mark A. Haley is Interim Principal Financial Officer (effective November 1, 2025) and continues as Senior Vice President, Controller, and Principal Accounting Officer at Designer Brands Inc. (DBI). He is 57, a CPA, and holds B.S. degrees in Finance and Accounting from the University of Idaho . He joined DBI in 2017, became Principal Accounting Officer in January 2019, and was elevated to interim Principal Financial Officer in October 2025 amid a CFO transition . As part of his interim appointment, he received a $100,000 cash retention bonus (repayable if he resigns within 24 months) and a $150,000 grant-date value RSU award vesting over three years, aligning retention incentives with multi‑year service; DBI also maintains anti-hedging/anti‑pledging and Dodd‑Frank clawback frameworks that govern executive equity and incentive compensation .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Designer Brands Inc. | Interim Principal Financial Officer (in addition to SVP, Controller & PAO) | Nov 2025–present | Finance leadership during CFO transition; continuity across finance and accounting teams . |
| Designer Brands Inc. | SVP, Controller & Principal Accounting Officer | Jan 2019–present | Principal Accounting Officer; oversight of financial reporting and controls . |
| Designer Brands Inc. | Vice President & Controller | 2017–Jan 2019 | Led corporate accounting prior to elevation to PAO . |
| Conn’s, Inc. | Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer | 2014–2017 | Led accounting, reporting functions . |
| Coldwater Creek Inc. | Vice President, Corporate Controller & Chief Accounting Officer | 2010–2014 | Corporate controller and CAO responsibilities . |
| SUPERVALU INC. | Senior Director of Financial Reporting | n/d | Senior financial reporting leadership . |
| Deloitte & Touche LLP | Director of Assurance Services | n/d | Audit/assurance experience (public accounting) . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | — | None disclosed in DBI filings . |
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount | Grant/Effective Date | Key Terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-time cash retention bonus | $100,000 | Approved Oct 7, 2025 (paid in connection with interim PFO appointment) | Subject to repayment if he resigns within 24 months of receipt . |
Performance Compensation
| Incentive Type | Grant-Date Value | Grant Date | Metric | Target/Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time-based RSUs (retention) | $150,000 | Oct 15, 2025 | Time-based (no disclosed performance metric) | n/a | 33% on 1st anniversary, 33% on 2nd, 34% on 3rd; subject to continued employment (expected vest dates: Oct 15, 2026/2027/2028) . |
Context – DBI FY2024 company LTI performance framework for NEOs:
| Metric | Minimum | Target | Maximum | Actual | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-Year Adjusted Operating Income (FY2024) | $73.2m | $104.5m | $115.0m | $67.6m | 0% of target (one-third of 2024 PSUs forfeited) . |
Note: Mr. Haley’s disclosed interim award is time-based RSUs; the above Adjusted Operating Income metric and result describe the company’s FY2024 PSU framework for NEOs (context for pay-for-performance at DBI) .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Anti-hedging and anti-pledging: DBI prohibits hedging and pledging by directors, executive officers, associates, advisors, and consultants; pre-existing pledges are grandfathered (a director pledge from 2016 is disclosed), reinforcing alignment and limiting downside-protection strategies .
- Clawbacks: DBI adopted a Dodd‑Frank Clawback Policy effective December 1, 2023 for erroneously awarded incentive-based compensation and maintains an LTI Plan recoupment provision (e.g., in cases of fraud or restatement) .
- Ownership guidelines: DBI discloses a CEO stock ownership guideline (currently 3x salary) and notes CEO compliance; no specific guideline disclosed for other executives, and no individual ownership disclosure for Mr. Haley in the proxy tables .
Employment Terms
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Interim appointment | Appointed Interim Principal Financial Officer effective Nov 1, 2025; continues as SVP, Controller & Principal Accounting Officer . |
| Retention incentive | $100,000 cash retention bonus, repayable upon resignation within 24 months; $150,000 time-based RSU award vesting 33%/33%/34% annually starting Oct 15, 2026, subject to continued employment . |
| Related parties | No family relationships or Item 404(a) related party transactions disclosed regarding Mr. Haley . |
| Employment agreement, severance/CoC | Not disclosed for Mr. Haley in available filings; DBI describes standard executive agreements and severance constructs for certain NEOs, but Mr. Haley is not listed among those agreements in the proxy . |
Investment Implications
- Retention and selling pressure: The 24‑month repayment condition on the $100k cash bonus and a three‑year RSU vesting schedule create retention hooks through Oct 2028; potential trading/supply overhang could cluster around expected RSU vest dates (Oct 15, 2026/2027/2028), subject to blackout periods and pre‑clearance .
- Alignment and governance: Time‑based RSUs provide service-linked alignment; company-wide anti‑hedging/anti‑pledging policy and clawback regimes strengthen investor alignment and mitigate risk of opportunistic hedging or retention of erroneously awarded pay .
- Transition execution: CFO resignation and interim PFO appointment introduce transition risk; however, Mr. Haley’s deep tenure as PAO since 2019 and internal continuity across finance/accounting teams partially mitigate execution risk during the search for a permanent CFO .
- Pay-for-performance context: DBI’s FY2024 AOI performance fell below threshold, driving 0% payout for that cycle of PSUs for NEOs, indicating willingness to let at‑risk pay lapse when results underperform; Mr. Haley’s disclosed interim award is time-based, reflecting a retention/continuity objective rather than performance leverage during the transition .